Why Local SEO Is Important for Locksmiths

If you’re a locksmith and you’re looking to improve your search engine optimization (SEO) strategies, you’ve come to the right place. Regardless of the size of your business, be it a large, multi-store operation or a small brick-and-mortar location, SEO is a crucial piece of the modern marketer’s toolbox. People rely on search engines more than ever to find products and services that they need, and this trend doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon. Although the strategies involved with SEO might be assumed to be complicated, this couldn’t be further from the truth. There are many things that you can do to improve your ranking power in the search engine, including local SEO for locksmiths.

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What Is SEO?

To begin, let’s ask the question: what is SEO? Search engine optimization, at its most basic, is using strategies to improve your online visibility on search engines, the most commonly used of which is Google. When someone searches for something in a search engine, the program’s job is to show them links to websites and webpages that it thinks are what they’re looking for. It ranks the results on the page by measuring their “relevance” to the terms that the user typed into the box. The more relevant you appear to what they’re looking for, the higher up you’ll be on the page. You might be wondering how important SEO is to succeed as a business, and the answer couldn’t be more clear. When over 47% of people click on the first link presented to them, you’re bound to lose customers if you can’t stick out from the crowd.

How do you appear more relevant? First thing’s first, be sure to have a personal website and/or social media presence of some sort. SEO works by improving your visibility, so if you don’t have an online presence, there’s nothing to amplify! If you’re looking to have your website or advertising campaign made for you, SEO Design Chicago can help.

Locksmith SEO Strategies

Keywords

Assuming you already have a website, there are a number of strategies you can use, starting mainly with your use of keywords. Keywords are words that people use when they’re searching for things related to your business specialty. Ask yourself, what words or phrases would you use in the search bar if you were looking for a locksmith? Your answers might include things like “locked key in car,” “locked out of house,” “key duplication,” and, of course, “certified locksmith.” These terms are what you’re going to use throughout your website, as they play heavily into how search engines determine relevance. They’ll appear mainly in your body text (normal text on the page), as well as your headings. Headings are another feature that helps the search engine know who you are. Be sure to use your keywords in your headings, as their weight is often amplified. 

Internal and External Links

You should also include internal links and external links on your website. Using such links not only helps people who look at your website feel that you are more credible but also boosts your search rank. External links are useful from a credibility standpoint, but internal links are especially useful in making users who visit your page become more familiar with the entirety of your online presence. It helps turn traffic from one page into multi-page traffic which also aids your SEO efforts, traffic being a big metric Google uses to determine your rank in the search results.

Mobile-Friendliness

There is another strategy we should mention before moving on. One often overlooked tactic is to make your website mobile-friendly. Having a mobile-friendly website is even more important for locksmiths than in other industries. After all, it’s kind of hard to look up a website on a computer when you’re locked out of your car or house.

local seo locksmiths

Local SEO for Locksmith Businesses

Now that the concept of SEO and some of its strategies have been covered, we can progress to the next question: what is local SEO? Local SEO is fortunately very similar to regular SEO, but it has a few key differences. Location is something that Google also uses in deciding how to rank websites. Local SEO for locksmiths is convenient because, unlike regular SEO, you aren’t competing with the global internet community for that top spot on the search page. Additionally, since you are mainly advertising to those found in your immediate area, you can ingratiate yourself much more easily by using language that is unique to your area. Your inside knowledge of this might make your website more visible to your target customer base.

In a similar vein to using language that is unique to your area on your website, you can take this a step further and embed yourself in your local community. Google is known to use impressions, especially those originating on social media, to gauge interest in your business. Thus, the more people are talking positively about you, the better. Things you can do include sponsoring local events, contributing to local charities, and hiring local workers.

Locksmith Advertising

The locksmith industry is unique in that you aren’t providing a service that people need or think about very often. It’s important to remember that you want your business to be at the front of people’s mind when the need for your services do arrive. This is advantageous in that you often don’t need to advertise as much as some other types of businesses. If you make efforts to participate in your community, use SEO strategies, and advertise through traditional methods on occasion, you should be more than set in terms of marketing. That being said, there are a few more things worth mentioning in regard to how you should advertise.

Throughout a given year, there are times when your services are more likely to be in need than others. By focusing your local SEO for locksmiths efforts during these periods, you can achieve similar levels of success that other businesses need to campaign all year for. For locksmiths, in particular, your busiest times of year are July and August due to those being peak months for break-ins. This should come as no surprise, as it is vacation season after all. Another busy season is around Christmas, as keys are prone to snapping in the cold and break-ins also see an uptick in frequency. If you do want to advertise traditionally, be sure to increase your efforts around this time!

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Types of Locksmith Marketing

The ways that you’ll market your business outside of SEO are more or less the same as other businesses. That being said, We’ll cover a few different methods at your disposal and the benefits & disadvantages of each.

Digital Advertising

Digital advertising includes things like social media marketing, online content creation, banner ads, sponsorships, celebrity/influencer endorsements, and email marketing. This kind of marketing is great for boosting your search result rank and being incredibly cost-effective. There are few better ways to reach so many people for the money you put in. However, you should be wary that internet users see online advertisements all the time, and thus are prone to tuning them out due to advertising fatigue.

Newspaper/Magazine Advertising

This type of advertising is fairly straightforward: you simply buy some space in a printed medium that is distributed via mail. When keeping in mind that you value local advertising more than global for the purposes of local SEO, this method is particularly useful. Printed ads often have excellent coverage of a local area. Plus, any reader can clip out and save any advertisements they wish to save. Similar to digital advertising, however, your messaging might have a tendency to be drowned out by other advertisements. Despite this, you should definitely consider this option for your advertising needs.

Television Advertising

We all know commercials: a series of messages which periodically interrupt shows or movies. These advertisements are noted for their unparalleled exposure rates. There are few better ways to have your message seen by so many people than through television. However, this form of advertising is hugely expensive, especially when you consider the costs of making the advertisement itself. 

locksmith marketing

Radio Advertising

Radio advertisements are similar to newspaper advertisements in many ways. They are noted for having excellent coverage of a given area and are relatively cost-effective for the exposure you get. You only get a short time on air, so make sure you say what you want in a quick manner. I would also highly recommend this option for pursuing local attention.

SEO Design Chicago For Locksmiths

Don’t forget that SEO Design Chicago is here to help you with local SEO for locksmiths. For businesses located in specific areas, such as in or around Baltimore, we can offer you specialized services to suit your needs. Plus, we can help you with much more than just your SEO strategy. We also provide social media marketing, website design, content creation, and much more.

FAQ:

  • What is SEO?
  • How is local SEO different from SEO?
  • When are the busiest times for locksmiths?
  • What does digital advertising include?
  • What are the benefits of television advertising?

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