Running a small business in the United States has never been an easy proposition, and in our increasingly online modern world, even getting your name out there and noticed by potential clients can be a daunting challenge. With that in mind, making a wise decision when choosing the best marketing plan to promote your business on a potential shoestring budget is especially important.
While there are certainly many strategies to choose from (indeed, finding the best choice can be overwhelming!), you should strongly consider looking into local Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Local SEO offers a cost-effective way for small local businesses to easily find potential customers searching for products or services. Read on to learn how and why SEO could just be the ideal solution to building a reliable client base and getting your business established!
What is Local SEO?
Local SEO takes advantage of location data provided by searchers’ devices and takes steps to ensure that their results are populated with relevant local business information — ideally, your business information.
The ultimate goal of good SEO and web design is to bring your website and business to the attention of potential clients. SEO plays an especially important role for small local businesses – 46% of all Google searches represent people trying to find local information, and at least half of the people doing google searches for a local business will call or contact a store within 24 hours of performing a search.
Compare local SEO to more standard advertising – the latter costs a lot of money and only helps your business for as long as the ads run. At the same time, a well-optimized website will keep on benefitting your business indefinitely for a comparatively small initial cost.
Signs that Your Business Will Benefit from Local SEO
Now that we’ve established the basics of what local SEO is and why it’s so beneficial, it’s time to move on to the meat of it all – the indicators that let you know if local SEO will be directly beneficial to your business.
1. Your Competitors Rate Higher Than You
Even without considering the studies that back this data up, you can probably guess from your personal use of the internet that an overwhelming number of search engine users will click first (or exclusively) on the first result that comes up from an internet search. Naturally, it follows that if you want your business to thrive, it’s vitally important that your business comes up not only on the first page of search results but as high on that page as possible.
Of course, reaching that goal can be a challenge as more and more businesses become aware of the importance of SEO, and your competitors are also spending time optimizing their websites. This is where hiring a local SEO service comes into play, since you’ll want to ensure that your optimization is done right!
2. You’re Not Optimizing for “Near Me” Searches
As GPS and location technology become more and more of a central part of the apps we use daily (Google Maps, for example), making sure that the location of your business is established online becomes more and more necessary.
A vast majority of users make use of the “near me” feature and “explore” tab on Google maps when searching for a specific kind of business in a certain area, and if you want your business to be prominently featured in those results (and you do!), you’ll need to make sure its online presence is optimized and your location established within the major search engines.
3. A Lack of Fresh Content
As we mentioned earlier, more and more enterprises are becoming aware of the importance of SEO, increasing the competition for websites to be noticed and highly ranked among search results. In the face of that competitive market, fresh and regular new content is often the key factor separating highly optimized web pages that are prominently featured and get hits from the lower-ranked, less-visited ones.
You must keep in mind, however, that regularly generating new content isn’t necessarily enough to get the job done – even if the content is well crafted and valuable, it won’t necessarily bring in new customers if it isn’t optimized for being highly ranked on search engines. Content must feature the right keywords in the right quantity in order to be favored by search engine algorithms. For instance, McAllen Texas SEO or McAllen Texas Web Design are great keyword phrases that a McAllen web design agency like ours would pepper into blog posts, landing pages, and CTAs on our site.
4. Not Keeping Track of Online Reviews
Ignorance is distinctly not bliss when it comes to the online reviews of your business. A vast majority of users check online reviews when looking at businesses and view them as a central metric for whether that business is trustworthy. If your online reviews are bad, you had better be aware of it!
Additionally, it’s good practice to interact with online reviews. A quick thank you for positive reviews and follow-up on bad ones (service recovery is crucial for small businesses) will let people know that you’re active online and care about your customers and reputation.
5. A Rapid Decline in Organic Online Traffic
The one constant of the online market is that it is always in flux. You never know when Google or other search engines will change their ranking algorithms to favor one factor over another, which in turn affects the ranking of your website. If you notice a sudden downturn in your website’s traffic, hiring a local SEO expert may be the right step to understanding what changed and how to get back ahead of the curve.
Contact KangoMedia Today!
SEO can be a struggle when you’re going it solo. As you’ve no doubt noticed, the world of online marketing and SEO is a potentially complicated and rapidly changing one.
That’s where KangoMedia comes in. Serving McAllen, Texas, and nearby areas, we’re here to make sure that your website is optimally designed to keep you competitive and at the top of your client’s search results!
Clients that work with us often see dramatic results in the form of an increase in website leads, requests for quotes, service calls, and sales. Businesses choose to work with KangoMedia because of our focus on growing their business. We are more than a service provider, we are your partner in growth.
Give us a shout, and let’s talk about your business.