is172462685 technology largeStill haven't invested in local SEO (search engine optimization)? You're missing out. There is a wide variety of methods and which one suits you best depends on what you're marketing.

Wait a minute, just what is local optimization and SEO?

One of the most popular WordPress SEO plugins, Yoast, explains: “If you have a local business, like a shop, or have people visiting your office frequently, optimizing your website is also about making sure people are able to find you in real life. But even if you’re not actively getting visitors in your building but are targeting an audience that is located in the same geographical area as you are, you need to optimize for that area. This is what we call ‘local SEO.’”

The first piece of information you need to uncover is why the number of searches for businesses nearby has grown by 900 percent since 2017.

If you're a business that uses SEO marketing, this is a question that needs to be at the forefront of your mind. After all, the best way to reach the consumer is to understand their reasons for their behaviors and use the information to efficiently reach them and speak directly to their needs.

Here, we're going to explain why ignoring local optimization can hurt your business and the reasons behind the growth of local search engine optimization.

Technology is Growing

It's no secret that we live in a more tech-savvy society today than we ever have before. In 2011, only 35 percent of Americans owned smartphones, while today that number has risen to 77 percent.

One huge reason that ignoring local optimization can be detrimental to your business is that we live in the age of smartphone searches. When you were young, it's likely that you had to rely on billboards or word-of-mouth to find the best services near you. That isn't the case anymore.

Because people just do a quick search on their phones when they want to find anything from a restaurant to a craft store, not having local optimization on will leave your business out of these searches. Instead, people will see other places pop up within walking or driving distance to them.

This is a huge reason why not having local SEO hurts you. [quotesright]People are more likely to click on a business that Google maps guarantees is only a mile away than dig deeper to learn if another business is close to them or not. [/quotesright]

Most People Want Local Knowledge

When people use a search engine, they're specifically looking for places that they can go to without a lot of hassle. After all, no one wants to turn finding a place to eat or buy a new video game into a major road trip.

When your business comes up as being nearby, you're going to get more people interested in your business. If you don't believe us, take a look at the facts: [quotes]88 percent of people who search for a local business either call that place or go to it within the day. [/quotes]

That's why you need local SEO. Without it, you're going to be losing a lot of business when competitors pop up on these people's screens instead of you.

Local optimization also encourages walk-ins: 72 percent of those who search are the prospects who take the time out of their day to show up and look around. This brings traffic into your store and lets people see how cool your services really are.

Ignoring this Technology Can Cost You

Business competition has a lot of benefits since it encourages product development and the growth of more effective and efficient business trends. Still, despite its benefits, being at the wrong end of the competitive business scale can cost you a lot of money... or your business itself.

Fortunately, you have control over how your business fits in with others that offer similar services.

Anyone who types a search for a specific kind of service already knows what they want. If someone searches for Indian restaurants near me, they know exactly what kind of business they're looking for.

If you're running an Indian restaurant, that makes other nearby Indian restaurants your direct competitors. And guess what will come up when people search for tikka masala near them? That's right, your competitors.

Like we touched on before, people are almost certainly going to head out to a business that they're certain is near them. In the era of immediate gratification, no one is going to do further research on other businesses once they find a place with that golden “1.0 mile from me” badge.

That's why you need to have that badge. Failing to invest in the local SEO technologies that place you at the forefront of a simple Google search will not only direct customers away from you – [quotesright]It's going to fling them right into the arms of your direct competitors. [/quotesright]

No Tech? No Growth.

Not only will neglecting local optimization hurt you in the short term since people aren't going to be able to find you, but over time this will stunt the growth of your services.

Basically, you'll be directing business away from you, discouraging walk-ins, and giving business to your competitors. Saying that you're going to be putting a huge strain on your business doesn't even begin to cover it: You would be engaging directly in self-sabotage.

[quotes]Whether you like it or not, digital marketing isn't just for today, it's your future.[/quotes] For all you “old school” students who aren’t up with today’s tech, think of local search optimization as the same game that was played in business Yellow Page (remember those?) ads with names like “AAAAAAA AARDVARK Pest Control.”

Remember those full page ads at the front of the Yellow Pages, they cost a bundle but they were so worth it because they were seen first in the listings. Those were no different than today’s paid Google ads and local SEO. [quotesright]We’ve just eliminated the paper. [/quotesright]

People will continue to use their phones to make these local searches, so not investing in the proper technology will kill your business growth over time. In the future, this is probably going to be the case even more than it is today. Advertising is moving almost entirely into the digital sphere.

Local optimization is key for this reason. You don't want to fall into the past. Stay in the present. Look to the future.

Get Local SEO Today!

Getting the word out there about your business can be a challenge, but local optimization is a must-have if you want to do this effectively. If you ignore this trend, you'll miss out on a good chunk of the people who are interested in your business and as good as ensure they take their money to your competitors.

On the flip side, having local search engine optimization will make sure that your business is one of the more competitive ones in your area. It will let you showcase your goods and services so well that locals will be flocking to get a look.

Now that you know why you can't ignore the trend of local optimization, how can you get even more tips on growing your business to be the biggest and best it can be? Want to explore further? Questions? Get in touch and let's set up a time to talk. Team Stetzel  281-216-4086 Email Me

Login