Well, the easy answer for this is that Local Search is a facet of search engine optimisation (SEO), which specifically targets your geographic locality. Of course, as with all optimisation techniques, there is a little more to it than that.
The first thing that you may be wondering is how exactly do you optimise for a location? Well, the theory isn’t all that different to SEO, but the practise is a little more focussed. Instead of simply optimising for your targeted key terms, local search instead places the emphasis on rooting your website to your physical bricks and mortar presence; this is ordinarily achieved through the following techniques:
Local Directories
By signing up to major Internet based directories, you can gain embedded links back to your site that are rooted to a local directory listing. This will not only help your SEO, gaining a link and targeting a key term, but will give the search engines a clearer idea of your location.
Whilst you can use Qype or Yell (amongst many others), arguably the most influential local listing is on Google Maps. Maybe your business is already featured on their without you having submitted an application, maybe it isn’t. In either case you need to officially sign up and claim the listing as your own. Not only will this allow you to feature on their map, it will help your local search optimisation by providing a clear indication of your geographic presence.
Geo tagging
This is one of the more complex SEO techniques, at least in terms of the information required. Rather than using key terms or links, this is a Meta based system that embeds geographical global positioning coordinates to link your website to a location. As with all Meta, each page can be imprinted with Geo tagging, which allows you to alter it should you be operating out of a number of locations.
For example, whilst your main office may be in London, you might have subsidiary properties in Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow. Using Geo tagging you can amend the Meta on the pages that are unique to these locations and focus that are of your website on optimising for that area. This is particularly useful for businesses that have numerous outlets; this might include hotels, stores and banks.
Content
Working within the parameters of your website, it is quite simple to give your local search SEO properties a boost. It may just mean the addition of your address at the bottom of the page, preferably embedded into the actual design and a few mentions where appropriate within the body copy and headings. You can of course also use location terms, including town, city, county and country, within your Meta too; this way your on page work won’t be affected by the changes.
Link Building
Away from your directory linking work, you might also want to start trying to get links from elsewhere using your location and keyword as the embedded phrase – for example ‘Peterborough Florists’. Once again this should help to build the strength of your website whilst also improving relevance for the line of work you’re in as well as your geographical position.
So, as with any SEO technique, there are plenty of options for you to explore and adjust when it comes to creating a successful local search campaign. Local search should always benefit SEO and should certainly never hinder it. So whatever rankings you have gained within search engines for your website’s key terms should remain unaffected by any local optimisation you may have done on the side.
Local search is becoming increasingly important, particularly with the mobilisation of Internet technology. Consumers are looking to find products and services within their vicinity, whether at home or out on their travels; using laptops, PDAs and mobile phones to hunt down relevant companies. By having a strong presence on search engines, including Google, within your surrounding geographic area, you have a far better chance of tapping into this lucrative market.
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