Small Business Internet Marketing Services


Got leads? Local SEO services for small business is essential digital marketing for building a robust and consistent pipeline of leads for your  business to optimize client acquisition.

Digital marketing services help small businesses outrank their competition which increases revenue, profit and ROI.

If you are struggling with generating sufficient leads for your company, search engine optimization tailored for lead generation can transform your business. We target the right keywords, optimize your digital assets, and help you develop a compelling offer to increase your conversions. 

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To outrank your competition and optimize client acquisition, you need to fully optimize all your essential digital assets.

Why are these essential? The short answer is that they create the constellation of  business ranking factors for local search results. Before we explore each of these digital assets, let’s take a look at what are the top local ranking factors.

These assets include:


According to MOZ, Local Search Ranking Factors are surveyed using the opinions of local business SEO professionals to determine which factors have the most impact on search engine rankings. There is no one answer as to which factors are most important because Google uses different results for different markets, industries and platforms.


This means that a local SEO who specializes in working with cafes might realize that Google heavily weights a factor such as “popular times” for this sector, while a colleague who handles personal injury cases may think this factor is less important than the authority of links small business owners earn.


There is no universal way to determine the exact influence each factor has on a market or industry. Each factor has a different influence depending on which search engine result pages are being searched. Google Maps listing local search results may show a different ranking for the same business than it does in Local Finder. 


The organic results, however, are governed entirely by a separate set of calculations known as an ‘algorithm’. Organic rankings may not be affected by factors that help a business rank highly in a local pack.

Backlino studied over 4 million websites to gauge their website traffic based on click-through rates (CTR) and ranking position on Google’s Page 1. Take a look at the image below. This shows the percentage of website traffic that you can anticipate from ranking on Page 1 of Google. Rankings translates to conversions, revenue, profit and ROI. The higher the ranking, obviously, the greater the gain. Local SEO increases your rankings and with consitent, diligent effort, your website traffic increases which facilitates business growth.

Google Business Profile Factors For Local SEO Digital Marketing Small Business



The primary goal of local SEO for small business owners is to rank “above the fold” for your  business on Google Business Profile (GBP) and on Google Maps listing which can lead to increased visibility and potential customers. Of all the local SEO ranking factors on a business profile, the 4 most important are: The business’s name; the categories listed; location and the business website URL.

 

Business Name



The inclusion or exclusion of a search phrase within the business name can impact rank. Google might favor a  business with the type of  business within the name.  For example, “Simon HVAC – San Mateo HVAC services” might rank higher than a “Simon HVAC” if someone searches for “San Mateo HVAC”.
Yet, keyword rich  business name’s (without a valid DBA) are somewhat in flux given the 2021 Google Vicinity update.

Many small business who used the above tactic saw their rankings evaporate overnight as Google appeared to prioritize proximity over keyword in order to flush out spammy, lead-generation websites.  Various testing has shown that proximity cues now favor rankings based on the web searcher’s location. This is not to say that a keyword-rich name is not effective; rather it’s significance has now been mitigated.



Categories



Businesses can select up to ten categories to be included in their Google Business Profile. The most important thing that you can do on your Google Business Profile is to see which businesses rank for your keywords and then identify their categories and match them.  


Business Website URL

The website page to which you link from your Google Business Profile can have an impact on your listing’s rank. If a  business links their listing to their homepage and has accumulated a lot of authority and links, it may rank higher than if they point to a page with less authority.  Many businesses choose to link to their homepage, or even to another page on the same domain.


There is no one right answer as to what you should do, but there are some factors to consider: Do you want people to be able to find you through a Google search or do you want people to see a specific page? If you want people to visit a specific page, that page should have a lot of authority (lots of links).

If you want people to find you through a Google search, it doesn’t matter where you point them because Google will still be able to find you. Even if you point to a page that has no authority, Google will still be able to find you by looking at your website.


If you don’t care about Google visitors, pointing to your homepage is fine. However, if you want more targeted visitors, then you should point to a page with authority (lots of links). 
If you have a page that has a lot of authority (lots of traffic and backlinks), then you should definitely use that page. 


Location



As stated, the Vicinity update increased the significance of proximity cues. Location is now one of the most important factor that helps a business rank in the Local Pack. The closer your business is to the searcher, the more likely you are to be ranked.


The searcher’s location is determined by their IP address and reported to Google. If the searcher is in your incorporated area, you should be ranked. If the searcher does not fall within your incorporated area, you should not be ranked unless your business has a physical address in that location (it could be a satellite office location) or within 25 miles of it. 


There are some exceptions to this rule. For instance, if a searcher is searching for a  business that is not located nearby, you may still be ranked in the Local Pack if you have a physical presence in that area. For example, if a searcher from San Francisco searches for “san francisco movers”, a Los Angeles based business could be ranked. In order for this to happen, Google would have to know that someone from San Francisco is searching for a business with a physical presence in Los Angeles. This can happen if that business has a website with a physical address in Los Angeles, and someone from San Francisco has linked to it.


Claiming your business location on Google Maps is the primary goal of doing local SEO for small business owners. By displaying your business information on your Google Maps listing, you can increase awareness and traffic to your business. You can also use this visibility to attract new clients and boost brand recognition.

On-Page Factors for Local SEO Small business owners

On-Page Factors refers to your website’s content. The critical Local SEO on-page factors include the following.

NAP is for Name, Address and Phone Number

The idea behind NAP is that a local business’s NAP should be prominently displayed on its website and should match the NAP published on Google Business Profile.

Optimized Content For Local SEO Small Business Owners


Local business websites should be optimized to reflect the keywords that searchers use when searching for the products and services they offer. If a searcher searches for ” divorce small business owner”, then a local business should rank higher than a competitor who does not have a page optimized for this keyword phrase.

Expertise-Authority-Trust (EAT)


A local business that publishes website content of an authoritative quality may rank higher than one with low-quality content. Moreover, every  business should strive to clearly establish that it is a legitimate business by incorporating best practices to meet Google’s guidelines for EAT. Website content should show the business’s expertise in its field and location to establish authority and engender trust.

Technical and Security Factors


To remove ranking barriers, local businesses should ensure their website is mobile-friendly, secure and renders correctly across multiple devices. It is important to take care with elements such as the robots.txt configuration or page redirection in order for search engines to crawl, index, and trust a website.

Review Factors

Google is believed to pay attention to three types reviews, which include:


• Google Business Profile Reviews – These are star ratings and reviews that are likely the most important of all reviews for ranking purposes.
• 
Third-Party Review Sites – These are reviews that people leave on sites such as Yelp. However, they could also include professional reviews on websites like Yelp or Home Advisor.
• First-Party Review on Your Website – These are testimonials and reviews that local businesses facilitate publication on their website.


Moreover, the quality of reviews also has influence on rankings. Review qualities might include:

1. 
Recency: Are a business’s reviews from the most recent dates or are they outdated and out of date?

2. Velocity: How often does a business receive new reviews?

3. Diversity: Are there reviews of the business on multiple platforms?

4. Authority: Could a review by a professional reviewer, or a member in good standing of a program such as Google’s Local Guides have more weight than a review written by a random member of the public?

5. Format: Do text-based reviews have a greater impact than star ratings without text?

Citation Factors

Citations are a great way to boost your business’ credibility and visibility. By using reliable business directories, you can easily find relevant information about your company, such as its address and phone number. This information can help potential customers research your business before making a purchase.


Google is always looking for ways to improve its search results, and one way it does this is by discovering businesses that are popular on other websites. By linking to these sites, you can show Google that your business is reputable and worth considering for future searches.


There are many online sources of information that can help you get quality citations. These include web directories, maps, review sites, apps, and GPS navigation tools.

Link Factors

When used with money keywords and branded keywords, Inbound links from authoritative websites will help to achieve better search engine ranking for local search queries.

Additionally, internal links from other pages or articles within your small businesses can be beneficial for expanding your reach online.

Behavioral Factors

Google is always looking to improve their local search results, so they take into account the click-through rate of maps when ranking small businesses. They monitor how many mobile users are calling your company asking for directions and compare that number to the competition. If your ranking higher than your competitors, it’s likely due to more mobile users contacting you for help.


Additionally, Google may also be interested in other behavior, such as how long a person stays on your webpage or website which is known as dwell time. Another behavioral clue is how many people click on your listing’s “call” button to call your practice which is known as clicks-to–call or how many people click the directions button on your listing to get driving directions.


They also factor in how people interact with your photos, reviews and posts, menus, menus, books, products, or Q&A.


Google may also be interested in other aspects of your website such as how people interact with it after they click through, whether they visit other pages or bounce off to another site.

Negative Factors

The preceding covered the 7 major types of ranking factors which positively impact local businesses. You should also be mindful of negative circumstances that impact rankings. Essentially, violations of Google policies on these ranking factors can negatively impact search engine visibility.

Negative factors are too numerous to list but some of the more egregious types include: Fake reviews, toxic backlinks, etc.


A holistic local SEO approach looks at all of the above ranking factors. These ranking factors influence a medical practice’s local SEO which includes Google’s Local Pack and Local Organic search results.

Now that we’ve reviewed local SEO for small business ranking factors, let’s move on to what constitutes best practices for local SEO for small business.

Comprehensive Keyword Analysis


Perform an exhaustive keyword analysis for your  business’s business area and location
. The website should be optimized with the right keywords and search terms. An extensive competitor analysis should first be performed to identify what Google is ranking.  

It’s helpful to consider that each search engine results page (SERPs) is different and what ranks for a  business search term in Palm Springs is different than what ranks in Las Vegas.


Of note is also the kind of keywords. Commercial keywords are terms that suggest that the searcher is seeking to hire a small business owner. These are phrases such as “services”. Contrast this with informational keywords that seek information about a topic such as “repair leaking basement pipe”.

We typically create a 30-70 ratio of commercial to informational keywords.  You want to satisfy the Expertise-Authority-Trust (EAT) Google factors by presenting useful content regarding the  matters that web searchers want. A  business with just commercial terms comes off as spammy and probably won’t rank as well as one that seeks to serve their clients and prospective clients with helpful information.


The competitor analysis should also encompass a study of the images used, whether videos were used, the quantity and quality of backlinks, the citations and any other pertinent factors that lead to the websites ranking.  The idea is to match and exceed the winning web pages.


Additionally, a keyword gap analysis should be performed to identify low-hanging fruit. These are keywords that your competitors are not ranking for but where there is decent search volume. We call these keywords “golden” because they have high volume and low competition. 

Create Useful Local Small Business Website Pages

Small business that want to rank highly in local search results should focus on creating well-designed website pages that feature information about their services, business areas, location, hours, and contact details.


The site’s design and colors should be consistent with the business’s branding. User experience (UX) design principles should be employed to make the user experience more satisfying and easy to review, navigate, read and interact. 


Additionally, it is important to build a  business website using a platform that features a blog so you can regularly update content with new information. You want to continuously provide dynamic content to ping the search engines that your business’s website content is active, useful should be indexed and ranked.

Business Website Development: Pages EVERY  Business Should Have For Effective Local SEO



While there is no one “perfect” site structure, your main page(s) should consist of the following:


HOME: Your  business website page should contain the most important keywords in its title. It should contain your most important keywords. It should contain relevant images, videos and social media links. It should link to the most important pages on your website, such as your blog or your  services page. Think of it as the traffic center for your website and the best web page to promote your business’s brand.


ABOUT: This  business website page should describe your business and its history.

PROFILE/BIO PAGE: Each small business owner should have a profile page with a photo, bio and contact information.


SERVICES PAGES: This  business website page should contain detailed information about your services.


LOCATION PAGES:  Aim to have a location page for every  office that provides information about the services offered, small business owners based in that office, a map, driving directions, etc.


BLOG: The business blog should provide your customers with insights into your field.


CONTACT: Your  business website contact page should include your business address, phone numbers and email addresses.


CONTACT FORM: If you do not have a contact form on your website, you are missing out on a lot of leads! Add one as soon as possible. Make this part of your client intake process.

Create Content Hubs for Related Keywords Regarding Your Business Services

Content hubs are amazing for local SEO. They provide comprehensive content overview that cover each business area. These hubs include local content for the keywords relevant to that area.


An example content hub might focus a website page on the primary page “Personal Injury Small business owner Seattle” with sub-pages that further niche the services such as: Catastrophic personal injury Seattle, motorcycle accident injury small business owner, dog bite personal injury, etc.


This local content should be found in the website navigation menu. It is a great way to increase your business’s ranking for those keywords by showing your business’s subject matter expertise and authority.

Small business internet marketing services provides content and content optimization that also involves creating effective silos that focus on the small business’ essential service offerings for which they want to rank.

Add  Business Schema Markup To Your Website Pages Improve Your Business Local Rankings


Schema Markup provides extra information to search engines. This information can be used to enhance the display of your website in the search engine results pages (SERPS). The code used for schema markup can be seen with the Structured Data Markup Helper. The tool shows you how to mark up your site for location and organization.


Local Schema helps your business get better results in Google and other search engines by providing information relevant to local SEO. We strongly recommend doing this for optimum ranking.

On-Page SEO for Local SEO


To rank well, On-Page SEO is essential. In our opinion, it is the most important factor based on the SEO results that we’ve achieve for our clients. 


What is On-Page SEO?  Essentially it involves optimizing your web pages for the keywords that you want to be discovered for. These on-page SEO factors should be integrated into the website and interlinked throughout the site.


On-Page SEO is something that you want to do for every page on your site. It helps to ensure that the pages are relevant to the searcher’s query. Additionally you should include keywords in the page title, page meta description and on the first paragraph of the website’s body text. It is also important to use H1 tags in the page body text. Use local keyword phrases in your page URL as well as your page title.


Your business areas should be reflected in the page title and page header section of your webpages. Your city, state and zip code should also be included.
 It is also important to include a geographic targeting parameter in the page source code so that search engines can see that your website is relevant for searches in a certain area.  


Use Your Target Keyword Strategically

Make sure you have your target keywords in the title tag, meta tag, and content of your webpage. For example, if your target keyword is “San Francisco electrician”, make sure you include it and its variations in your title tags and website content. You can use: “San Francisco electrician”, “electrician San Francisco”, “electricians in San Francisco”, etc.  

Just be sure to avoid overusing the same keyword which is known as “keyword stuffing”. Small business internet marketing services inolves smart use of keyword by creating a semantic core for a small business that is used across digital assets.

Update Your  Business’s Website Title Tags & Meta Tags for Local SEO

Looking for a business near you and near me? In addition to listing the businesses by city and state, we also include their location on a map so that you can find them easily. Make sure to add “near me” and “near you” to your title tags in order to target your audience specifically. 


Display Your Name, Address, Phone Number & Website (NAP-W)


Be sure your website clearly displays your business information on each page, preferably in the footer. This should include your: Business Name, Address, Phone Number and website URL. Also include business hours.


Embed A Google Map


Embed a Google map into your website for easy location identification. Also, add directions from major freeways.


Internally Link Throughout Your Website


Internal linking is an important part of effective online marketing. When you link across business area pages, you help readers navigate your content more easily and see that you are an authority on the topic. This will help your rankings jump up.  


You should also link to related content on your website. However, you want to make sure that you do not link to content that is not relevant to the page that you are linking from. This can cause your rankings to drop.

Create Effective Website Architecture

Layout and design choices that are made in the architecture of a website can play an important role in helping Google crawl through its pages. A well-planned, flat organization with tight links between pages is ideal; this will help Google better understand what topics are covered on your site.


Additionally, grouping similar pages together by topic can also provide additional context for Google. Be sure to put your website’s pages in different categories to make them easier for Google to find!



Ensure Fast Website Loading Speed


Check your website speed with the Google Page Speed Insights tool. This will show you how quickly your website is loading. If you have a slow speed, Google will see that and you may be penalized for it.


Google has adopted a mobile-first approach to search which now demands faster web loading speeds particularly on mobile devices. If users of your website have to wait long periods of time for your pages to load, this may mean that they “bounce” for your website.  A high bounce rate can lead to lower rankings.

Get Google Screened To Increase Customer Trust

For small business, the presence of being Google screened can mean the difference between success and failure in local SEO. By vetting your service license with Google’s trusted partners, this feature allows you to bypass other paid and organic listings in a local search result. This means that Screened listings will eat a significant chunk of clicks from organic SERPs, helping you achieve higher rankings faster.


Conduct A Technical Site Audit for Growth Opportunities of Your Business Website
 

A technical audit ensures your  business website can rank better in search engines and also helps you identify issues that may cause your website to perform poorly in search results.

For example, if your website has a large number of broken links, Google may not rank it as high as a site with fewer broken links.
A technical audit may also discover duplicate content issues on your site that can lead to your website getting penalized.

The audit can also help you identify opportunities for improvement such as missing meta tag values or incorrect page titles.

Your Google Business Profile may rank above your website in search results if it has all the right information, so make sure you take steps to make sure your medical practice’s business profile is set up correctly.

Google Business Profile Description

Prepare a short description of your  business’s offering that includes  business name, name of lead small business owner, years of operation,  business business areas, locations served,  awards and recognition.

Here’s an example: 
”Our law firm, The Law Offices of Atticus Finch, is a premier law firm focused on representing clients in the areas of criminal defense, family law, and estate litigation. We offer our clients unparalleled experience and expertise in each area of our practice. Our attorneys have years of experience practicing in various areas and are highly respected within our community for their dedication to justice. We provide  services to residents throughout Maycomb County, Alabama.”

Choosing The Right Categories For Better Ranking

Always start by looking to see which category terms are winning the SERPs. Usually, the more niche the better. For example, if you’re a chiropractor, use “Chiropractor” rather than “Doctor” depending on which term is ranking for your key term in your area. Then use the other medical categories for your remaining categories.

Add Plenty of Pictures & Videos To Your Listing

Be sure to add plenty of photos of the exterior and interior of your business. Also add team photos, individual employee photos, special events, etc.  Prospective clients want to know more about your practice and what your office looks like before coming to your office.

Adding Google Business Profile images is a great way to make you and your small business stand out from the rest in search results rankings.

Post Useful Content Regularly

Use Google Business Profile to increase user engagement with your posts which also helps  increase local search rankings. Useful posts can be about local events, service information, relevant events, new services offered, charitable events, etc. 

Questions and Answers

Use the Questions & Answers feature!  Post frequently asked questions regarding your business and provide responses that are helpful to clients and prospective clients. Aim for 2-4 Q&A per month.

Positive Reviews Drive Higher Local Rankings

Request clients provide your practice with reviews.  Avoid incentivizing reviews as that conflicts with Google’s guidelines. Be sure to respond to every review and use your keywords in your responses. 


Bad Reviews: Don’t Add Fuel To The Flamer

Everyone gets bad reviews. How you handle it can minimize the impact or make it go from bad to worse.

⭐️ Avoid unprofessional communication with anyone who leaves a bad review. You don’t want to further aggravate a negative review. Be polite and respectful at all times.

⭐️ Offer to help them with a solution.

⭐️ Remember to focus your response on a how a prospective patient reading your response might evaluate your approach. Write for them.

⭐️ If possible, reach out to some of your 5-star reviewers and request that they slightly update their reviews. This will help push down your negative review so it’s not prominent.

For some additional great guidance, check out this article on how to respond to a bad review.

If you do get a fake or  unfair review, you can request that Google remove it. Provide evidence to help support your position.

Keep Your Business’ Name-Address-Phone-Website (NAP-W) Information Correct.

Keeping your business’ NAP information correct and consistent is important to both consumers and search engines. According to the BrightLocal Business Listings 2021 trust report, 83% of consumers found incorrect or incomplete information about a business, while 63% said finding such incorrect info would stop them from using your services.


To avoid consumer confusion and keep your search engine ranking high, make sure all citations online match what’s shown on your website. For example, if you have a  business with multiple locations, Google the old address and phone number to make sure it doesn’t appear on any listings online. 


Common local small business owner citations 


A few  directories that you might find useful include Yelp, Nolo, Angie’s List, and Home Advisor. All of these directories offer small business information on a variety of  topics, so they can be a great lead generation tool for local SEO for small business owners.

 

Link-Building for Search Engine Optimization

To rank locally, small business should get local and niche-specific links. Link-building will be particular to your business area and local market for optimal local search results.


If you’re targeting “San Francisco estate small business owner”, you’ll want to Google that term and analyze the backlinks for the top 3 – 5 competitors. From there, you want to match and exceed those links in terms of link quality. Avoid getting a ton of spammy or garbage links which can negatively affect your rankings.

Anchor Text –  For Local SEO Strategy

Research top practices’ backlinks, and typically, what you’ll find is that the top results have a combination of different anchor texts. Anchor texts pointing to their site usually include some combination of the following:


NAKED URL: The small business’ website URL is used as the anchor text.


BRAND: The small business’ brand name is the anchor text.


MISC: Miscellaneous anchor text will include verbage such as: “click here”, “find out more”, etc.


Exact Match Anchor (EMA): EMA anchors are the exact search term a small business is typically trying to rank for like “San Jose HVAC.” 


Partial Match Anchor (PMA):  The PMA anchor has some of the keywords, i.e., “electrician Bob Smith.” 


In most competitive markets, most top-ranked small business websites have about 3% – 5% EMA/PMA. 

Love it or hate it, social media is necessary to establish your  business’s brand and reach potential clients. It’s also a great opportunity to rank well locally, as long as you keep your posts useful, informative and engaging as social signals are important to local rankings.


When someone links to your small business website on Twitter or Facebook, Google will see that as a positive indicator of your site’s popularity. Google considers Facebook likes, shares and comments to be a positive ranking factor. 



LinkedIn is another great social media profile for small business because it allows you to connect with prospects and other business professionals. Many people will use LinkedIn to find a small business owner for the first time.


We particularly like video because of its incredible effectiveness for lead generation and because it can be repurposed for search and social. You can use one video on numerous platforms, and chop it up and make “shorts” for YouTube and TikTok.  


Video also helps reduce the anxiety factor that some might have regarding hiring a new business for a particular. You can present your business, your expertise, values, and respond to frequently asked questions.  Video is an excellent way to post on social to drive brand awareness. A buyer’s journey always involves the process of Know to Like to Trust; so video can help accelerate that process exponentially. 


Another great option for small business is social media marketing to a targeted audience search. Social media marketing is far less expensive than paid search. You can narrow down the demographics to your local region and identify the exact ages, type of employment, and keywords that you are seeking to provide a “freemium” and start an email nurturing sequence for lead generation.

Hopefully this guide helps you in your pursuit of Local SEO excellence. If you’d like to learn more about our small business internet marketing services, search engine optimization strategy and how our local SEO services for small business can help you, contact us.


We would be delighted to provide you with a complimentary audit of your local search rankings and web audit regarding your web presence.

Learn more about our business marketing services for local SEO for small business owners. Contact us today!