If your retail store is looking to attract more customers, increase brand awareness, and grow your business, then it must use local search optimization techniques. They are extremely effective for retail marketing. Techniques such as using local keywords, creating social media accounts, and creating a Google My Business Profile are essential to ranking highly on search engine result pages.
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What Is Local SEO?
Strategies used for local search optimization will help boost the number of local clients that walk into your retail store. Local search engine optimization can help retailers reach more potential customers that are in your area.
46% of all searches conducted on Google are related to seeking local information. Search engines, such as Google, utilize a user’s location to determine which businesses to display on the search engine results page. Local search engine optimization uses the same strategies as traditional SEO, while also focusing on the geographic location of the user. Using local search engine optimization techniques as a retailer will ensure potential clients nearby will be able to find your store when conducting research online.
Local search engine optimization can also help advertise your business on search engines for free. Approximately 86% of users search for the location of a business on Google Maps. Creating a free account on Google My Business will display your retail store on Google Maps. If your store wants to be visible to this large percentage of potential clients, your retail store must incorporate local search engine optimization techniques.
Local Listings
One technique for local search optimization is to use local citations, also known as local listings. A local listing is any online mention of the name, address, or phone number of a local business. The more local citations your retail store has, the more traffic will be driven to your website.
Local citations provide search engines with more proof that your business is relevant and will therefore rank it higher on search engine result pages (SERPs). Creating some of these local citations may come with a fee, but they drive relevant traffic to your website. Typically, retailers with 85 or more relevant citations will rank first to third place on search engine result pages. The more local listings you have, the higher your company’s website will rank.
The most common places to get local citations for your retail store are Apple Maps, Facebook, Yelp, Bing, Foursquare, or LinkedIn. Choosing where to place local listings will depend on the audience your brand wants to reach as well as the most common social media your customers are using. If building local citations is too overwhelming for you, there are software tools to help. This software can help automate the process of posting local citations to different websites and can save your company valuable time.
Retailer SEO
Search engine optimization (SEO) for retailers is a strategy of using different tactics to appear at the top of a search engine result page or SERP. Being at the top of these pages means being noticed by more potential cafe customers.
One tactic for search engine optimization includes ensuring your website is appealing to the search engine. This means creating high-quality content and structuring your website with the user in mind. There are many different templates available to easily create an appealing website, or consider hiring a professional website designer.
Another tactic for search engine optimization is to use different keywords within the structure of your website. Keywords and phrases show the search engine that your website is relevant to what the user is searching for. The most simple way to find keywords is to research popular words used in the retail industry. Some examples of the most popular keywords and keyphrases are “coupons,” “retailer job near me,” or “retail stores.” The key phrases that use location are associated with local search engine optimization tactics.
Keywords for Retailer Marketing
Keyword research consists of finding the words potential clients are using to describe your business. The best strategy to come up with keywords to use in your SEO strategy is to describe your store out loud. Use short phrases or words that people who want to find your company would type into the search bar. Depending on what your retail niche is, will determine the different keywords you will use. Make sure to include words describing the different products and services you provide and include your geographic location.
Choosing the correct keywords will be based on the type of products your retail store sells. For retailers, keywords help the search engine determine a webpage’s relevance to a user’s questions. Essentially, keywords form the user’s query they want a search engine to answer. However, based on the Keyword Tool, the best keywords for a retailer are:
- “retail store near me”
- “retail store”
- “retailer near me”
- “retail shops”
- “best retailer”
Figuring out who your target audience is and what information customers are searching for will help determine which keywords and key phrases to use. Be sure to use these keywords in a sentence and keep them contextualized.
Avoiding random or irrelevant words will help boost your page to the top of the search results. The easiest way to think of some keywords would be to ask yourself what you would search for if you were trying to look for your own retail store. Ensure your store is not overusing keywords as they may get overwhelming for the user.
Google My Business
Setting up a Google My Business account is essential to helping potential customers nearby locate your store when searching for retailers in their area. The process of creating a profile is simple once your store has created a website and has a physical store address.
To verify your company, Google will mail a postcard with a verification code to your store’s address. After receiving the verification code, simply log back into your account and enter this access code. Your retail business will become verified on Google My Business and you can begin to fill out the information about your company. Be sure to include the following information:
- Your store’s address
- Phone number and email address
- Your website’s URL
- Hours of operation
- Photographs of your products
It is also important to include pictures of your storefront and photographs showcasing your employees. Users enjoy seeing photographs of your business and believe pictures make your store seem more credible.
Users may also enjoy reading reviews that are left on your Google My Business profile. Having a large number of reviews will rank your business even higher. Encourage people to leave reviews on your profile by offering incentives. For example, offer special prices or discounts to customers that show proof of leaving a review of your profile.
If for any reason any negative reviews are left on your profile, make sure that you resolve them professionally and efficiently. This will give your business more credibility when people are reading your business’s reviews. Sometimes a negative review can showcase your brand better than a positive review can if handled properly.
Retailer Marketing
Once your retail store has created its brand identity and is aware of its target audience, it can focus on implementing a marketing plan. The fastest and most accessible way to reach potential and existing customers is through social media marketing.
Social Media Marketing
Setting up different social media accounts for your retail store is another great way to reach more customers. Creating Instagram, Facebook, or even TikTok accounts can attract more people to your business and website. The most essential accounts to set up for your retail store are on Facebook and Instagram.
Including a Linktree in your social media account bios is a useful way to connect all your platforms with your website. This one link will take your customers to a list of all social media accounts and your website, and is customizable to whichever link your business wants to lead customers to. A simple Linktree is necessary for any small business’s social media account. Pricing for a basic account starts at $0 per month and can be upgraded depending on what your store’s goal is.
SEO Design Chicago Can Help With Retailer Marketing
If you are a retailer looking to improve your marketing and increase customers, then contact SEO Design Chicago’s specialized retailer marketing team today! If your retail store is located in San Francisco, we also have a brilliant marketing team located in your area.
FAQ:
- What is local SEO?
- Why is local SEO important for my business?
- What are keywords?
- What is Google My Business?
- What should I include on my Google My Business profile?
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