Out of all the things that can drive local business in competitive markets, location pages and GMB listings offer more results. Focusing your efforts on these two can help you improve your local search marketing efforts. This article will look into some of the ways you can make your business more visible to customers in a highly competitive location through GMB listings and location ages.
But First, How Does Google Rank Local SEO?
There are three factors that Google uses to rank local search results; prominence, distance, and relevance. Prominence revolves around the business’s reputation in a particular location. Distance entails the location of the user from the search results. And relevance gauges how suitable the results are to the search terms. From these factors, we can only optimize prominence and relevance.
With the above information in mind, let’s see how you can drive local business in competitive markets through search.
How to Get the Most Out of Google My Business (GMB) in a Competitive Market?
If you want to dominate your local market, here are some ways to leverage Google My Business listing.
1. Profile
Always ensure your profile stands out from the rest of your competitors. You can do that by adding accurate and engaging content. GMB’s profile section has many features. Fill each one of them. First, start with the attributes. Your audience must know who owns the business. Proceed to add more details such as menus, reservations, and relevant links.
A section that most people forget to add to the profile is the hours of operation. You have to make sure the hours you enter are accurate. Remember to update them in case something changes.
2. Google Posts
Another aspect of the GMB profile that is often overlooked are Google Posts. These allow you to share brief details about your business. Google posts also need to be optimized since they can affect your rankings. On search results, Google posts are shown alongside your location.
3. Reviews
We need not emphasize how critical reviews are in local search rankings. Having a low and negative review count will be detrimental for your business. Reviews are even more serious in areas that face stiff competition. Find out how you can request reviews from your customers. To get positive feedback, your product or services must be outstanding.
4. Share Quality and Detailed Media
Your profile is incomplete without media. Photos and videos spice up a GMB listing. They also give clients a sneak peek into how your premises look like. By adding media, you will make your potential customers more curious actually to visit the store. As you change your store layout, always update your profile with current photos.
What about Location Pages?
It’s disappointing how dull most business’s location pages are. They usually contain names, addresses, operating hours, and short descriptions. Location pages, however, contribute significantly to local search rankings. This is the area Google checks for prominence. Here are a few things you can tweak on your location pages if you want to outshine competitors.
5. Hyperlocal Content
In a local competitive market, you should be as unique as possible. Hyperlocal content can help with that. On the local page, write about what’s special in that area or outside. If you follow the latter approach, talk about famous landmarks. If you decide to talk about the inside, discuss local events or news.
6. Utilize Schema Markup
Schema markup is code that helps search engines understand your content better. This doesn’t contribute to ranking location ages, but it’s one of the ways you can add prominence.
7. Get Links from Other Sites
Location pages can also rank through link building. Having other sites link to your site shows relevance. Try and have local authority sites link to your business. For instance, a local news station can be a great choice.
8. Essential Web Vitals
According to Google, crucial web vitals include user interaction and page speed. These also apply to your location pages if you want your local business to thrive in a competitive market.
Surviving local competition requires the use of unique strategies. Working on your location pages and GMB listings will make you stand out and rank higher. If you don’t know where to start with local SEO, contact Marvel Marketing SEO experts via 1-800-427-7113 for professional assistance.
