By Doug Brown

Search engine optimization services have become an indispensable part of any digital marketing strategy. As more consumers turn to online search engines for information about local products and services, businesses must make sure their site is optimized to appear high in the rankings.

As the competition for local rankings on Google search continues to increase, it’s important to make sure that your business website stands out from the crowd. Whether you hire a local SEO company or do it yourself, it’s important to understand the basics of local SEO. Here are some tips to help you improve your local ranking on Google search:

Optimize Your Google My Business Profile:

Google My Business (GMB) is a powerful tool that allows businesses to manage their presence in local search results. It’s important to make sure that your GMB profile is optimized and up-to-date with accurate information about your business. Add photos, business hours, and other details that help customers learn more about your business. Ensure the NAP (name, address, and phone number) is the same across your online listings.

Utilize Location-Specific Keywords:

When optimizing your website for local search, make sure to use location-specific keywords in your content. For example, if you’re a restaurant in New York City, then you should include the words “restaurant” and “New York City” in your title tags, meta descriptions, and body copy. This will help Google understand that your business is located in a certain area and thus should rank higher for local search results.

Add Structured Markup to Your Website:

Structured markup helps search engines better understand the content of your website. By adding structured markup ‒ such as schema.org ‒ you can give additional context to Google, which can help them better understand and index your website. If you’re using WordPress, there are plenty of plugins that can help you implement structured markup with ease. Once you implement the markup, make sure to validate it with Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool.

Reach Out to Relevant Local Publications:

One of the best ways to build local links is by reaching out to local publications such as newspapers, magazines, and blogs. If you can get these publications to link back to your website, it will help your search engine rankings significantly. You need to ensure that the publications that you are partnering with are relevant to your business.

Create and Promote Local Content:

Creating content that is relevant to your local area is an effective way to improve your local rankings. Create content that focuses on local events, attractions, and businesses in your area. Promote this content on social media and link to it from other local websites and blogs. This will help Google understand that your business is connected to the local area and should appear in local search results.

Acquire Reviews From Customers:

Customer reviews are an important factor in Google’s ranking algorithm. If you get customers to leave positive reviews on websites such as Yelp and Google My Business, it will help your business rank higher in local …read more

Source:: Social Media Explorer

Author: Aaron