Local SEO: 8 Things You Need to Know

We’ve been talking a lot about local SEO over the last few months. For most small to medium sized businesses, local SEO is becoming one of the most important aspects of their digital presence. We’ve talked about the importance of reviews, robust content, and link building.

But today we want to zoom out a bit and cover the things you absolutely need to know about local SEO – and what you can do to improve those things. So, let’s not waste any more time and dive right into the eight most important factors for local SEO.

Eight Things You Need to Know About Local SEO

1. Reviews – Local SEO relies very heavily on reviews. And Google looks at three factors when it comes to reviews: amount, rating, and age. To get the best results, your business needs a steady stream of quality reviews.
2. Age – For the search engines, age corresponds (on some level) with authority. Businesses that have successfully survived over the years are likely to be higher quality. Google looks at the age of your website and you Google My Business (GMB) listing to determine the age.
3. NAP – NAP stands for name, address, and phone number. For this factor, you want to make sure that your NAP appears completely and consistently across multiple sources – your website, social media, business directories, and data trackers.
4. Keywords – Just like in traditional SEO, keywords play an important role in local SEO. For local, it is helpful to have relevant keywords appear in your name, URL, and business description – just don’t try to cheat the system, which brings us to our next factor.
5. Spam – Trying to trick the system doesn’t work in the long run. In local SEO, some businesses try to keyword stuff their name or cheat on their location. But resist the temptation because the risks aren’t worth the reward.
6. Backlinks – The importance of backlinks for local SEO runs right along with their importance to traditional SEO. They establish your business as a trustworthy source of quality information. And that is always good for SEO.
7. Content – While content has less impact on local SEO, it still plays a role. When you’re in a tight race to the top with your competitors, the quality and depth of your content can be what pushes you over the top.
8. Website Build – Along with content, Google will also look at your website build to help determine reliability. If your site is glitchy, slow, non-responsive, or outdated; then you run the risk of dropping in the local rankings.

Local SEO Works

So why do we keep talking about local SEO? Because it works. If you’re a local business, then ignoring local SEO today would be like ignoring social media five years ago. It might seem like a passing fad – but it’s here to stay and absolutely necessary if you want to continue growing your business.

At Fusion Group USA we specialize in providing top-quality SEO services that meet both local and traditional needs. From directory submissions and NAP audits to on-page optimization, we can improve your SEO across the board. And all our services come in easy to understand monthly packages so you know just what you’re paying and just what you’re getting. Contact us today to get started!