How to Hire the Best Local SEO Agency

The importance of Local SEO is undeniable. Implementing it, however, can require quite a bit of work. Here, you’ll learn about what Local SEO encompasses and how to achieve a higher Local SEO for your website. We’ll also discuss essential elements of Local SEO such as on-page SEO, content creation, and Google Business (now called Google Business Profile.) Together, these elements will help you attract better and more relevant website traffic for your company. But the real key is to find the best of best local SEO companies to help you create a local marketing strategy.

Local SEO

Local SEO is a strategy that allows a business to become more visible via search engines for people in specific geographical areas. Any brick-and-mortar business will benefit from this strategy by making their business more discoverable to their community. You can accomplish this by utilizing a business address to make sure people can find you in real life. Local SEO strategies help with making your business easier to locate. They also allow for the creation of local landing pages, managing online ratings and reviews, store-locators, and local-based social media engagement.

Benefits of Local SEO

In addition to the many functions of local SEO, there are also many benefits to implementing these applications. Local SEO provides potential customers with the ability to discover and contact your business. Many searches come from non-locals who are seeking information. With proper local SEO, your business will be able to capture that potential target audience. Similarly, local SEO gives potential customers the information they are looking for exactly when they need it. Optimizing your website encourages more targeted and relevant traffic. Greater online visibility will help potential customers gain familiarity and trust in your brand name. This creates the base for a mutually beneficial business-client relationship. Using local SEO to combine all of these elements will lead to greater lead generation for your business.

On-Page SEO

More specifically, on-page SEO encompasses search engine optimization efforts that optimize individual web pages in order to rank higher and be more easily displayed. This is also commonly known as “Technical SEO” and refers to both the content and HTML source code of a page that can be optimized. Off-page SEO, on the other hand, refers to external links and activities that are not on your business’ web page. When diving into on-page SEO there are many factors to focus on including your URL, mobile-friendliness, site navigation, speed, title tags, and meta descriptions.

URL

Both viewers and search engines must be able to read your website URLs to understand what content they are reaching on each page. Customization allows readers to further comprehend such as using hyphens to separate words. Staying consistent with lowercase letters helps both viewers and search engines as URLs are case sensitive. Using canonical URLs specifies preferred URLs to search engines and avoids duplicate content.

Mobile-Friendliness

As mobile searches become more and more popular, making your website easily viewable on mobile devices is vital. This can be done by making your website responsive. In other words, making your website mobile means maintaining all of the same content and information but changing the display to fit the size of the device screen. Avoid using Flash if possible. IOS and Android devices do not support the extension and Flash can slow down your page’s loading time. Additionally, make your button sizes large enough to be used and “click-able” on mobile devices for more interaction.

Title Tags

Successful title tags are another essential aspect on on-page SEO optimization. They act as the title for your page but only appear in search results. For search engines to know what your page is about, using keywords makes it easier to index and display. Including both your keys words and your company name is an excellent way to accomplish this. Limiting your title tag to around 50 characters allows the full title to be displayed in search results. These tips allow for both search engines and users to better understand what type of content your page holds, which in turn leads to a higher SEO ranking.

Content Creation

Creating content that fits the demand from users will ultimately drive your SEO growth. In order to create dynamic content, marketers must keep in mind the wants and needs of viewers. The most effective ways of content optimization are creating value, maintaining a strong user experience, and allowing your page to be bot/crawler accessible.

Keywords

Using keywords is a classic SEO technique that will still make a difference when improving local SEO function. Google puts a heavier weight on words used in the beginning of your page. Try mentioning your keywords in the first 100 words of your page. Leveraging search terms with high volume, especially in your area, can allow you to better keep up with competitors. Local keywords must resonate with your particular geographic target market. They often include combining your product or service with your location. Local searches are likely searching with intent to visit or purchase, using relevant keywords make your page is more likely to appear and match their needs. This is local SEO in practice!

Value

When making your page interesting to viewers, it is important that the content reflects the voice of your brand. Writing in a trustworthy and factual tone reinforces the reliability of your website to viewers. Similarly correct spelling and grammar are crucial in maintain professionalism while also make it easier for bots and search engines to understand the purpose of your website.

The easy readability of your website is what truly makes a page user friendly. Breaking up text into paragraphs and including skimmable headings makes a page much easier to comprehend. Images are another great way to keep your page visually interesting and not overwhelming the page with bodies of text. When inserting images, make sure they are compressed to avoid slowing loading. Additionally, keep your website compelling by consistently updating, this can be done by adding new pages of content or new landing pages which also show search engines you are active online.

Strong UX

Aside from content, there are other ways to improve your user experience. Internal linking allows your users to easily navigate different pages of your website. Intuitive navigation go hand in hand with successful content consumption. These links need to be cohesive and easy for users to understand what content to be expected on each page.

After a user finds your page via local SEO, the time it takes for that page to load will influence how long you can capture their attention. The faster the loading speed the better. To improve your loading speed, try removing unnecessary software, evaluate your plugins, and utilize cache versions to decrease loading times and, in turn, rank well with Google. Additionally, make pages shareable with buttons and links helps gain more viewers. Social media linking buttons are a great example of this that can allow users to easily widen the reach of your website.

There are a few ways to make your web page easier for bots to read and understand. First, make sure your content is unique to the URL in an effort to avoid confusion. Making your page redirect from older versions will also help with this. Having your content in HTML also allows for higher bot comprehension. Lastly, meta tags are bits of text that describe a page’s content and appear only in the page’s source code. Meta tags are excellent content descriptors that help tell search engines what your website is about.

Google Business

All local businesses need a Google Business Profile. Google Business is a platform designed to help business owners manage how their page will look and perform in a Google search. First, a business needs to create a Business Profile which establishes your company listing and then create a separate Google Business account to claim and maintain the listing. A Business Profile only needs a name, location, and category. It will then be available for customers to leave ratings, reviews, and photos.

Google Business allows you to customize your listing by linking your website, adding hours, and including other unique information. Google Business can also be used to gain insights by examining both your audience and search performance based on ranking relevance, distance, and prominence. The wide range of tools on your dashboard will provide a deeper dive into your website analytics by highlighting search patterns, customer actions, business photo views/quality, and more.

Local SEO comes into play with Google Business optimization as relevant keywords and correct geographical information will appeal to Google’s algorithm. Google Business is an excellent way to help your business gain both credibility and viewership.

Local Listings

Is your business listed on local directories? A local listing (also known as a local citation) is an online mention of your local business, including its name, address, phone number, or website. These listings can appear on websites, blogs, social media, and apps.

Make Your Site a Success

Implementing Local SEO and additional improvements for your company’s website leads to better management of online presence and an increase in organic search engine rankings which, in turn, boost your client base. The benefits of local SEO, like building online visibility, gaining more targeted traffic, increasing foot traffic, and improving relevance are extremely valuable for growing your business. Optimizing your on-site SEO, content, and Google Business page will create a holistic improvement for building and managing your online presence.

Hire the Best Local SEO Company

You can find a good local SEO company by performing a quick Google search and seeing what companies show up in the search engine results. After all, a good SEO company knows how to appear in the SERPs!

SEO Design Chicago is the best marketing company to help you with Local SEO and any other SEO efforts. Our team offers the best localized SEO services and other digital marketing services, including website design and social media management services. We work with small businesses and large businesses alike. SEO Design Chicago today to help get a higher local search ranking!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is local SEO and why does my business need it?

Local SEO is a digital marketing strategy that helps businesses become more visible in search engines for people searching within specific geographical areas. It’s essential for any brick-and-mortar business because it makes your company more discoverable to your local community and visitors to your area. Local SEO helps potential customers find your business address, hours, contact information, and services exactly when they need them, leading to increased foot traffic, phone calls, and ultimately more customers.

2. What are the main benefits of investing in local SEO?

Local SEO provides several key benefits for businesses: it increases your online visibility in local search results, helps you capture potential customers who are actively searching for your services in your area, provides targeted and relevant website traffic, builds familiarity and trust with your brand name, and ultimately generates more qualified leads. Additionally, local SEO helps you compete effectively against other local businesses and ensures your business information appears correctly across all online platforms.

3. How do I choose the best local SEO agency for my business?

Start by performing a Google search for local SEO agencies in your area – a good SEO company should appear prominently in search results since they practice what they preach. Look for agencies with proven track records, client testimonials, and case studies showing measurable results. Ask about their experience with businesses in your industry, their approach to local keyword research, Google Business Profile optimization, and local citation building. Ensure they offer comprehensive services including on-page SEO, content creation, and ongoing analytics reporting.

4. What specific services should a local SEO agency provide?

A comprehensive local SEO agency should offer on-page SEO optimization (including URL structure, mobile-friendliness, and title tags), content creation with local keywords, Google Business Profile setup and optimization, local citation building and management, review management, local landing page creation, and regular analytics reporting. They should also provide technical SEO services like improving page speed, fixing broken links, implementing proper HTML structure, and ensuring your website is easily crawlable by search engines.

5. How important is Google Business Profile for local SEO success?

Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is absolutely critical for local SEO success. Every local business needs a complete and optimized profile that includes your business name, accurate location, category, hours of operation, website link, and high-quality photos. This platform allows customers to leave reviews and ratings, provides valuable insights about your audience and search performance, and significantly impacts your visibility in local search results and Google Maps. Proper optimization with relevant keywords and geographical information appeals directly to Google’s algorithm.

6. What role does mobile optimization play in local SEO?

Mobile optimization is crucial for local SEO because most local searches happen on mobile devices. Your website must be responsive, meaning it automatically adjusts to fit different screen sizes while maintaining all content and functionality. Avoid using Flash, ensure buttons are large enough to be easily clickable on touchscreens, and prioritize fast loading times. Google uses mobile-first indexing, so your mobile experience directly impacts your search rankings, especially for local searches where users expect immediate, accessible information.

7. How long does it take to see results from local SEO efforts?

Local SEO results typically begin showing within 3-6 months, though some improvements like Google Business Profile optimization and local citation updates may show faster results. The timeline depends on several factors including your current online presence, competition in your local market, the comprehensiveness of your SEO strategy, and how consistently you implement best practices. Remember that local SEO is an ongoing process – maintaining and improving your rankings requires continuous effort in content creation, review management, and staying current with algorithm changes.

8. What should I expect to pay for professional local SEO services?

Local SEO pricing varies widely based on your business size, competition level, and the scope of services needed. Small businesses might expect to invest anywhere from $500-$2,000 per month for comprehensive local SEO services, while larger businesses or those in highly competitive markets may invest $2,000-$5,000+ monthly. Remember that quality local SEO is an investment that should generate measurable returns through increased website traffic, phone calls, and foot traffic. When evaluating costs, focus on the potential ROI rather than just the monthly fee, and ensure the agency provides transparent reporting to track your results.