Is Google My Business Good Enough for Local SEO?

Optimizing Your Google My Business Page for Local SEOGoogle earns majority of its revenues from advertisements-of the US$ 110.9 billion it made in 2017, ads alone contributed US$ 95.4 (or 86%). No wonder, Google is the most popular search engine in the world, processing 1.2 trillion searches globally every year. That very statistic is a burning instance of the search engine’s earnest attempts to keep all its users happy.
In order to enhance the visibility of your business across the net, Google continues to introduce cutting-edge tools and techniques periodically. Google My business for instance, is one such tool that strives to bolster local SEO so as to help businesses to become more visible in their immediate surroundings. But can ‘Google My Business’ help achieve your business goals?

What exactly is Google My Business?

The Google My Business tool not only lets you display your business across all the search engine’s platforms and interfaces but also enables you to control the manner in which the same is visible. Registering for the app (via App Store or Google Play) is easy as you simply have to fill in a few mandatory details for gaining access to several versatile features.

Benefits of listing your business with Google My Business

1. Sweeping visibility

Since innumerable third-party portals bank on Google for obtaining relevant info, you can bet your firm’s visibility will significantly perk up. Once you’re listed on Google My Business, the likelihood of your site showing up on third-party website will increase manifold. Also, business categorization will lead to users landing at your site via local SEO search.

2. Steady NAP consistency

If you key in the correct name, address, and phone number (NAP consistency) of your business while signing up for Google My Business, you can take it for granted that Google will show exactly the same info. Also, make sure that you enter the actual operation hours so that your customers can contact you or vice-versa.

3. Analytics data helps fine-tune visibility

You’ll have the added advantage of reviewing your business performance by exploiting specific metrics such as Google Analytics. By using Google Analytics, you’ll be able to determine the traffic volume, total number of users, and so on. The interface ‘insights’ will let you find out the proportion of users who found you through organic searches and paid searches.

4. Impress customers with stunning visual content

Since attention-spans of users nowadays are extremely short, you can make an indelible first-time impression on your prospective customers and/or users by uploading eye-catching footages and snapshots. Google My Business offers you the opportunity of uploading of exhibiting your online storefront apart from videos and photographs.

5. Online bookings

In case you are a dentist or a veterinarian, listing with Google My Business will allow your patients to make appointments directly from your site. The advantage of booking online is a win-win situation-you’re assured of a visit (read consultation fee) and your customers is spared from the hassle of having to wait in a queue at the chamber for an appointment.

6. Intuitive blog posts

Needless to say, you’ll have to compete with many other businesses or professionals for the same number of customers. So, how do you make your business stand out from the crowd? Of course, by posting creative and original blogs describing your product or service as well as through promotional and seasonal offers. And Google My Business is definitely your best web-based platform for showcasing your business.

7. Interactive reviews

Google My Business provides you with the incentive of establishing an intimate rapport with your customers by responding to their feedbacks. You’ll surely be able to take your business to the next level if you pay heed to your users’ feedbacks.

The drawbacks

Perhaps the only downside of exploiting Google My Business is that you’ll have to put in a lot of effort to maintain the goodwill of your brand. However, there is no online business management tool that allows you to publicize your business effortlessly.

If you want to make the most of your Google My Business listing, log in at www.localseojacksonville.biz or dial 904-425-9679.

Making the most of organic SEO and local SEO for your online business

Organic SEO and local SEO for your online businessIrrespective of whether you’re push selling a product or aggressively promoting a service via your web-based or online platform, the effectiveness of your SEO strategy will decide whether your site is there on Google’s or Yahoo’s first SERP. You may be aware that nearly 90% of all users never bother to look beyond the opening search engine results page when looking for a product or service or searching for specific info? So, you might be tempted to ask yourself as to how you can make your e-commerce site claim a 1st page rank on Google, especially after all your previous attempts to do so have come a cropper?
The answer to the aforementioned question largely depends on whether you want your portal to rank for local SEO or organic SEO. There’s a great deal of difference between the two expressions and there are specific factors or attributes based on which organic search engine optimization can be differentiated from local SEO. This article elucidates on the fundamentals of both online marketing strategies, and after going through both, you’ll have a fair idea on where and how to channelize your efforts for driving maximum traffic to your site.

Demystifying local SEO

  • What is local SEO?- When you plan your campaign for promoting your business throughout the world of web based on where you are physically located, such an approach is termed local SEO.
  • Who stands to benefit the most from local SEO?-If you’ve have a brick-and-mortar outlet, physical consultant office or a medical chamber, you’ll stand to gain maximum by fine-tuning your canvassing strategy for local search. In that manner, prospective customers situated in the vicinity of your physical storefront will be able to locate your store or chamber, thereby boosting your business.
  • Modus operandi of local SEO-Consider a hypothetical scenario where you go online and browse for a standard family restaurant in the area where you reside. You’ll most probably search on the Google or Chrome browser using the keywords, ‘best family restaurant in Piccadilly’, family restaurants in Piccadilly’ or ‘restaurants for dining with family in Piccadilly’, and so on. After keying in the keywords, and clicking ‘enter’, you’ll instantly see Google throw up the search results.
  • What you actually see is the first page of the results. The URL at the top of this page is the one that is maximally optimized for searching locally. The URLs that follow are ranked in order of their optimization level. The restaurant heading the list is the one that’d be most convenient for you to step in.

Tips on making the most of local SEO

  • Ascertain your NAP consistency-No ‘NAP’ is not an abstract term but the abbreviation simply stands for name, address, and phone number. When you host your site, ensure that your business’s name, address, and phone no. is identical throughout the internet and across all directories.
  • Take advantage of Google My Business tool-For ranking high enough on local SEO search listings, tap the potential of Google My Business tool for listing as much info about your venture as you can.
  • Persuade customers to post positive feedbacks about your business
  • Always use relevant keywords that will let your customers find you quickly

About organic SEO

  • Defining organic SEO-When Google ranks your website (using search algorithms) based on your site’s content and user-friendliness, the process is called organic SEO.
  • For whom organic SEO is meant?-Organic SEO strategy works best for businesses and firms that only have an online presence and do not own a physical office or branch.
  • Mode of operation of organic SEO-Extrapolating the abovementioned example of ‘family restaurant’, the chances of your restaurant showing up in most organic search results will be higher if you temper content with relevant organic keywords that have a greater likelihood of being used by diners.

Guidelines for taking advantage of organic SEO

  • Keyword optimization is the key
  • Adjust and tweak on-page optimization
  • Garner as many quality inbound links as you can
  • Develop content around a focus keyword

https://www.localseojacksonville.biz will help you out with formulating a customized local or organic SEO strategy for you. You can also make a call to 904.425.9679 for clarifications.

5 Local SEO Tips for Boosting Up Your Business

5 Local SEO Tips for Boosting Up Your BusinessIf you thought that SEO or search engine optimization that used to be a sine qua none for businesses looking to boost their online sales was losing its edge, then think again. That SEO and SEMM promotional methods are still a force to reckon with can be gauged from the following statistic: Agencies manufacturing or marketing different products and services and having an online presence will be investing upwards of $79 billion in local SEO. So, if you have a storefront in a residential neighborhood or a retail outlet in your city’s CBD, then you’d be better off spending more on local SEO promotion for increasing the online visibility of your brand.

Following are some local SEO tips you can abide by for improving the popularity of your product or service across the Internet:-

1. Rich Answers

Many users and online shoppers searched for a specific product or service or browsed for info on a particular subject not by keying in keywords but by typing questions. The practice of browsing on the net by framing questions has now become an established trend. Google cemented its popularity as the world’s most favorite search engine by providing ‘Rich Answers’ to users and they don’t need to click on SERP results for getting the relevant info.

Info via ‘Rich Answers’ is furnished in the form of snippets, maps, sliders, tables, forms, and charts. If you own a bakery establishment and the business is cataloged in ‘Google My Business’ listings, users or consumers will be directly driven to your site when they’re looking for baked goods recipes.

2. NAP

Contrary to what you may think, NAP is not an esoteric acronym or abbreviation but simply stands for name, address, and phone number. Though it doesn’t need to be emphasized, providing this elementary info on your site is crucial as search engines consider NAP data when they embark on local SEO drives. Also, make sure that your NAP details are identical across all listings.

3. Reviews

Positive reviews can impact your site’s ranking during a local SEO initiative. If your product or service wins rave reviews across the different automated social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, these will go a long way in boosting your ware’s popularity. However, it can be a challenge to encourage consumers to upload positive feedbacks or testimonials. You can begin getting in touch with your steadfast customers and requesting them to write their genuine opinions regarding your product.

4. Register your site on local business directories

You’ll be giving a good fillip to your business if you register the same on local business directories and yellow pages. At the same make sure that the NAP information you provide is consistent with the data already visible on other citations.

5. Smartphone friendly

People are increasingly using their smartphones for going online in order to complete a host of routine activities like shopping, researching for information, and so on. So, making your site smartphone-friendly is crucial if you want to stay in the competition.