Your local presence online is how people will find you in a local search engine query. When users are looking for businesses near them, they will count on Google to provide them with their best option based on their location. Google is going to give them the most trustworthy and relevant result, and you want your business to continually be that.
If you have appeared in Google’s local pack before, you’ve found the gold for local SEO! However, staying there is the key to continual SEO success.
Here’s how you can maintain your local presence online!
Maximize Your Listing on Google, Bing, and Apple Maps
Google, Bing, and Apple Maps are incredibly effective tools that are being used more and more, essentially replacing word-of-mouth directions. Additionally, these platforms make it easier for consumers to discover and research the companies they are searching for. Ensuring your presence on these platforms is what will make or break your local SEO efforts.
Google My Business
Google My Business is a free tool for businesses to manage their online presence, and it can have a great impact for brands looking to seek the best local exposure. To maintain your local presence, you need to continually update and optimize your profile.
Some things to keep in mind include:
- Enter all business information – Include accurate information on where you’re located, what you do, and how they can reach out to you.
- Incorporate keywords – Add in your important keywords and phrases in your business description that you are wanting to rank for.
- Add and update photos – According to Search Engine Journal, the click-through-rate from your GMB profile to your site can be upwards of 35% higher if you include photos. These photos help consumers view your brand identity and can see more of how your company works. It’s important to continue to update these photos as well!
- Keep responding to reviews – It’s so important to respond to your reviews from your customers. Monitoring them and continuing to reply professionally will help your business’s visibility on the search engine.
Bing and Apple Maps
These two platforms run very similarly to GMB. Continually optimizing these profiles is essential to maintaining your presence online and allowing your visibility on the search engine to stay high. You can edit basic business information, photos and hours of operation.
Keeping Up with Your Social Media
Since social media use has truly skyrocketed in recent years, cultivating your brand and creating relationships with your followers is key to maintaining your online presence. It can help you to improve your customer service efforts, communicate with old and prospective clients, reach new audiences, and ultimately drive traffic to your website.
Some tips for managing your social media include:
- Set your goal – Know what you want to get out of your social media efforts so you can ensure your strategy will achieve it. These goals could be engaging with customers, generating leads, driving sales, increasing web traffic, or expanding your audience.
- Schedule out posts – When you’ve developed your goals and strategy, set a schedule and automate your posts to make it easier to monitor.
- Engage with your audience – Comment on posts, share relevant content, pose and answer questions, address complaints and share user-generated content.
Set Up an Online Shop
Think with Google says that 4 in 5 shoppers prefer ads customized to their location, including city, zip code, or immediate surroundings. This correlates with an increase in online shopping. What better way to maintain your online presence locally than by creating a shop that advertises locally?
Consider setting up an online store for your products or services that can help you to be more visible in a local search!
Reach Out to Sixth City for Local SEO Help!
If you want to ensure that your business’s presence online is maintained, connect with our team for local SEO assistance. We look forward to hearing from
