Top 4 Benefits of Local Search Marketing

With the world turning increasingly digital, many small businesses struggle with how to shift their brick-and-mortar location online -- and rest assured that you are not alone. It’s a big change, but with local search marketing, it lessens the burden and makes for a smoother and more successful transition.

Local search marketing is a type of online, digital marketing that businesses of all sizes can utilize to reach local consumers. It works by improving your brand's local SEO and boosting your online visibility. The goal is to make your business show up in the top local results in the Google 3 Pack when your target customers go online and make a relevant search.

As you probably already know, local SEO plays an important role in generating conversions and customers. Local search marketing leverages local SEO to get your business found online.

The better local SEO your brand has, the more visible it becomes online which will increase the digital and physical traffic of your business -- it’s as simple as that.

Benefits of Local Search Marketing

Local search marketing uses an assortment of actions and strategies designed to improve your online visibility when people close to your physical location perform a search for a business similar yours. This form of marketing offers extensive benefits to help grow your business in an efficient and effective way.

Stronger Online Presence

Establishing a strong local online presence is critical for your business since it directly impacts your local foot traffic and over all sales. Amongst other things, a stronger digital presence works to get your name out there, build brand awareness and attract more customers to your business.

Your ranking in Google Maps and search engine result pages (SERPs) should increase as you build your online presence, which in turn, will improve your online visibility and get your business found.

Google Maps is the king of local search marketing. About 86 percent of people look up the location of a business on Google Maps. And that's because we all want to find a good, reputable business that’s nearby.

So, if your business appears in the Google 3 Pack (at the top list of Google Maps search results) you have a higher probability of attracting the attention of a consumer making a local search and bringing them into your store.

Affordability

Oftentimes, when money is tight, a company's marketing budget is the first one to get cut. Local search marketing solves this issue. Unlike other forms of marketing, local search marketing is 100% free. There are a variety of powerful local SEO tools available online for no cost at all.

In many ways, local search marketing is like a self-service tool. You are able to gain local prominence and improve your online visibility simply by updating business information like your name, address, and phone number in your Google My Business Account and following other SEO best practices. The results may not happen overnight, but they are certainly worth the wait.

More High-Quality Traffic

To put it simply, targeted high-quality traffic to your business’s website is always to your advantage. If your website is optimized for local SEO, then potential customers can easily find your business online as well as all the relevant information to convince them to choose your business. Meaning increased traffic online will boost physical foot traffic as well.

Because your business is being displayed as a geographically-relevant business in the search results, your customers will have a better chance of visiting your physical location. Bringing more relevant local customers into your business, which means more customers and money in your pocket.

Higher Conversion Rate

Because local search marketing uses local SEO, you are targeting searchers that are in close proximity to your business. Eighty-two percent of smartphone shoppers conduct 'near me' searches.

“Near me” or "close by" type searches grew by more than 900 percent over two years. So, with local searches on the rise, local SEO becomes especially important and will work to turn more searchers into paying customers.

In fact, 72 percent of consumers visit a store within five miles after they perform a local search. Of those store visits, 78 percent of local searches on mobile end with an offline purchase. They come to your business with the intent to buy.

Not only do these searches result in a purchase, but they take action fast. Roughly 88 percent of searches for local businesses on a mobile device either call or visit the business within 24 hours.

Get Found with Local Search Marketing

With 97 percent of people looking online to learn more about a local business, it’s clear that you have to act fast and use local search marketing to capture these consumers or you’ll miss out. Use local search marketing to help nearby customers find your business online, while you sit back, relax, and watch as your sales soar.

We can all agree that managing your online presence is no simple task. It requires time, patience, and SEO expertise. So, you might be wondering how you can find the time to become a master at local search marketing? The good news is that you don't have to.

GoSite’s Placement tool provides one easy-to-use interface that allows you streamlines the process, control your listings, and sync information across over 75 online local business directories. The Placement tool works to boost your local SEO, which will provide your business everything it needs to succeed and reap the benefits of local search marketing.