Local Search Boosts Site Traffic

What Is Local Search

What is Local SEO and what makes it different from any other kind of SEO search on the web? SEO for local search is a term that was created by Google as very specific search engine optimization (SEO) technique. Although other search engines employ similar techniques to the Google local search, they are rather weak and not important enough for SEO.

The following are the three most popular definitions of local search that give us a conceptual image of Google’s approach for Local SEO. We use these definitions as a starting point for our local search campaigns.

  • Local search is any search that specifically targets any entitiy within a certain geographical area. Example: “steak restaurants New York city.”

  • Local search is an Internet search seeking a specified result in a defined geographical area in order to do something that is not related to the Internet. Example: “best coffee shops New York.”

  • Local search is an Internet search that seeks businesses that were formerly located using phone book Yellow Pages: Example: “dentist near Birchwood Dr. in Houston, TX.”

If your business has a fixed address and provides service to clientele who will physically go to that address; your business is a Local business as defined by Google Local Search. A business that services customers (or clients or patients) at their physical location will attract people within a specific geographical area. In business, this is known as service area. This “local” concept is significant since this market segment targets all online marketing for local search.

What Businesses Are Included In Local Search?

Local search targeted businesses include landscapers, plumbers, nails salons, exercise clubs, coffee shops, delicatessens, pet shops, bike shops, electricians, attorneys, dentists, and physicians. The more local a business can define itself, the more customers it will attract because their location is convenient for providing services and products.

Local search does not limit the definition to physical locations where customers will shop. Many companies provide services at their clients’ locations. These business, particularly the trades services industries, are also included in the local search.

In the image below, Google shows the 3 Pack for a search for “pet shops Chicago.” Note: This search was conducted from an Internet Provider (IP) address in the Chicago area.

Local search results like the ones we create for our clients.

How Does Google Interpret Local Search?

In the image below, Google shows the 3 Pack for a search for “pet shops Chicago.” Note: This search was conducted from an Internet Provider (IP) address in the Chicago area.

Local search results like the ones we create for our clients.

Google has a very specific way of interpreting “local search”. All search engines, including Google, try to show the most relevant results for every search query. The Google alorithm will analyze the search in an attempt to find and “local intent”. This will help Google filter the search, so if the Google search engine program calculates that there is local intention, it will feed back local search listings in the search engine results pages (SERPs). Example, if someone keys in “pet shop” and a modifier for a city or any geographical target for search, alocal search page will triger. This might be a Google map listing, if the search term is popular so it will show the top 3 listings in a special area at the top of the search engine results page. This is called the “3 Pack”, the “Local Search Pack”, or the “Google Maps Pack.”

Does Your Business Have Multiple Locations?

Multiple locations are handled slightly differently than a single location companies. Since all search is local we create a locally optimized marketing campaign for each location. This gives your business the best opportunity for traffic, inquiries, and conversions for every location.

Need A Local Search Expert

We can help you target Local Search when planning your SEO campaign. In fact, this is one of our specialties. We’ve helped other companies get excellent results in the local search listing, why not you?

To find out how we can best work together, schedule an appointment for a complimentary consultation. We also recommend you complete the Discovery questionnaire so we have as much information as possible for an efficient and meaningful conversation.

Resources for this page: Local Search information.

Frequently Asked Questions

SEO campaigns vary in pricing depending on important factors, such as the targeted keywords, your website situation, and amount of we necessary to achieve results.  Our company provides services to established companies that are producing approximately one million dollars, or more in business per year. A company of that size is more likely to aim at the top of the search engine ladder and this requires serious efforts on our part. We make every effort to provide these services in an affordable manner. We have more information about client qualifications at “How Can We Work Together?”

All your work is completed by our employees. We hire only experienced programmers, developers, writers and other skilled website marketing professionals.  All to often we see so called agencies that are nothing more than sales sites or affiliates for off- shore companies. We are U.S. company specializing in servicing U.S. businesses.  Your account is not shipped out to a foreign company.  Unlike many agencies, we are not top heavy with management, office personnel, and sales staff.  We focus on doing the job, not selling you services.

Google warns to stay away from companies claiming to guarantee rankings. Google states, “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google. Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings, allege a “special relationship” with Google, or advertise a “priority submit” to Google.” You can read the complete statement at Google Support Any company that says they can is being dishonest as Google’s algorithm changes frequently. We are a recognized leader consistently providing our clients the highest level of service and results. While we cannot guarantee rankings, we have a proven track record of delivering results to our clients.

Every company says that they can deliver you results, but we have the experience to back that up. We are led by industry veterans that have been performing SEO for companies in the United States. If you ask, “can you show me examples of your previous work and share some success stories?” the answer is Yes! we definitely can show you examples of our success. In fact, Scott Douglas Walker, our founder and CEO, is a frequent presenter for business organizations providing expert insights on Internet Marketing.

What is the timeframe for a successful campaign? Google uses over 200 unique ranking signals, so we cannot accurately predict how a website ranking schedule. However,our experience with many clients over several years indicates that a typical campaign will start to show significant improvements for longer search terms within 90 days while the more difficult competitive terms will show a boost in rankings in 180 days. Please note: SEO is considered a long term marketing strategy that continues to provide the best marketing return on investment (ROI).

We cannot predict whether your website requires architectural and design edits or upgrades until we perform a complete analysis of your website. Much or services involve adjustments to code or the content of each page. Our changes tend to concentrate on adding more quality information into your website to improve your customers’ experience on your site. Sometimes websites are just too out of date or have too many issues to attract good user experience.  In these cases we do recommend replacing your website with a new fresh approach.

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