One common reason preventing most small business owners from implementing a solid SEO campaign is their limited budget for marketing. SEO can be quite intimidating for a lot of people, especially those who are not tech savvy, but it is actually something that every small business owner can do themselves. Yes, executing effective SEO strategies is possible even without hiring an expert. All you need is the willpower to learn, a computer, internet connection, and a few hours a day and you can start applying SEO techniques that can help your small business increase online visibility and traffic which will drive customers to your doorstep and start buying your products or services.

Here are 7 local SEO tips you can easily implement for your small business:

Keywords and Phrases

An essential component of SEO is the presence of relevant keywords and phrases in your website content. It is important that these keywords and phrases are related to your business as well as the area in which your company is located. Equally important is using keywords that target buyers. Doing this will greatly help push your website to the end of the Google search engine results lists where your target audience are actively searching for your product or service.

Content Marketing

Content marketing is very useful for all types of businesses, but it has a particular appeal for small businesses. Your website can become a powerful tool in creating a great impression about your business and showing your target audience what you can do for them. Provide relevant and fresh details about your offerings and discuss recent events that happened in your locality that where your services or products were used so they have a more solid idea about what you offer and how it can be useful or beneficial for them. If you are struggling with what you need to put on your website to effectively rank on search engines, gaining more knowledge through online SEO training will also help.

Blog

Effective SEO strategy involves providing fresh content on your website. Google places higher value on websites that are regularly updated to provide new and relevant content. Aside from ranking high on search engine results, having fresh content on your website keeps it interesting to your visitors and gives them a reason to keep browsing through the other pages instead of moving on to a competitor’s website. Having a business blog incorporated on your website is one way to ensure that you constantly have a steady supply of new content. You can invite or accept guest blogs as well, so there are new ideas for your website.

Business Name and Location in the URL

Aside from including your business type and location in your webpage copy, it is also recommended to add this pertinent information in your webpage URL. So, for instance, if the name of your business is “John’s Carwash” and your company is located in Cape Town, a URL that with the phrase “www.Johnscarwashcapetown.co.za” will be helpful in improving your ranking in search engines. Aside from this being an effective SEO technique, this is also a good marketing strategy that helps with brand recall.

NAP Data

Local SEO is helpful in bringing potential customers who are located in your business area towards your store, and this is made possible by including your business name, address, and phone number (also referred to as NAP data) in your website’s contact page and all the other pages on your website. This allows your site visitors to easily take note of your address or call you for their questions or booking requests. Also, having consistent NAP data all throughout your website enables Google to take notice of your business and corresponding location, so when searchers look for your particular product or service in your specific location, you come up on page one of their search results page.

Mobile Optimization

In this day and age where most of your target online audience relies heavily on mobile gadgets such as their smart phones and tablets, Google has made a few adjustments when it comes to ranking websites for mobile devices. Just a few months back, Google started labeling search results on mobile as “mobile-friendly” for those sites which are optimized for mobile users. These sites are of course, being prioritized over those which are not optimized for mobile, and it makes perfect sense. Since Google is known to place value on websites that are user-friendly, it will push those websites higher in their mobile search rankings those sites which provide easier viewing and navigation for mobile users.

Establish Business Listings

For your small business to gain exposure to most of your target audience, your business should be present in the top online business listing sites, such as Google My Business, yelp, and Yellowbook. This type of exposure is also great for widening your market reach, extending to people who are just browsing through these listing websites. As mentioned earlier, it is essential to have your NAP data here as well. It is also crucial that your NAP data are consistent with those provided on your website. Maintaining consistent business contact information on the internet makes it easier for Google to identify your business and this also helps increase your online credibility.

Despite a limited budget, these local SEO tips will make it possible for every small business owner like you to conquer the online market as your company becomes more and more visible to your target consumers who are using the search engines for your particular product or service.

Copyandco Editorial

Copyandco is an award winning freelance Copywriting Company based in South Africa, Cape Town. We at Copyandco develop content marketing strategies for our client which include search optimized content that search engines like Google loves and users like and engaged.