Local businesses aiming to generate more leads in its city and surrounding areas will need local SEO. It is the only way to appear in Google's organic search results without spending a fortune on online ads.
If you search for your services on Google and see a competitor showing up in the local search results, it can be very frustrating. The good news is that Google wants to show your website in the cities you work in. However, for Google to find your site and present it to local customers, there are a few steps you'll need to implement. This is what we will cover on this page.
Understanding the Basics of Local SEO
Local SEO is the process of optimizing your website to meet the requirements of search engines, specifically for local search results. So, when someone searches for a "roofer near me," you can be the one to appear at the top. This can be done by implementing city keywords, schema, dedicated location pages, and so much more.
It's a combination of both off-page and on-page SEO, meaning that you'll need to leverage free tools like your Google Business Profile, along with optimizing your website for Google search. Optimizing could entail anything from ensuring the H1 and H2 headings are used correctly to ensuring your site is indexed on Google.
What is Local SEO and Why Does It Matter?
A local SEO strategy differs from general search engine optimization because you aren't just optimizing your website for keywords related to roofing. Instead, you are optimizing your site for keywords such as "roofer near me" or "contractor in... (city name)". You need to create pages on your website for each city that you want to get leads from.
This is important because search engines think like machines; they don't intuitively know where you work or your service areas. Even if you have your address on your site, which is important, you still need other components in place so search engines will know exactly what local customers to show your website to.
How Google Ranks Local Search Results
When someone searches on Google for a contractor, the first spot on the results page will be advertising, followed by Google Maps, and finally the organic results. If a customer is searching for an answer to a question, then chances are, organic search results will be at the top instead of ads.
There are many more components to SEO that local businesses will need to implement, but in short, Google uses a variety of factors to determine where it will show your site in the organic results. It wants to know if people stay on your site because they are gaining value from the content, so Google watches how people interact with your page. It also looks to see if other pages are referring traffic to your site because it builds the credibility of your brand.
Key Factors For Local Businesses
Here are a few things that you'll want to start implementing on and off your website. These practices are greatly beneficial to local businesses that want to reach their surrounding areas. By following these strategies, you can improve your visibility in local search results and attract more customers to your business.
For a business owner, practicing local SEO is essential to ensure visibility to potential customers who are actively searching for services in their area, which is known as "local intent." So, if you want your website to show up for both your services and the cities you want to work in, you'll need to combine both city and service keywords along with implementing the following tactics:
1. NAP Consistency (Name, Address, Phone Number)
Consistency in your business's name, address, and phone number (NAP) across all online platforms is critical for local SEO. Inaccurate or inconsistent NAP information can negatively impact your local search rankings. Utilizing citation builders can help ensure your NAP information is consistent across the web. But you'll still need to manually change some of them.
2. Citation Builder
A useful tool for managing local business information across the internet is to use tools called citation builders. A citation is a business listing. It can be anything from a well-known site like Houzz to a site you've probably never heard of. But they will post your company's information for free. This will help search engines identify your business.
3. Leveraging Google Business Profile
Your Google Business Profile is a powerful tool for improving local visibility. By claiming and optimizing your listing, you can provide valuable information to potential customers, such as your business hours, location, and contact information. It's extremely important for all local businesses to use the profile to its full potential and especially encourage customers to leave reviews, which will boost their local SEO efforts.
4. Increase Your Reviews
Reviews play a significant role in local SEO, as positive reviews can enhance your business's credibility and visibility in local search results. Encouraging satisfied customers to leave reviews and responding to reviews, both positive and negative, can help you build a positive online reputation. However, it's easy to get busy and forget to ask for reviews, which is why automating this aspect is highly beneficial. We highly recommend using a service that will help you reach out to customers via text and email to ask for reviews.
5. Continue With The Basics of SEO
Be sure to continue with the basics of SEO by writing content about all your services, ensuring the content is written for both Google search and your customers. Use the appropriate headers, add alt text to your images, and craft keyword-specific meta titles and meta descriptions. Also, don't forget the technical side of SEO, which involves fixing any bugs or broken links and maintaining a fast website speed.
6. Create Location Pages
One of the most important aspects of all this is creating location-specific pages on your website. These location pages can help you target local keywords and improve your chances of appearing in local search results. You'll want to create these pages to look almost exactly like your home page, except with all the copy, meta title, etc., referring to the city you are targeting. This includes having the city mentioned in the URL. These pages should include relevant information about your business, such as your location, services, and contact information.
7. Audit Competitor For Local Listings
Perform an audit of your competitors' websites. This will provide you with information on keywords to use and more. But the main thing you're looking for when it comes to improving your local rankings is the listings and backlinks they have. If your competitor has a backlink from a local company or a business listing that you don't have, this can give you ideas on building out that side of your off-page SEO.
Elevate your Roofing Business with Su Vista Marketing
Su Vista specializes in boosting the online visibility of roofing contractors through expert local SEO strategies. We understand the unique needs of your business because we have experience running a roofing company and managing marketing for roofers across the US.
We will focus on optimizing your online presence to attract local customers actively searching for roofing services. From NAP consistency and citation building to Google Business Profile optimization and review management, we ensure that your roofing business stands out in local search results. Let Su Vista Marketing help you dominate your local market and grow your roofing SEO today. Tools For Improving Your Local SEO