If you have been researching ways to rank higher on Google, you may have encountered the term “national SEO company.” As you may know, SEO can be rather complicated and difficult to do on your own. Not only that but there are so many needs and uses for SEO that it can be difficult to keep track of what your business might need. Adding in terms like local SEO and national SEO can serve to only confuse you further. Rest assured, these terms are not difficult to understand. This article is intended to help you understand the difference between local and national SEO. In addition, it will help you grasp the concept of national SEO and why you should consider a national SEO company.
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Why Do Businesses Need to Use SEO?
To put it simply, search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of crafting web pages so that they will show up higher in search engine results. It is about optimizing web content for search engines. SEO relies heavily on the relevance and authority of web pages. Though there are hundreds of factors that determine search engine placement, these two are most important.
You may be wondering why you need to use SEO for business. The answer is pretty straightforward: we live in a world of rapid e-commerce growth. More and more business is being conducted online. Consumers are using search engines, like Google and Bing, to research products and organizations before they buy. The sad truth is that most people don’t have the patience to look at results beyond the first page. Almost every time, one of the first five results is what will be clicked on. So, if you want to be relevant in the e-commerce world, your pages need to be high in search results. If they aren’t, your pages will be lost in the shuffle and will rarely be seen.
How Do You Start Using SEO for Business?
So how do you begin optimizing your pages for search engines? This question is a bit harder to answer. Some SEO practices can be harmful to your rankings, so you need to exercise caution. It is not wise to just search SEO practices on the internet and start using the first practices you see. Even if the practices are good, they may not be the best choice for your business. Plug-ins like Yoast SEO can be a good option if you are using WordPress to build your pages. They can be a basic guide for you to raise your rankings, but they don’t go a whole lot farther than that.
The best thing you can do when you start using SEO is to hire experts to help you. Integrated marketing agencies provide services that can help boost your search engine rankings. However, companies that specialize in SEO will be your best bet. SEO Design Chicago is one of those companies that can define your exact SEO needs and properly execute them. SEO Design Chicago is a national SEO company that has experience in providing services to organizations nationwide. The company is seasoned and intelligent and will provide you with excellent SEO services. But for you to truly appreciate a national SEO business like SEO Design Chicago, you might need to understand the difference between national and local SEO.
What is Local SEO?
If you were to search “local plumber” on Google, you would get a listing of plumbing companies that are close to your physical location. This is an example of a local search. Local SEO companies specialize in boosting listings for local searches. This option is good for small businesses that are looking to dominate the local market. If you have a small business that is growing but can’t yet compete with national companies, you may want to consider taking advantage of local SEO. Of course, make sure you take the time to select the right company for your organization.
Benefits of Local SEO
There are several benefits to hiring a local SEO company. First, they tend to charge less than some bigger national SEO companies. This, of course, is a given considering that SEO requires a lot less work on a local level than on a national level. It is easier to rank higher in local searches than national searches as well because there is less competition. But perhaps the biggest benefit lies in the fact that local SEO statistically generates more traffic to your business. That is because local search leads have a high conversion rate from browsers to actual paying customers. But remember, if you have a business that is looking to reach national audiences, this may not be as effective as a national SEO campaign.
How is National SEO Different from Local SEO?
National SEO companies differ from local SEO companies primarily in their purpose, which is to rank pages higher in national searches. Competition is much more fierce on the national level, so national campaigns require a lot more resources. This means more time, more effort, and more money. The technical aspects are much more complex as well, which is why it is crucial to get help from experts.
Local SEO practices do not work on a national level. So if you have experience in local SEO, or you have a local SEO company, don’t assume that you have the resources to tackle a national campaign. The approach needs to be broader, yet more specialized and competitive at the same time. This is because, with a larger audience to deal with, you need to be general to keep from isolating various groups. In addition, national search leads have much lower conversion rates than local SEO search leads. Competing with large, nationwide companies requires help from experts with a lot of resources and experience.
Examples of National SEO Services
As you research national SEO companies, you may start asking yourself what kind of national SEO services are commonly offered. Of course, as each business will offer different products and services, each national company will provide different SEO services. But most companies tend to offer some form of these basic services:
Site Audit and Web Design
It is crucial that the content on your pages be easily navigable by both human users and search engine bots. This is referred to as crawlability, and is a factor in search engine ranking. National SEO companies will peruse your site and its pages to determine its crawlability. If it finds things that can be improved, they will suggest such changes. In many cases, these companies will offer to help in site design if you are not comfortable with web design.
Keyword Strategy
In order to appear high in search results, you need to know what people are searching for. SEO companies are experts in keyword research and can help your organization put together a strategy to incorporate popular keywords into your content. This is usually done on a monthly basis and is crucial to SEO.
Content Analysis
This service analyzes the content your site currently has and what content is required to rank high in search results. After such analysis, specific types of content are recommended. Some companies may be heavily involved in content creation as well to help you make high-quality content. With such quality content, you are sure to rank higher on search listings.
On-Page Optimization
Similar to web design, on-page optimization is meant to analyze the content you already have and update it to match your SEO strategy. Updating content, titles, and images can help you rank higher in searches, as well as make your site more engaging for visitors. Without on-page optimization, visitors to your site likely won’t stay for long.
Off-Page Optimization
Off-page optimization has less to do with the quality of your site or the type of content on your pages. It is more about creating a presence online and helping drive more traffic to your site. It is meant to establish your site as an authority so visitors and search engines will see your site as trustworthy. Though this is largely based on link-building, off-page optimization can be rather complex.
The Difference Between National SEO and Local SEO Companies
The difference between local and national SEO companies is based mostly on the desired reach of sites and pages. Local companies are meant to drive local traffic to smaller businesses while national companies drive national traffic to larger businesses. Which type of company you should choose will depend on the size and needs of your organization. There are many different services that can be offered by SEO companies, but most companies will at least offer some basic services. If you are in need of an SEO company that can help you rank high on national search results, SEO Design Chicago is an incredible choice. Our team of SEO experts knows exactly how to identify your organization’s needs, and can help you achieve your SEO goals. For other questions or help with SEO, reach out to our team of experts.
FAQs:
- What is a national SEO company?
- What is local SEO?
- How do I start incorporating SEO into my marketing strategy?
- What is the difference between local SEO and national SEO?
- What services do SEO companies offer?
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