What Is Local SEO? And How Does It Work?

What Is Local SEO? And How Does It Work? Local SEO is a pragmatic SEO strategy designed to elevate your business visibility in local Google search results. This approach proves particularly beneficial for businesses with a physical location or those catering to a specific geographic area. An indicator of the relevance of local SEO is the appearance of a map pack with three listings under it when you search for keywords related to your business on Google.

For businesses meeting these criteria, local SEO becomes a vital tool in their growth strategy. The map pack, also known as a local pack, often features three local businesses related to the search query. Being included in this pack significantly increases the likelihood of attracting potential customers in your locality. It’s essentially a digital counterpart to traditional local directories, providing users with quick access to relevant businesses.

To fully comprehend the significance of local SEO, it’s imperative to have a foundational understanding of how Google operates in terms of search results. Google’s algorithms prioritize local relevance, aiming to offer users the most pertinent results based on their location. Local SEO strategies align with these algorithms, ensuring that your business is well-positioned to capture the attention of local customers actively searching for products or services that you offer.

How did search engines evolve?

In the early stages of the internet, navigation was straightforward due to the limited number of websites. As the internet expanded, search engines emerged to simplify the process of finding desired sites. When users entered a phrase into a search engine, it matched the keywords to websites containing those terms. Google distinguished itself by introducing a groundbreaking approach, utilizing links between sites as indicators of trust and authority, swiftly dominating the search engine landscape.

Presently, Google assesses numerous factors both on and off your website to ascertain its relevance for display in search results. These factors collectively constitute your “digital footprint,” each carrying varying weight or value. The search engine amalgamates these factors to generate results, and your digital footprint plays a pivotal role in determining whether your website appears as a top result for user queries on Google.

So how does Google work?

When you input a search phrase into Google, it examines various website signals or ranking factors to determine the relevance of your site and provides a list of matching sites. Contrary to common belief, Google doesn’t conduct a live search of the entire internet every time a user enters a query. Instead, it searches a cached copy of all the sites it has discovered, known as the Google Index.

To create this index, Google utilizes small programs called “spiders” that crawl the web. Each spider operates by starting on a single page, following the links on that page, examining content on subsequent pages, and continuing this process. As web content is crawled, it is stored in Google’s servers, contributing to the construction of the index. The spiders operate on a massive scale, consistently crawling trillions of pages at an astonishing speed, ensuring the index remains as up-to-date as possible with the swift discovery of new sites and connections.

How Google ranks search results

Google employs algorithms, or sets of processes, to swiftly rank numerous sites when you perform a search. These algorithms assess the index and present a list of websites in organic search results that match your query. The ranking is based on factors like relevance, prominence, and popularity indicated by inbound links.

Examining on-site and off-site elements, the algorithm identifies websites related to your search, adding them to a list that is then ranked by prominence. By considering various factors, the algorithm determines which sites best address your search query, placing them at the top of the search results.

Enhancing your SEO impacts the relevancy, prominence, and link popularity factors of your website. Optimizing the pertinent elements of your site’s digital footprint can result in higher visibility across a broader range of search results.

Local SEO is a different pattern

Consider local organic search results. Google, based on trillions of user searches, understands that people looking for specific businesses desire results from their immediate area. The local search algorithm incorporates a proximity factor, meaning Google considers your location when you search for a local keyword, even without specifying a city or using “near me.”

For instance, searching “pizza delivery” at work yields locations near your office in local SERPs. Doing the same search at home produces different results, aligning with the need for nearby pizza delivery. While local search has existed for years, the rise of mobile internet access has elevated the significance of local SEO for businesses offering local products or services and for local marketers.

What matters for local SEO

For search marketers, the distinction between local organic search results and the local map pack is crucial. Separate algorithms drive the main Google search results for local rankings and the local map pack. This presents an opportunity for local businesses to appear in both, enhancing visibility.

The annual Local Search Ranking Factors survey by Moz, featuring top experts in local SEO, sheds light on influential factors. Localized content, local link popularity, and building local landing pages with optimized details contribute to local search visibility. This strategy, especially important for multiple-location businesses, aligns with SEO best practices, extending to content marketing and link building.

Location-based elements like Google My Business listings, citations from data aggregators, and customer reviews play a significant role in local SEO rankings. It’s essential to manage these aspects as part of your local SEO efforts. SEO tools dedicated to local search facilitate tasks such as keyword research for the local audience, citation building, Google My Business management, and monitoring local pack inclusion.

In summary, while website content remains vital, a comprehensive approach considering location-based factors ensures a robust local SEO strategy, optimizing visibility in both organic search results and the local map pack.

Start harnessing SEO

Now that you grasp the basics of SEO and how Google assesses local search results, focus on optimizing your site’s digital footprint in the local search ecosystem. Enhancing your business’s visibility on the results page increases the likelihood of attracting potential customers.

Numerous factors impact visibility in local searches, and it’s crucial to stay updated as the local search landscape evolves. Consult Moz’s annual survey for insights on changing signal importance. By enhancing key signal areas, you can expand your reach within your geographic region, fostering business growth.