Using Local Search To Your Advantage
admin | Sep 21, 2012
A funny thing happened while Internet marketing forums were buzzing with discussion about the ROI of social media, questioning whether or not SEO is dead, and debating if Apple should have severed ties with Google Maps—the web got more local. People started searching with specific geographic locators like, “best pizza in Lancaster, PA.” If you’re searching for pizza, finding the pizza website with the strongest domain authority isn’t relevant, you want a pizza place that’s close by because you’re hungry.
But Google changed too. Google recognized that people not only need to find a pizza shop nearby, but also search for local business services, like hairdressers and financial advisers. Google figured out that searches for business services and products corresponded to a local need for face-to-face retail experiences.
A few month ago, a local manufacturer called to discuss rebuilding his company’s website. He reported ranking first on Google for the search term “chairs.” After some quick research, I discovered that he wasn’t even in the top 50 for that search term, unless of course you were in his town, and had clicked on this site many times from his IP address. So I had to be the bearer of bad news. I asked him to clear his cache and change the Google search location from his town to “United States.” It was a sad reality for him to accept. It reminded me of the day I was told that modeling wasn’t in my future, except maybe as the “before” picture. Ouch.
Many business owners still don’t understand how search could work for their location(s) and the advantage(s) they might have, even over larger competitors. For example, if I were to schedule a talk at the local Chamber of Commerce on “SEO For Your Business,” or “Using Social Media To Build Your Brand,” I’d probably fill the room with business owners eager for answers about competing nationally for impossible search terms and insights on why their social media strategy (modeled after big brand success stories) hasn’t delivered any measurable results.
The web is more local than ever before. It is more social and mobile as well, but even the social and mobile aspects of the web are more localized. Businesses with locations have an opportunity to embrace their local advantage through a variety of Internet marketing tactics. Strategies that value the ubiquity of the web are great for national brands, or local brands with national online ambitions, but localized businesses should focus on opportunities nearer to them.
Literally.