local SEO business model

The purpose of local SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is to increase the search visibility for businesses that serve their local communities, often with brick and mortar stores. This is accomplished through a few steps that start with claiming a business listing on Google and other search engines and ensuring that the business listing information is accurate. Then, web content and blog posts are optimized around relevant local search terms related to the business’ products or services.

What is a local business SEO model?

The local SEO business model is a business model created for how a business will use local search engine optimization. Over many years we've built and tested various models and have found many misconceptions about how this works.

After working with hundreds of clients, we have found that there is a common perception that SEO is a complicated, sophisticated process that only experts know how to do. That may be how it started, but it is no longer true.  

There are different types of SEO that I would characterize in the following two categories:

• Local SEO - Typically a brick and mortar store in a given city/town with lots of customers
• Advanced SEO - Bigger companies that want to reach outside their geographical area

These two types of SEO look dramatically different when applying strategies for different businesses.

Local SEO

Small businesses who operate locally and get most of their customers from a small geographical area can benefit greatly from local SEO. These businesses need to take care of these specific areas: 

• Listings on directories to make sure your Name, Address, and Phone are synced online to directories like yp.com, etc.
• Reviews from people in different search engines and directories like Google and Yelp
• Social media management to handle engagement
• A business website that is properly built and optimized
• Google my Business
• Targeted ads

Advanced SEO

Larger businesses need to be more aware of how their brand looks outside their geographical area. If your company is a manufacturer and ships products all over the U.S. or world, more work is needed to manage your SEO needs. This is where the technical SEO strategy comes into play.

• Technical website optimization
• Technical evaluation of backlinks
• Keyword analysis
• Domain analytics
• Traffic analysis
• Pay Per Click advertising
• etc.

These different strategies get misused all the time by SEO companies. For example, you don't want to spend hours technically cleaning up a local business website when you have no local presence. For smaller businesses, that's not going to have much of an effect compared to other strategies.

Or maybe your business doesn't have any reviews or bad reviews that are unmanaged. Local businesses rely a lot on referrals and recommendations. This is why reviews are so important.

Social media is key as well but it's different than it is for big brands. It's more personal because people may actually know each other in person compared to a big brand that doesn't have a personal connection. The use and strategy for social media is completely different for these different types of businesses.

Keeping track of all these things for local business is difficult and time consuming. That's why our platform will help your business succeed by using today's technology.

Seek the help of local business SEO expert

Softwired provides digital marketing solutions for our partner agencies and clients. We’ve got you covered for web design, blogs, landing pages, SEO, local online presence and optimization, digital marketing, digital sales, and digital advertising.

Over the years we’ve worked with lots of clients who need help with local business SEO to improve their local search rankings. We’re ready to help you get started!