Is it imperative that your local community know about your business? If so, you need to find a way to rank as high as possible.
There are some ways to do this that will help you show up where you want. The best position is the top of page one of the Google SERP, but somewhere on this first page can be ok for you.
Do These Things and Improve Your Local Ranking on Google
1. Use the Same Keywords as Your Local Competition
Some keywords are generic for your industry and some that are specific to your products and services. If you have some direct local competition, try using the same keywords that you find in their content. Using some tools, you can figure out what keywords are working for your competition.
If you don’t have any direct local competition or you’re having trouble figuring out how to get on page one of a local search, look at a company that offers the same products and services as you that’s in another city. This could give you the insight you’re looking for.
2. Get Into the Local Pack
When you search for something in the area around you have you seen the Google map pop up with the top three most relevant results for that search? Of course, you have, and this is called the Local Pack. This is a highly competitive area of Google, but it’s where you want to be. Being in the Local Pack for your industry will immediately improve your local ranking on Google.
To get in the Local Pack you need to set up your Google My Business account and include your Name, Address, and Phone Number (NAP) along with important pages on your website. This is one of the most important factors in being ranked higher locally.
3. Make Sure Your Site is Mobile Friendly
More mobile devices are being used than desktops for searches. Think about how often you speak a search into your phone, use a laptop to find information, or enjoy the connectivity of a tablet. These mobile items make your computing and searching more dynamic and mobile, which means you need to have more mobile search capability built into your site.
Create a responsive design, use mobile-specific keywords, and improve your mobile SEO to ensure your site can easily be found on mobile devices. Check your site speed on mobile devices as well, to ensure users will find your site and stay on it when they’re searching for what you have to offer.
4. Organically Include Your Location in Your URL
This tip works great on the local level. What you need to do is include the city in the URL of your main page to bring your site to a higher local ranking position. This is pretty easy to do when you’re building a new site that you’ll begin to use. If you have a site that’s been around for a while, you may need to simply add part of the city name to be found.
Consider replacing the URL if you don’t have a domain name that includes your location. It could make it easy for you to rank higher. You could also keep your old domain name and use a 301 redirect to send people to the new site when you change your URL.
5. Write High-Quality, Long-Form Content
Because you’re looking for a higher local ranking on Google, your content should be longer and more specific to the area. If you’re talking about a car that’s great to drive around town, you can talk about the views that people will see on specific streets they are familiar with. Don’t be afraid to write content that lands between 1,000 and 1,5000 words in length, more is better.
If you’re stuck on the content you want to write, take a tour of the town and talk about what you see along the way. Discuss a typical day for someone working and living in your town. Feature some of the local events and offer a link to the event that will help people enjoy them more easily.
Increase Your Local Ranking and Connect with Your Community
You want and need the support of your local community to help your business thrive. Use these tips to increase your local ranking on Google search pages and enjoy the connection you have. Once you implement these tips, you’ll think of a few other ways to link with those around you online.
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