What is Local SEO compared to SEO? SEO or Search Engine Optimization is the tool used to increase your visibility to searchers using Google, Yahoo or any other search engine. Let’s stick to Google for our purposes. Based on an unknowable Google algorithm, the best content is distributed according to the latest analytics and keywords from free or paid SEO providers.?
Local SEO utilizes similar content and keywords but focuses on the smaller area. For Kimble, we have a focused area of operations limited to a smaller scale. We don’t need to hit keywords that rank high in Southern Oregon. But we DO need to shore up several arenas that Google notices.
Google is continually improving the user experience. We use the Google My Business Feature as a monitoring tool only. But it has other options, including posting changes and more. Below are some steps to improve our local SEO:
- Posting Directly to GMB: GMB works like a Tamagotchi. The more you interact with it, the better it likes you. The better it likes you, the more you rise to the SERPs list. “The best place to hide a dead body is page two of a search engine”—no truer words.
- Shore Up Our Mobile: Most of our customers access our site through mobile phones (currently 65.2%), and this trend continues to climb. Our mobile site should be correctly set up to appear seamless when new material is added using a desktop. In addition, our click-to-call should always be available, and other one-touch features should be easily accessible.
- Build Better Reviews: Oy vay! This is where the rubber meets the road. We all know our Google Review stats and the comments that go with them. We are barely clinging to two out of five stars. The bad reviews fall primarily on the shoulders of our drivers and routers to ensure all trash and recyclables are picked up on time every time. If we can do that, we should start seeing better reviews come through and our rating climb. We can develop a strategy, asking our customers to rate us on Google. We could have a reminder typed on invoices, and special flyers and mentioned by our CSRs to satisfied customers. To give to everyone, we’d probably have to offer a percent or dollar amount off their bill for an honest review on Google. The FTC does NOT allow us to ask for a GOOD review.
- Build Better Social Media Reviews: As with the GMB reviews, we need to perform better in the field for this to help us. Google knows full well what happens with every social media platform. We’re engaging more and trying to build a better relationship with our customers. However, with too many posts hidden or deleted from Facebook, its algorithm takes notice and negatively marks us. And that is a practice that needs to slow to a crawl — removing ONLY the troll-type comments. Facebook will find the vulgar and abusive ones through their process and eventually block them or their comments for us.
- Linking to Local, Reputable Organizations: Whether schools, businesses, clubs or government offices, each time we have the opportunity, we should link something we’ve posted to their website. And, based on the relationship, ask them to link to us somewhere on theirs. These backlinks boost Google’s algorithm and lead to higher SEO scores, whereas links to SPAM or other disreputable sites knock us down. A crawl of our site will find these bad backlinks. Karcher or ahrefs can do that for a cost.
- An excellent example of positive backlinks: Our 4H donations and the auctions we purchased livestock from. The positivity on Facebook and the many comments back and forth help build public confidence, and Google notices this. Hopefully, the local 4H chapter wrote a post and included a link to us. If not, we want to ask about this next year. The positivity on Facebook and the many comments back and forth help build public confidence, and Google takes notice.
- Matching Information: We should ensure that all language and posts on each social media platform match anything we put on GMB. Discrepancies in posts, locations, phone numbers and sites all knock us down.
- Word of Mouth: Like it or not, local posts hurt us. Then others join the fray and it gets out of hand. The best approach is to confront the issue, respond to the person complaining with a personal, heartfelt message instead of a canned response that is swiftly recognized, take responsibility and try to HELP them. Then, run a separate post that says, “Hey! Look what we’ve got going to solve this issue some of our costumes have had.” In other words, turn it into a positive. We could also run other posts with **UPDATES** on our progress. Hiding or deleting legitimate posts only hurts us in an era of instant information and tech-savvy customers. (OK, maybe not in Tuscarawas County).
- Meant for Each Location: These GMB features should be utilized for each GMB location. That means separate posts, backlinks, etc.?
When you search for something on Google, for example, “Tire Shops,” Google brings up the first of many pages for them. Paid-for Google Ads will run at the page's top and say, “Ad.” Next will be three or four businesses with a Google Maps image to the right showing each business’s pin. These are called “Snack Packs.” Last will be the organic results based on overall SEO and quality of the content Google found on their site that best matches.
But these “Snack Packs” are the place to be. These sites reached the Google markers put before them by the algorithm and are local to the searcher. They’re worth the effort and drive traffic locally.
Going forward, we should continue to put out positive information and engage customers where they are. Sometimes, people just want their voices and complaints heard. That’s enough in some situations to relax or alleviate them. But they can smell a fake; we must fulfill our promises or face a never-ending uphill battle against our larger competitors and ourselves. Being the lead dog is great, but your view never changes when you’re bringing up the rear.
