5 Hacks to Optimize Your Website Locally for Free

Ranking locally requires a special approach, often with the help of SEO experts. However, not all businesses have the budget for such services.

If you’re also short on cash, but you need to optimize your website, fret not because you can do so using free methods.

Below, we discussed some of the basic yet effective ways to rank your website locally without spending a dime.

*Focus on customer satisfaction

Boosting your customers’ satisfaction starts by addressing negative reviews.

You can get your customers to edit negative reviews by following this process: Reach – Remedy – Restore.

By reaching out, you acknowledge the negative review. Meanwhile, offering a solution is where the Remedy part comes in. If you’re successful, you can restore the customer and then he or she will edit the review into something positive.

By doing this, you can maintain your good standing on online reviews; thus imbibing high trust levels.

*Publishing content regularly

Producing content regularly is a good way to optimize local keywords and to keep your potential customers updated.

Aside from that, updating your website also keeps Google informed that you’re still active.

Moreover, content provides benefits across your business. It keeps your audience abreast of your brand and it also boosts your SEO ranking.

Take note that when it comes to content, both quality and quantity matter. Nevertheless, if you don’t have the time, posting once a month should be enough.

*Get listed in online directories

Online directories like Yelp, Yellow Pages, and TripAdvisor are just some of the good examples where you should list your site.

Aside from that, you should also sign up to a Google My Business account. This is free and you can use it to add your business on Google Maps, Google’s Local Pack, and more. Also, you can utilize the Google Post tool.

Whenever you’re listing your business, make sure that you’re supplying accurate NAP (Name, Address, and Phone Number).

*Establish backlinks with other sites

Backlinking is a staple if you want to boost your website’s ranking on the web. You can do so by guest posting on another business’ blog for free. Some businesses will agree given that they will also guest on your blog. It’s a give-and-take setup that will work for the benefit of both parties.

Also, local directories and business review sites will conduct interviews with various business owners. You can volunteer for this part and request that they link to your website.

*Optimize your site using local keywords

One of the most important parts of ranking locally is using local keywords. These are keywords with the exact location of your business indicated in it. It can be “best XYZ in Portland” or “XYZ in Fort Lauderdale FL”.

These location modifier keywords will let Google know that you’re ranking locally. So whenever a person in your service location enters a query online, there’s a possibility that your business’ information will be displayed on SERPs.

Take note that you should perform other SEO methods in order to rank on the first page of the Google search results.