Local SEO For Small Businesses: Complete Guide To Increase Customers
Local SEO for small businesses is a smart way to gain customers for your physical store. When you rank first on local search queries, people will come to visit your store. All of these people are potential clients and could boost your business significantly. In this article, we’re going to discuss what local SEO is, why it matters, the key differences from traditional SEO, step-by-step local SEO for small businesses, and the best tools for local SEO.
If you’re interested in learning more about all the off-page SEO elements, I’d recommend reading the off-page SEO guide for small businesses.
Table of Contents
What Is Local SEO?
Local SEO is about helping people nearby find your business when they search online. It’s more location based.
When you optimize your local SEO as a small business owner, you make it easier for customers in your area to discover your business at the moment they need you.
It focuses on keywords like:
- “Physiotherapist in (your city)”
- “Best bakery in (your city)”
That makes every click on your website from search queries like that very valuable.
Keywords and content still matter, but in a local way. You use phrases customers actually type, including your area’s name. This could be on your homepage, service pages, or even blog posts that talk about local events or questions. The key is to tie your content from what you do and where you do it, search engines will connect you with the right local audience.
Why Local SEO Is Important For Small Business Owners
When you focus on local SEO for your small business, these small changes and higher rankings will increase visibility, which can lead to big results for your small business. Apart from word of mouth, you’ll have a digital version that keeps working and bringing in customers every day.
Small efforts, big wins
You don’t need a huge budget to rank high in local SEO. There are some small, free changes you can make, like optimizing your Google My Business profile, which will increase your chances of showing up in map results.
Apart from that asking for reviews from happy customers can make a huge difference too. It can improve visibility and conversions.
There are plenty of changes you can make to become more visible in local search results to gain customers.
Growing number of customers
People who are looking for local services/products are ready to buy. You attract visitors who already know what they want and they just need someone to do the job. This often leads to more website visits, calls, and appointments.
Over time, consistent local visibility builds recognition, so customers will think of you first instead of your competitors.
Key Differences Between Local And Traditional SEO
There are some key differences between local SEO and traditional SEO. You need to keep these differences in mind when optimizing your website for local SEO.
Target audience
Traditional SEO aims more for a global audience or a certain region or city, but not just a local area. You want organic traffic to your website and, eventually, conversions. But it’s more general and not only service-based.
Local SEO for small businesses, on the other hand, focuses on nearby customers who are looking for a certain service in their area. You attract people who are looking for your service specifically, the conversion rate is a lot higher here.
Keyword choices
In traditional SEO you pick keywords to rank nationally or for certain regions. For example “SEO tips” is more general, and there is no location needed.
In local SEO, your targeted keywords are location based. Without location, your content won’t matter for local searches. Search engines will match you with local searches.
Ranking factors
Traditional SEO relies on content, backlinks, and the technical aspects to rank higher in search engine results.
Local SEO relies on your Google My Business profile, customer reviews, and the proximity of searches. If you score well on these elements, you’ll rank high.
Key results
Traditional SEO grows your brand online and boosts conversions from anyone across the world. The most important metrics are clicks and sales.
Local SEO drives foot traffic (the number of pedestrians visiting the business) and calls from people nearby. The most important goal here is to increase the number of people who will visit your physical shop.
How To Do Local SEO For Small Businesses (Step-By-Step)
Now that we know what local SEO is, why it matters, and the differences from traditional SEO, it’s time to learn how to do local SEO for small businesses step-by-step.
Optimize Google My Business Profile
Google My Business is an absolute must. It shows up in local searches and in the Google Map Pack. A lot of people use it as their way to find your contact information. When your profile is optimized you’ll rank higher in the local pack.
You start by claiming your profile on Google My Business. Verify it with your phone number, Google will send a PIN, which you’ll need to enter. Every field needs to be filled in as completely and correctly as possible. For categories, choose the most specific primary category.
Upload 20+ high-quality images of your store. Try to post weekly about specials, events, or holidays. Posts boost relevance and show your business is active. Use your targeted keywords naturally in your description.
NAP consistency & local citations
NAP means name, address, and phone. This is your business ID online. Citations are online mentions of your NAP, like on directories or apps. They matter a lot for local SEO because Google uses them to verify legitimacy and location. Inconsistent NAP confuses search engines, which will result in dropped rankings.
Google Map Pack favors businesses with 10+ consistent citations, even without links, citations signal relevance.
You can audit first to check if there are any inconsistencies in your NAP information. Aim for as many relevant citations as possible, and include social links and website.
Localized content and on-page optimization
Localized content speaks directly to all people in that area. On-page optimization ensures your site is focused on local intent. You create targeted pages for a certain keyword and service to convert visitors into leads.
If you have multiple locations or target multiple areas, create city-specific landing pages. Include your NAP in footer, local keywords in the meta title, H1, and meta description. Write blogs with neighborhood mentions, and events. Use local business schema markup.
Also, add alt text to images, H2s with locations, and internal links to other service pages. Optimize your mobile speed and design.
Reviews
Reviews matter for your small business because Google prioritizes volume, recency, and responses in their rankings. Also, reviews are social proof that can convince a person to buy or not buy.
Quality counts of course, a 5-star rating beats five 2-3 star ratings. Negative ones hurt your rankings, but responses show you care and control the damage done.
Ask people for a review post-service. Respond within 24 hours. Aim for 5-10 reviews monthly.
Focus on great service and the reviews will follow.
Local backlinks
Local backlinks are links from other websites in your area. They matter because they prove other businesses trust you in that area. This is a very positive signal to search engines and boosts local SEO authority.
High authority local sites drive trust and traffic to your website.
You can do this by asking for a guest post, sponsoring events, using directories, partnering with local businesses, etc.
Best Tools For Local SEO
There are some tools you can use for local SEO for small businesses. Here are my top 3 tools that I’d recommend:
- SEMrush
- BrightLocal
- Local Falcon
SEMrush
Use SEMrush if you want to dominate local SEO as a small business owner. It handles keywords, listings, and rankings all in one spot.
Your goals with SEMrush include finding local search terms, tracking rank positions, and managing reviews.
Here is what SEMrush can do for you:
- Discover high-volume local keywords.
- Track Google Map rankings.
- Manage business listings across directories.
- Monitor and reply to reviews.
- Audit your website’s on-page SEO.
BrightLocal
BrightLocal is perfect for local SEO cleanup and reputation building. It’s a great fit for building citations, tracking local rankings, and automating review requests.
With BrightLocal, you can:
- Build and fix citations across directories.
- Track rankings on maps.
- Monitor reviews and send automated requests.
- Generate custom reports.
- Audit Google My Business profile to spot quick wins.
Local Falcon
Local Falcon is perfect if you want to visualize your map pack strength and spy on your competitors. Your main goals are daily scans, competitor benchmarking, and AI tweaks for better local SEO performance.
Here is what Local Falcon can do for you:
- Check rankings.
- Schedule automated scans to track progress.
- Analyze competitors’s positions to steal their “strategy.”
- Get AI recommendations to boost your visibility.
- Export reports for client pitches or self-review.
