Benefits of Local SEO Citations

Local SEO is undoubtedly one of the most underrated strategies out there. Local information accounts for 46% of all Google searches, 88% of those who search for local establishments either call or visit within 24 hours. Additionally, local search result information will send 70% of consumers to a store. If you’re a local business, you’d want to be part of these statistics and you can do that by starting with local SEO citations. 

Considered as one of the most powerful strategies out there, local citations prove to be beneficial for any local businesses. The majority of these citations do not have any backlinks, but the advantages go beyond that. Citations help build trust for your business’s validity with Google, drive traffic to your website, help build trust among customers, and improve rankings. 

If you don’t have this in your 2020 marketing strategy yet, it’s time that you take a closer look at what it can do to your business.

What are local SEO citations?

Also known as a business or online directory listing, a local citation is any place on the Internet where you can provide relevant facts about your business including your name, address, and phone number (NAP). Although not seen as relevant by some businesses, your NAP is the foundation of a strong local SEO citation where you can get a good headstart for your local search. It aims to reap benefits by gaining more brand exposure, traffic, and eventually leads that turn into sales.

Some of the most popular local business citation sites online include Google My Business, Apple Maps, Facebook, Yelp, TripAdvisor and Angie’s List. You can also find other sites that are specific to your state or country.  

What benefits do they have?

You can’t invest in small business SEO without including local SEO citation as part of your strategy. Whether citations have a backlink or not, they are highly beneficial to your local search rankings because:

• Prominence. With Google putting more emphasis on local SEO as a huge factor in rankings, it’s no surprise that businesses that rank in the first position for a local keyword have an average of 86 citations. 
• Credibility. As a business, you’d want to build as much credibility as possible to really establish your name in the industry. And that credibility isn’t only about proving yourself to consumers but is also a way to tell search engines that your business exists. Your business could also benefit from the verification of multiple credible sources that offer the same detailed information about your company.

For a business to gain prominence and credibility, it is crucial to choose the most ideal platform for their business. It takes a bit of effort and focus, but in the end, a local listing is still a powerful strategy for any online marketing campaigns when done right.

Can you optimise Google My Business to help?

Consistency is key to every effective local SEO citation campaign and so is finding the right citation sites to help you get that leverage for your business by boosting your local search rankings. 

Google My Business is still one of the best tools out there to establish your domain authority and improve your visibility. You can optimise your listing by first doing your own research to make sure that there are no existing GMB listings for your business. You should also choose the right category for your business to target the right market. You can then add relevant details about your business making sure that you include relevant keywords and accurate operating hours. 

It is also ideal for local businesses that want people to find them easily. A local business offering Austin rentals for bicycles, for example, can easily reach out to their target market through a GMB listing. Aside from that, new customers looking for the products they offer can find reviews from previous clients. They then base their decisions on those said reviews, which is advantageous for a business. Imagine getting five stars from previous customers and getting that kind of impression from your future customers. That would greatly improve your business standing.

If you’re still thinking twice about the benefits of local SEO to your business, this is the time to take the next step. Local citations may be a basic strategy, but sometimes, it’s the smaller methods that make a huge impact on your business. Plus, it has been done in the past through traditional platforms, so the idea behind the strategy is already there. Just prepare your business information, find a local listing that suits your type of business, and you’re all set!

This article is sponsored by the marketers at Ardor SEO, who hope this information about an important aspect of your digital marketing strategy is helpful to growing your business.