5 Website Improvements to Ensure Visibility on Google

Local SEO is crucial for businesses looking to attract customers in specific geographic areas. A strong local SEO strategy involves improving your website for local search terms and creating content that speaks to the needs of your local audience. This newsletter will walk you through website improvements that get visibility on Google.

Understanding How Improving Your Visibility Works

Google has about 83% market share in the search market. If you’re a local business owner or CEO it makes sense to focus primarily on Google Search. Google’s Local Search algorithm has three key ranking factors. Proximity, Relevance, and Prominence.?

Here is a quick summary of these three key local search ranking factors:

• Proximity refers to the physical distance from the searcher.
• Relevance refers to how relevant the business is to the search.
• Prominence refers to how well your brand stands out from the rest (in a positive way). This can come in: links; articles; directories; mentions; reviews; etc. It is the trust and credibility your brand has built up with search engines.

With the theory out of the way, we can now focus on the actionable website items you need to do to rank in local SERPs.

5 Website Improvements to Ensure Visibility on Google’s Local Search Results

#1. Add Services Page for Every Service You Offer

I know what you're thinking, as our clients give us that same look when we mention this website improvement. But did you know that creating a dedicated page for each service is the #1 ranking factor according to Whitespark’s 2023 ranking factors study?

The idea of creating a dedicated page for each service might seem overwhelming at first, but it's a crucial strategy for showing up on the first page of search results on Google when someone nearby is searching for keywords that are relevant to your business

#2. Add a Location or Service Area Page for Every City You Serve

Again, I know what you're thinking, as our clients give us that same look when we mention this improvement. But search engines use your website to understand what your business does. Service area or location pages help search engines understand the areas you serve.

This is a tactic that has been utilized by many for a long time, but I find that it’s often not executed well. Duplicated content, an obvious lack of keyword research, poor schema markup implementation, and page neglect are common issues I see. [Read this to avoid these mistakes]

#3. Optimize Title Tags

Keyword-rich title tags will help your pages rank higher for targeted keywords. Your title tags are one of the most important on-site SEO factors. Take the time to craft the perfect title tag, optimized for both keywords and clicks.

Recently, I've been educating owners and marketers on the 50 to 60-character limit they have been following. There are a ton of articles about this. SEO companies like telling you this arbitrary limit, because that’s generally what Google will display in the search results.

But actually, just recently, Google has come out and said that the title tag length is an arbitrary limit that was developed by SEO companies. So there actually is no defined limit. Google’s algorithm doesn’t think about how long your title tag should be. It’s just been sort of put together based on what is actually displayed in the search results.?

Here are some examples of title tags that focus on high-value keywords. They include the main locations to target, are catchy, stand out, and are designed to drive more clicks.

1. "Heating & Cooling in Portland OR | Trusted HVAC Services in Beaverton, Tigard, Gresham | 24/7 Emergency Repairs"
2. "Lawn Care Richmond VA | Reliable Landscaping Services | Lawn Maintenance Companies Near Me"
3. "Electricians Denver CO | Certified Electricians | Electrical Repair Services Nearby"

#4. Optimize Your URLs

Keep your URLs short and keyword-rich. Don’t repeat keywords in them. This is pretty straightforward. If you want a deep dive you can read more here.

#5. Structure Your Site’s Main Navigation Menu

A well-thought-out website structure will make your website more SEO friendly. Your main navigation should be aligned with your website structure.

A great site menu should include links to all the most important parts of your website. So it’s up to you to figure out what to put in it, ultimately. But whatever content you decide to include, it’s absolutely essential to make your menu usable.

Wrap Up

Although it can be a lot to learn and implement, conquering local search optimization will help boost your business and get you noticed online. Most importantly, developing a powerful local SEO strategy will help you dominate the first page of Google for the search terms that are most relevant to your business. This means you’ll earn high-quality traffic from people who are looking for a product or service like yours.

Need Guidance?

If understanding how to get and maintain your business showing up on the first page of Google is of interest to you, send me a message ?? on LinkedIn or fill out this form, and we can continue the discussion.