{"id":143542,"date":"2021-10-01T04:26:25","date_gmt":"2021-10-01T04:26:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.searchenginewatch.com\/?p=143542"},"modified":"2021-10-04T11:24:56","modified_gmt":"2021-10-04T11:24:56","slug":"three-organic-search-opportunities-for-your-local-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2021\/10\/01\/three-organic-search-opportunities-for-your-local-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Three organic search opportunities for your local business"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"well\">\n<h3>30-second summary:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Following pandemic-driven shopping trends, lots of local businesses had to explore online marketing opportunities<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google offers a few great ways for a local business to get found through organic search<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Local 3 Pack is Google\u2019s search element containing top three local businesses based on your search query<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To rank in the Local 3 Pack you need to ensure your Google My Business listing is complete and active<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Third-party local business listings (like Yelp and Tripadvisor) may also drive some organic search visibility so it is a good idea to claim your business there<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Local marketing has become even a more trending topic, following the pandemic. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lots of local businesses that used to rely on local footfall were forced to turn to the internet in order to get found by customers. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This need for digital transformation brought a huge challenge to just about any local business \u2013 how to get found online?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Step 1: Claim your business profile on Google My Business<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google offers huge organic search visibility to local businesses through the Local 3 Pack that shows up on top of organic results when search intent reflects buying (or doing) something locally.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Local 3 pack is Google\u2019s search element that includes three relevant businesses from Google Maps results:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-143548 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-three-pack-1024x955.png\" alt=\"local Google My business listings for businesses nearby\" width=\"640\" height=\"597\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-three-pack-1024x955.png 1024w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-three-pack-300x280.png 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-three-pack-768x716.png 768w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-three-pack-1536x1432.png 1536w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-three-pack.png 728w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/span><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Source: Screenshot by the author<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ranking your business in the Local 3 Pack is no easy task. It heavily relies on the proximity of those businesses to the customer\u2019s current location.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, there are a few things you can do to improve your local rankings:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Make sure you have a detailed (and original) description of your business and what it is you do<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Add your website (oftentimes Google would grab text from the associated website and rank a business based on that content). There are also a few great <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/colorlib.com\/wp\/google-maps-plugins\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">plugins<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> allowing you to embed your local listing onto your website for better visibility.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Upload pictures and videos of your office, team, and work environment to give customers\/searchers a better view of your business<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Add your products and services (Note: Services are <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/moz.com\/blog\/google-my-business-fields-that-impact-ranking\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">not believed<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to have a huge (or any) impact on your local rankings but why not add those anyway)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Keep your business categories as relevant as you can as they <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DarrenShaw_\/status\/1089919297432969216\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">can harm<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> your local rankings<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Adding a bunch of unrelated categories to your GMB listing will definitely have a negative impact on your local rankings. Check out this example. Fortunately, you will recover just fine when remove the categories. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/localseo?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#localseo<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/GMB?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#GMB<\/a> cc <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JoyanneHawkins?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@JoyanneHawkins<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/gyitsakalakis?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@gyitsakalakis<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/0HPK09YzXA\">pic.twitter.com\/0HPK09YzXA<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Darren Shaw (@DarrenShaw_) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DarrenShaw_\/status\/1089919297432969216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 28, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Most importantly, keep an eye on your Google reviews<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Business reviews are known to be crucial for your local (and hence Local 3 Pack) rankings, so make sure to keep an eye on your reviews and reply to all of them.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Note that <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.redsearch.com.au\/resources\/google-reviews-missing-disappear\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google may remove your review<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> if they find you have been using manipulative or misleading tactics when getting those reviews, for example:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If that review is repeated across other business profiles on other sites (which, by the way, can be quite natural\u2026 I\u2019ll be the one to admit that I may leave my favorite business the same review on a few platforms I am registered at. But again, I think we are talking about suspicious patterns here rather than one-on-one cases)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you had a massive influx of reviews overnight<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If Google suspects that you and your team are reviewing your business pretending to be clients.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While you may notice your competitors implement these manipulative tactics without no obvious negative impact on their rankings, I\u2019d still suggest avoiding these at all costs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can invite your customers to review your business on Google through a<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/support.google.com\/business\/answer\/9273900\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">short URL that\u2019s specific to your local business<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and even note that on your business card &#8211; you could use QR codes to facilitate this. But you are not allowed to request positive (five-star) reviews or segment your customer base to only invite happy customers to review you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you have a budget, investing in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/seranking.com\/blog\/ads-on-google-maps\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ads on Google maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is also a great idea. This could bring in more customers and reviews.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Step 2: Claim your business profile everywhere else<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While claiming your business is generally a good idea to get better control over your branded content, it also gives you additional organic exposure because those listings may rank in organic search results and bring additional exposure.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hence, your next step is identifying important local directories (like Trip Advisor and Yelp)and claiming your business everywhere.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightlocal.com\/resources\/the-ultimate-free-business-directory-list\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here\u2019s a huge list<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of those you can consider.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-143549\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/the-ultimate-free-business-directory-list-809x1024.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"810\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/the-ultimate-free-business-directory-list-809x1024.png 809w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/the-ultimate-free-business-directory-list-237x300.png 237w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/the-ultimate-free-business-directory-list-768x972.png 768w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/the-ultimate-free-business-directory-list.png 575w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/span><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Source: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightlocal.com\/resources\/the-ultimate-free-business-directory-list\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Brightlocal<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Just about any local business out there will need to ensure a strong Yelp presence, for example, so that one will always be on top of your list. Yelp marketing is tricky but if you start getting reviews there, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wpbeginner.com\/plugins\/how-to-display-yelp-reviews-on-your-wordpress-site\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">there\u2019s a way to display<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> those reviews on your site to boost your conversions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>When putting your business on maps<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Make sure your business name and address is consistent across all channels, including the phone number format<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Complete all available fields and use all available characters! More content generally means higher rankings for your listings!<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Monitor your listings for reviews, add updates, ensure your business info is up-to-date<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Step 3: Develop a hyperlocal content strategy<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Similar to how foot traffic works for a local business (passers-by may check a store out of curiosity), a well-planned content marketing strategy can drive customers who never intended to buy anything or didn\u2019t know they needed you.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Describe (location-driven) problems your business solves. For instance, a Seattle hairdresser publishes an article on haircuts that work well in the windy or rainy climate.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Address some problems that are common in your area. These work best when they are timed to a particular seasonal trend. For instance, a bakery in Albany publishes a checklist of foods to store at home to prepare for a snowstorm.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here are a few ideas for hyperlocal content:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ideas for local vacations and where your business can be of help<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Local events and how your brand participates<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Partnerships like local charities<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Take note of local <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.internetmarketingninjas.com\/blog\/search-engine-optimization\/googles-people-also-ask-related-questions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People Also Ask<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> results because those are great sources of hyperlocal content.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-143547 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-people-also-ask-1024x492.png\" alt=\"Using the PAA feature to boost local SEO visibility\" width=\"640\" height=\"308\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-people-also-ask-1024x492.png 1024w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-people-also-ask-300x144.png 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-people-also-ask-768x369.png 768w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-people-also-ask.png 728w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Source: Screenshot by the author<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Generally, answering local questions is a great idea.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s take a look at this search query: \u201c<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">how far is Central Park from Times Square<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People searching for this may not necessarily be looking to buy anything but there are still some opportunities here as your content may give them ideas on where to dine or stay.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-143545 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/hyperlocal-content-1024x852.png\" alt=\"Local search results\" width=\"640\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/hyperlocal-content-1024x852.png 1024w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/hyperlocal-content-300x250.png 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/hyperlocal-content-768x639.png 768w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/hyperlocal-content-1536x1279.png 1536w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/hyperlocal-content.png 728w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/span><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Source: Screenshot by the author<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The beauty of hyperlocal <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2021\/05\/06\/why-killing-your-content-marketing-makes-the-most-sense\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">content marketing<\/a> is that your clients don\u2019t have to be in the area to find your content: They may be planning a trip to your area and discover your business prior to going. This is something local maps placement won\u2019t be able to help with.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Using <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2019\/12\/16\/the-beginners-guide-to-semantic-search\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">semantic search<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is another good way to come up with hyperlocal content ideas because it will help you identify location-based keywords that are able to generate organic traffic. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/textoptimizer.com\/h\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here\u2019s how<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> semantic search works:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-143546\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-associations-1024x698.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"436\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-associations-1024x698.png 1024w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-associations-300x204.png 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-associations-768x523.png 768w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-associations-1536x1047.png 1536w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-associations-2048x1396.png 2048w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/local-associations.png 728w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/span><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Source: Screenshot by the author<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Organic search provides quite a few opportunities for local businesses to generate traffic and get found by customers. Keep an eye on your local listings and keep creating hyperlocal content to generate relevant traffic for your local business. Good luck!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Ann Smarty is the Founder of Viral Content Bee, Brand and Community manager at Internet Marketing Ninjas. She can be found on Twitter\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/seosmarty\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@seosmarty<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Subscribe to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/#newsletter-modal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Search Engine Watch newsletter<\/a>\u00a0for insights on SEO, the search landscape, search marketing, digital marketing, leadership, podcasts, and more.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Join the conversation with us on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/61126\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sewatch\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Local marketing is a huge topic and there\u2019s a lot to do here but one fundamental task to start working on first is building your organic search presence<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1092,"featured_media":143551,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,5],"tags":[37,28068,123,11314,270,137,22],"content_type":[],"class_list":["post-143542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","category-seo","tag-google","tag-google-3-pack","tag-google-my-business","tag-hyperlocal-content","tag-local-listings","tag-local-seo","tag-seo"],"acf":{"tad_independentcommercial":false,"tad_content_format":false},"post_info":{"name":"idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com","title":"","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Three-organic-search-opportunities-for-your-local-business.png","category":"Local","timeago":"4y"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143542","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1092"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143542"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143542\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/143551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143542"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143542"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143542"},{"taxonomy":"content_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content_type?post=143542"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}