The objective of local SEO is to get your website seen by people within your business’ service area – and when it comes to getting those first page rankings, every guide you read will tell you that you need to claim your Google Business Listing, submit to a tonne of other business directory sites, and collect those reviews!
Whilst this is absolutely sound advice, and there is no better initial starting place with local SEO, there’s another important tip that you might be missing out on… One that a lot of the other “beginner” guides won’t tell you. This tip is plain and simple, but is the number one “needle moving” piece of advice I could possibly have to give you about getting your website to the top of Google within your area.
So, here it is:
Create Local SEO Pages.
That’s right. It’s so simple… but when you’ve submitted to as many directories as possible, you’ve badgered people for more reviews than you count, and your NAP (name, address, phone number) is more consistent than you can comprehend – it’s easy to forget the fact that you simply haven’t got enough content on your website around your target location. It’s cringy to say, but content really is king with this, so you need to write about the area you want to rank for.
However, this doesn’t mean just keyword stuffing everywhere, remember not to cop out on user experience!
If you let your users know the extent of your service reach, Google will pick up on it too. I can’t stress this enough, though… DO NOT go crazy and start spamming your website full of location content all over the shop! Keep things logical.
How to organise this:
Create a “sub category” on your website to include a list of the areas you cover. This could perhaps be a branch of your about us page/s, or a list in your footer. Internal linking where appropriate will enhance the weight of these pages. But just as is the case with anything SEO wise, be sure you’re mindful of not overdoing it.
Bonus tip: Consider embedding a Google Map of the location you are targeting on this page.
I’m a freelance digital marketing expert and I help lots of local businesses to get more out of their online presence. For more help & advice on Local SEO in Hertfordshire & Bedfordshire, get in touch!
