Phoenix SEO: Local Search Ranking Factors You Need to Know About
Local SEO has experienced tremendous change over the last couple of years. Ranking factors have changed and new features have been coming at small businesses from all angles. If you’re unsure on the current state of Local SEO, allow us to explain what’s important and what you need to know.
There are several key ranking factors when it comes to local SEO. In order of importance, these are:
- Google My Business Profile
- Links
- Reviews
- On-page SEO
- Citations
The importance of each of these is constantly shifting, but cover your basis by making sure that you are optimizing all of them.
Google My Business
Google My Business has introduced a ton of new features, and you should be taking advantage of as many as you can. Whatever you do, make sure that you have every field on your Google My Business page filled out and that all of the information there is up to date and accurate. This is the single biggest thing you can do for your business.
Reviews
Reviews are getting more important over the years, there is simply no ignoring them. Getting more reviews — and more Google reviews in particular — is very, very important. Once you have your Google My Business page sorted, getting more reviews should be your next focus. When you do get reviews, make sure that you respond to them, whether they are positive or negative. Not only does it build a better rapport with your customers, it shows Google you are an engaged business.
Links
Links are becoming as important in local SEO as they are in traditional SEO. Getting just a few links can make all the difference to your rankings. This can be the real difference maker when it comes to local rankings as it is very hard to do. Your competitors probably aren’t link building so if you can gain just a couple of links, you could surge up the rankings.
Get the help you need
Google Local SEO may seem pretty straightforward, but it can be very tricky. We always recommend that local businesses seek professional advice when it comes to ranking in Google, much in the same way that they would consult an accountant or a tax advisor.
There is all manner of issues and problems that can arise, some of which may even baffle professional SEOs. You never know what you’re going to meet until you start optimizing your local SEO factors. We can speak first-hand to the difficulties that business have faced in trying to get ranked in Google Maps. It’s not easy to do, but it’s definitely worth it if you can get there. Speak to a member of our team today to find out how we can help.
