Local SEO Marketing and Your Business: How To Make It Work (And Why It’s Important At All)

Local search engine optimization — or, as it’s more commonly called, local SEO marketing — is one of those things you’ve probably only thought about after noticing that your competitors are somehow getting prime spots on a keyword search engine results page (SERP), complete with a map of their location, and your business isn’t.

Like it or not, paying attention to your local SEO results are important, especially considering that Google has an algorithm update (“Pigeon”) specifically for local search queries.

Let’s take a quick look at some of the most compelling statistics in the SEO marketing industry and then take a quick look at why these numbers really matter — not just for the industry in general, but for specific businesses, just like yours, that are cultivating an online presence:

• According to a 2014 survey published by Google, 54% of smartphone users use local search results pages to find business hours; 53% use the feature to find directions to local stores, and 50% use the feature to find a local store’s address.

  This is important because it shows what mobile searches are for — and what do you know, this information is exactly what pops up on a local search results page! Wouldn’t it be great if potential customers could access this information on your business without even having to leave the Google SERP? That’s exactly what optimized local SEO marketing is all about!

• After optimizing their websites for smartphone users, 62% of companies recently stated that they’ve seen an increase in revenue; the same trend occurred for 64% of companies that improved their mobile search engine optimization for tablets.

  This shows that mobile devices users aren’t just browsing the internet when they’re bored on the commute to work — they’re actually making real conversions, including online purchases. In fact, a recent survey found that approximately 50% of all smartphone users in the U.S. consider their phones to be their primary internet source. Ignoring mobile searches and local search results could mean you’re missing out on half of your potential customers!

• According to research from BrightLocal, 61% of mobile phone users are more likely to contact a business after browsing its mobile site, and at least 50% of users prefer browsing a business’s mobile site rather than its mobile app.

  Would you believe that a lot of businesses still think a mobile app is the same thing as a mobile website? These two features are definitely both important, but they aren’t the same! Mobile internet is becoming more important than ever — and not just on apps — so it’s essential to develop your mobile website if you want your SEO marketing campaigns to be successful. This is especially important for local SEO, since approximately 67% of consumers are more likely to engage with a business if its website is mobile-friendly (and a whopping 17% of local searches on mobile devices result in a same-day purchase, according to BrightLocal).

So just why is local SEO marketing so important? Because your business deserves to be a successful part of your community, and local search is just another way to let your customers know that your doors are open.