We run into small businesses facing ‘local SEO’ problems almost on a daily basis. Despite having tried their best, businesses end up missing out on the desired rankings. Poor results affect their visibility and hence the annual returns from internet marketing campaigns.
Listed below are some of the most common difficulties that small businesses face while trying to optimize their websites for local search queries –
Mismatch in Name, Address and Phone Number (NAP)
The quickest way of tanking down local rankings is to re-brand a location. If Google discovers a mismatch in your Name, Address and Phone Number (NAP) across services, it will drop your local rankings; simple as that.
The mismatch can occur because of a change in domain name/business name, or because you failed to update business data on the main citation sources.
If you’re unable to figure out what might have caused a mismatch, experts at DP Tech Group can help resolve the problem for you in no time.
A Website That Is Not Local-Ready
Since a large percentage of local visitors to any website are now using smartphones to stay online, not having your website optimized for mobile phones can be a big blunder.
Visitors will not stay long on a website which does not render properly on their smartphones or tablets. You can counter this problem if the website design is not responsive. Avoid this situation and choose a theme with an adaptive display for both laptop and mobile phone screens.
Not Taking Advantage of Location Pages
If your website is location-specific, it automatically means that you need to have separate location pages as well. And once you have the locations pages, you can take advantage of local search features. Your website will become more search engine friendly and may also record better CTRs (Click-Through-Rates).
Fault in Link Building
Link building is an integral part of local search engine optimization. BUT, doing it the wrong way can also damage your website. Focus on getting inbound links from authoritative websites such local blogs, regional newspapers, high quality regional article directories, etc.
Final Words
Local SEO is the best way forward for small businesses that are targeting a small geography. In case you are trying to optimize your website on your own, let us tell you that the process is going to a long time and needless to mention, there’d be many failed trials on the way. The task is best left to a team of specialists with proven experience in local SEO.