by samArguably, local SEO is one of the most significant areas of search engine optimisation, especially if you’re optimising a website for a business that operates mostly in a local area, such as a tradesman or retail service. Here are some things you can do to improve your localised SEO that you may not have thought of:
Verify as a “Postcard” on Google Places: When registering your business on Google Places, you will be presented with the option to verify via SMS, postcard, or email. If you select a postcard, there is a much higher chance that Google will regard you as a trusted and rank-worthy local business website.
Enter Information from Your Business Location: With current online technological advancements and IP-to-location capabilities, there is a strong chance that Google is basing some of its place ranking factors on how local you are when you’re active. For example, if you’re an “SEO Cambridge” company, it’ll look far more trustworthy to Google if you enter your place information from an IP in central London rather than one in India.
Unique IP Address: There is a risk that if you share your IP address with other businesses, Google will merge some of your information, and it could affect your rankings locally. To avoid this, ensure that you’re hosted on a dedicated, unique IP address.
Set Your Mailing Address in the Centre of Your Local Area: The red pin that appears when you do a localised business search is what Google classes as the “centroid” for that area. This means that businesses that list their Google Places mailing address at a non-P.O. Box location near the centroid for the area will be optimised.
Put Your Keywords and Location in the Title, H1, Body, and URL: On all sections of your website that you want to be geo-targeted, ensure that you include the necessary keywords and locations. This will act as a signpost for local search engines.
While these are all fairly important things to make sure you’re doing, the most important part of a successful localised online presence is gaining a vast range of positive reviews on Google Places. If you can do that, along with the above tips, you will greatly strengthen the local aspect of your internet marketing strategies.