Website SEO VS Local SEO: Which should you focus on?
Search engine optimization (SEO) can be a powerful tool when it comes to increasing business revenue. The only problem is that there are many different types of SEO, and they all have their benefits and disadvantages.
One such type of SEO is Local SEO. However, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and Local SEO are two very different strategies. In this article, we will examine the difference between the two and help you decide which is best for your business.
First, let’s take a look at what SEO is all about. Search engine optimization refers to any actions taken to increase traffic from search engines to a website by improving its rankings in natural results listings on SERPs (search engine result pages). With more visitors coming through search engines than through social media or email marketing, your site must rank well in these listings so people can find you online. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. SEO is the process of affecting visibility in natural search results through organic, or unpaid, means. SEO can be achieved by optimizing a target website to produce content that websites such as Google (and other popular search engines) rank close when conducting a search using specific keywords and key phrases relevant to the business.
How to Optimize for Website SEO?
Create a website optimized for search, focusing on creating content relevant to user queries and their intent in searching (the need or desire they have). This means optimizing your site for specific keywords/key phrases so it can be found when someone searches those terms. It also includes ensuring your site is stable so it can be crawled and indexed by search engines.
What is On-Page Website SEO?
One of the most important aspects of SEO is on-page optimization. On-page optimization refers to all of the work you do within your content (i.e., title, meta description, headlines) to rank higher on search engine results pages (SERPS). With so much competition out there for top rankings these days, on-page optimization can make the difference between being at or near the top of search engine results pages (SERPS) and dropping off completely.
What is Off-Page Website SEO
Off-page website SEO is the work you do outside your content to rank higher on search engine results pages (SERPS). It includes technical SEO, link building, and social media marketing. For example, off-page website SEO would be the act of linking back to a blog post from another site or being referenced by other bloggers as an expert source for information related to your niche. Guest posting is a form of off-page website SEO. It involves writing for different blogs within your industry and submitting posts on the blog’s site. What are some benefits of guest posting? First, you can increase visibility: Being featured as an expert in someone else’s space increases your credibility, authority, and visibility with your audience. Second, you can increase traffic: Search engines like Google love fresh, new content. Publishing your guest post on another blog allows you to promote the article with a link back to your original piece of work. Finally, guest posts will enable you to reach an entirely different audience than what you’re able to attract through organic search.
What is Local SEO?
Local SEO is the process of making sure that search engines like Google can find, crawl and rank local pages for different queries related to a business or service based on geographic location. Local SEO will help your customer base grow and give you an advantage over other businesses in your market that is not optimizing their listings. For example, local SEO is optimizing your Google My Business listing and all of your other listings to get them ranked higher on Google, leading to more customers finding you faster.
How to Optimize for Local SEO
To optimize your Google My Business listing, you must verify your business location, upload a professional photo of the storefront and create or update your Google+ page. To optimize for local SEO, you’ll want to add all relevant keywords on your GMB listing that pertain to what you do, including but not limited to:
- location + nearest intersection;
- business name + city/state;
- services
- products
Reviews
A huge ranking factor to improving Local SEO rankings is review count. To get more Google reviews, you can do some incentivized reviews where the customer has to write a review to receive something from your store. Offer things like discounts, free shipping, or another service that is of value that will entice customers to leave their honest feedback on Google, so your business is more likely to show up as an organically ranked listing.
Local Citations
A citation is a mention of your company’s name, address, and phone number online. Citations can be found in directories like YellowPages or niche-specific forums. They increase the places where customers could find you on the web – websites such as Yelp would also count! These mentions tell Google that you are a reputable business for higher search engine rankings. When you’re looking for a business to provide your services or products, the first place Google will note is where that company’s location is in relation to their customer. For example, if someone searches “tax preparation” and lives in San Francisco, it would be much easier for them to find information about local businesses than any others out of state. It might appear to be common sense, but people forget how vital these things are when conducting research; this includes listing all pertinent contact information on various general directories and niche-specific ones such as blogs from within the industry. Rather than just simply adding links back onto social media sites (although these can still help).
The Bottom Line: The difference between Local SEO and Website SEO is traditionally thought of as a way to rank higher on Google for the whole world, but what about if you want your business to be found only in one area? Local SEO ensures that people looking for products or services near where they live can easily find them. Using traditional SEO techniques like keyword research and title optimization, local businesses must use geographical keywords such as “near me” and optimize Google My Business listings.
Conclusion
SEO can be helpful for any business, but local SEO is essential to businesses in the same area. So if you’re looking to do well locally and expand your reach simultaneously, focus on local SEO optimization with Website Optimization.