9 Website Design and Marketing Tips to Improve Your Local Business
The top 9 local search engine marketing tip series intends to help business owners better reach a local demographic using web sites and tools on the Internet. If you do not have a well coded website, get one. Then, use these local search engine optimization tips along with other research because this article alone will not cut it. This article is just a summary to follow, and you should seek out more information on how to increase your Google Page Rank and lower your Alexa Rank.
Tip #1: Create Quality Content With Plenty of Keywords.
Search engines and customers use keywords and phrases to find your website. Make sure you use plenty of the words you would like to be found for in the text of your website. Website designers and owners should create plenty of pages that display all of the content necessary to tell a search engine to show you as an expert for your keywords.
Take the time to look at your competitors’ websites and try and have at least as many pages as they do, if not more. One last important tip for local search is to take every opportunity to put your location in your text. This helps for Google Local rankings, and the value of your Alexa ranking means you can charge advertisers higher fees for placing banners on your blog.
Tip #2: Update Content Often With Local Information.
Take every opportunity to add new pages to your site which discuss local topics and events. Search engines will see that you are discussing local events with local keywords and move up your ranking as a local expert. Participate in local events and get your company name on charity and community websites with links back to your websites. These types of links are invaluable and can only be acquired through hard work and giving back to your community.
Tip #3: Use Available Resources – Some Recommendations and Examples Provided
One of the best tools we have found to help promote websites locally is the Google Business Tools suite. This amazing resource center allows website designers and managers analyze, manage, advertise, and invest in a websites online presence.Google has put most of their main business tools together in one location for easy use and understanding.
Check the relevant website design resources out, read about them, and sign up for the ones that apply to you: Google Website Optimizer, Google AdWords, Google Apps, Google Webmaster Tools, Google Base, Google Local Business Center and Amazon’s Alexa Internet Business Suite.
Tip #4: Pay Per Click – Monitor Closely and Spend Wisely
If you can set up and optimize your pay per click campaign it can be very successful and sometimes the results are amazing. That being said, we have witnessed many different cases where Pay Per Click advertising has burned through an entire budget in a couple of days. This can happen if you don’t take the time to read through the entire process before making your section. Use Local words in your PPC campaign to save money by competing locally instead of globally.Remember, spending money to make money is necessary, but spend wisely.
Tip #5: Local Search Engines: Google Maps, Yahoo! Local, Bing Local
This is an obvious and easy way to increase your local exposure. We have all use Alexa search tool that has given results with a map and indicator dots on related business locations. If you would like to come up for these types of local searches,carefully submit for these specialized location based results. The search engines will often request some sort of verification through call back or traditional mail and pin verification.
Tip #6: Yelp!
Take the time to list yourself on Yelp and register your business. Make sure that you spend the time on these postings that you would for any piece of marketing material for your business. Yelp!, or websites like it, is sometimes the only chance to give an impression you will have with a customer.Be careful. These types of listings are double edged swords. If you don’t maintain a high standard of service and quality, this will also be the location that customers will go to vent about their frustrations. These listings will also count as a quality inbound link for search and is useful to increase your search ranking.
Tip #7: Chambers of Commerce
You should become members with at least one local chamber of commerce. This is a great way to establish credibility and become a member of your local business community. Once you have this membership, make sure that your listing on the chamber website is a direct link to your website. Chambers of commerce are considered to be local experts, and their link to you is a valuable one.
Tip #8: CitySearch
CitySearch is very similar to Yelp in that it is a popular local search engine. Make sure that you spend some quality time explaining yourself and your business. You should also make sure to check back and monitor your reviews often.
Tip #9: Press Release Services, Face book, and Twitter
Social Media and local publicity can be very important for local results. Make sure to use locations and city information in your profile descriptions. Search engines will look at social media websites, and if you do a good job of mentioning local search words with your search engine keywords, you will begin to see additional results in the social media results sections of search engines. Press releases can be the most important local marketing item a business can employ.
Implemented wisely, a well optimized press release or social media blast can bring you first-page visibility for your keywords very quickly. Sometimes, you can take over more than one spot on the first page of Google. These same items used in their traditional roles of simple media notifications will get you nothing in terms of search results, make sure your marketing and PR companies know what they are doing. It could be hurting you. Your Alexa rank will tumble down and enhance your profile, even as your page rank climbs.
