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Local SEO & Content Best Practices | Natalie Gould & Rachel Morgan

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Advice Interactive Group
Advice Interactive Group

For SMBs and brands to get exposure for their businesses online they MUST have a Local SEO and Content Strategy in place. In this presentation at the Local, Search and Social Summit powered by Rocks Digital, Natalie Gould and Rachel Morgan shared the best practices and strategies they use daily to help the clients they serve get more site traffic, content reads and social interaction.

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Local SEO & Content Best Practices For Small Businesses PRESENTED BY: NATALIE GOULD & RACHEL MORGAN @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
ABOUT US Rachel MorganNatalie Gould Director of Digital Marketing ● Been with Advice since 2012 ● Lead the SEO team and develop SEO strategies for agency accounts VP of Content Management ● Been with Advice since 2013 ● Manage the content team and develop the content strategies for agency clients @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
Part 1: Local SEO Musts for SMBs @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
Why Does Local SEO Matter? ● Local SEO: process of optimizing your web presence so you can increase your local visibility ● It matters to us because it matters to Google. local ranking factors ● less opportunity in the local pack @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#1 Google My Business @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Verify and optimize your Google My Business page 2. https://support.google. com/business/answer/2911778?hl=en ● Google considers this as local ranking factor ● How old the page is ● The quantity and quality of reviews ● NAP consistency ● Duplicate pages
#1 Google My Business Cont @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Use proper category associations 2. http://blumenthals.com/Google_LBC_Categories
#2 Bing Places @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Verify and optimize your Bing Places profile 2. https://www.bingplaces.com/ ● You want to be listed in the top search engines
#3 Yahoo Local @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Verify and optimize Yahoo Local page 2. https://help.yahoo.com/kb/SLN15966.html ● You want to be listed in all the top search engines
Submit Your Business Info to the Top Directories #3 Infographics#4 Local Directories Paid @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#5 Data Aggregators @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. A data aggregator is an organization that collects and compiles data and then syndicates it out to citation sources 2. Infogroup: http://www.expressupdate.com/search 3. Acxiom: www.myacxiom.com 4. Localeze: https://www.neustarlocaleze.biz/directory/index.aspx 5. Factual: www.factual.com
#5 Data Aggregators Cont @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#6 Chamber of Commerce 1. Search for your local chamber 2. https://www.uschamber.com/chamber/directory Cost: $200-$500/year ● Gain a local, high authority link ● Networking/Partnership ● Add the chamber logo to your site-good co-citation @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#7 BBB @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Become a member of the Better Business Bureau 2. www.bbb.org ● Local trust signal ● High authority, local link ● Add the BBB logo to your site-good co- citation
#8 Social Media Profiles 1. Claim and optimize your social profiles 2. Become active where your audience is active ● High authority link ● Best opportunity for community building for your content ● Top networks: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, LinkedIn @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#9 Niche Citations 1. Find citation sources specific to your industry and submit to them 2. Use Whitespark to find citation sources a. http://www.whitespark.ca/ 3. Google “[my industry] + citation sources” 4. Google “[my industry] + directory” ● Acquire industry-specific links @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#10 Geo-Specific Citations 1. Find citation sources specific to your location and submit to them 2. Use Whitespark to find citation sources a. http://www.whitespark.ca/ 3. Google “[my location] + citation sources” 4. Google “[my location] + directory” ● Acquire location-specific links @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#11 Hyper Local Content 1. Build and promote hyperlocal content on your site related to cities you service 2. Write blog posts about local events related to your industry, etc. 3. Example: we have a bicycle accident attorney, so we post content about local cycling events, etc ● Goal is to rank for longtail neighborhood terms, be seen as a local industry leader and gain local links @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#12 Quantity of Google+ Reviews 1. Can’t offer incentives for reviews 2. If you get too many all at once, Google may not accept them 3. Third party reviews are important as well such as from: Yelp, SuperPages, CitySearch, TripAdvisor ● Make it easy to leave a review from your site ● Ask your existing customers to post a review ● Make it a business practice to ask for a review after a positive customer experience @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
#13 Ranking Factors that are out of your control ● Proximity of physical location to the point of search ● Physical address in city of search ● Proximity of address to centroid @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
Options for Managing Your Local SEO ● Do it yourself ● Pay for a subscription software ● Pay an SEO agency @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
Part 2: Content Planning and Creation for SMBs @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
But why is content even important?! ● Fresh content makes your website more relevant ● Links ● Keyword, traffic and ranking opportunities ● Google likes it @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
Where to get content @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Cost: $2-$50 per page
How to plan content @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould www.RocksDigital.com/EdCal
How to come up with content ideas @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Google Trends 2. Google Autosuggest 3. Google Keyword Planner 4. Competitor Research
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to come up with content ideas 5. Google Analytics* ● Take a look at the content that is already performing well How to get to this: Behavior > Site Content > All Pages *This requires Google Analytics installation on your website. Go here to learn how: http://www.google.com/analytics/learn/setupchecklist.html
6. Research Top Things in Your Industry or City “Top 10 Plumbing Tools” “Top Places to Buy Plumbing Tools in Atlanta” ^^geotargeted These are some ideas: @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to come up with content ideas
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to come up with content ideas 7. Research Popular How-Tos
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to share the content
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Social media best practices The 70/20/10 Rule 70%: business and brand- building 20%: shared from other sources 10%: self-promoting
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Real Time Responses • Real-time customer service; respond to questions, comments, complaints within an hour • Never remove negative reviews (unless it is truly spam). Rather, address them and take them offline. Transparency and authenticity are the names of the game. Social media best practices
@rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Find Your Voice • Make it approachable and conversational, but also authoritative. • Talk to your social media audience like real people, having a real conversation Social media best practices
CONCLUSION Plenty of low-hanging fruit your business can take advantage of for link acquisition and content development. WWW.ADVICEINTERACTIVEGROUP.COM Google My Business Bing Places Niche & Geolocation Citations Local Directories Yahoo Local Data Aggregators BBB Share content Come up with content ideas Create a posting schedule Find writers @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Chamber of Commerce
CONTACT US ngould@adviceinteractive.com rmorgan@adviceinteractive.com Yes, this is on SlideShare @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould

More Related Content

Local SEO & Content Best Practices | Natalie Gould & Rachel Morgan

  • 1. Local SEO & Content Best Practices For Small Businesses PRESENTED BY: NATALIE GOULD & RACHEL MORGAN @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 2. ABOUT US Rachel MorganNatalie Gould Director of Digital Marketing ● Been with Advice since 2012 ● Lead the SEO team and develop SEO strategies for agency accounts VP of Content Management ● Been with Advice since 2013 ● Manage the content team and develop the content strategies for agency clients @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 3. Part 1: Local SEO Musts for SMBs @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 4. Why Does Local SEO Matter? ● Local SEO: process of optimizing your web presence so you can increase your local visibility ● It matters to us because it matters to Google. local ranking factors ● less opportunity in the local pack @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 5. #1 Google My Business @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Verify and optimize your Google My Business page 2. https://support.google. com/business/answer/2911778?hl=en ● Google considers this as local ranking factor ● How old the page is ● The quantity and quality of reviews ● NAP consistency ● Duplicate pages
  • 6. #1 Google My Business Cont @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Use proper category associations 2. http://blumenthals.com/Google_LBC_Categories
  • 7. #2 Bing Places @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Verify and optimize your Bing Places profile 2. https://www.bingplaces.com/ ● You want to be listed in the top search engines
  • 8. #3 Yahoo Local @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Verify and optimize Yahoo Local page 2. https://help.yahoo.com/kb/SLN15966.html ● You want to be listed in all the top search engines
  • 9. Submit Your Business Info to the Top Directories #3 Infographics#4 Local Directories Paid @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 10. #5 Data Aggregators @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. A data aggregator is an organization that collects and compiles data and then syndicates it out to citation sources 2. Infogroup: http://www.expressupdate.com/search 3. Acxiom: www.myacxiom.com 4. Localeze: https://www.neustarlocaleze.biz/directory/index.aspx 5. Factual: www.factual.com
  • 11. #5 Data Aggregators Cont @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 12. #6 Chamber of Commerce 1. Search for your local chamber 2. https://www.uschamber.com/chamber/directory Cost: $200-$500/year ● Gain a local, high authority link ● Networking/Partnership ● Add the chamber logo to your site-good co-citation @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 13. #7 BBB @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Become a member of the Better Business Bureau 2. www.bbb.org ● Local trust signal ● High authority, local link ● Add the BBB logo to your site-good co- citation
  • 14. #8 Social Media Profiles 1. Claim and optimize your social profiles 2. Become active where your audience is active ● High authority link ● Best opportunity for community building for your content ● Top networks: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, LinkedIn @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 15. #9 Niche Citations 1. Find citation sources specific to your industry and submit to them 2. Use Whitespark to find citation sources a. http://www.whitespark.ca/ 3. Google “[my industry] + citation sources” 4. Google “[my industry] + directory” ● Acquire industry-specific links @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 16. #10 Geo-Specific Citations 1. Find citation sources specific to your location and submit to them 2. Use Whitespark to find citation sources a. http://www.whitespark.ca/ 3. Google “[my location] + citation sources” 4. Google “[my location] + directory” ● Acquire location-specific links @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 17. #11 Hyper Local Content 1. Build and promote hyperlocal content on your site related to cities you service 2. Write blog posts about local events related to your industry, etc. 3. Example: we have a bicycle accident attorney, so we post content about local cycling events, etc ● Goal is to rank for longtail neighborhood terms, be seen as a local industry leader and gain local links @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 18. #12 Quantity of Google+ Reviews 1. Can’t offer incentives for reviews 2. If you get too many all at once, Google may not accept them 3. Third party reviews are important as well such as from: Yelp, SuperPages, CitySearch, TripAdvisor ● Make it easy to leave a review from your site ● Ask your existing customers to post a review ● Make it a business practice to ask for a review after a positive customer experience @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 19. #13 Ranking Factors that are out of your control ● Proximity of physical location to the point of search ● Physical address in city of search ● Proximity of address to centroid @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 20. Options for Managing Your Local SEO ● Do it yourself ● Pay for a subscription software ● Pay an SEO agency @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 21. Part 2: Content Planning and Creation for SMBs @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 22. But why is content even important?! ● Fresh content makes your website more relevant ● Links ● Keyword, traffic and ranking opportunities ● Google likes it @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould
  • 23. Where to get content @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Cost: $2-$50 per page
  • 24. How to plan content @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould www.RocksDigital.com/EdCal
  • 25. How to come up with content ideas @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould 1. Google Trends 2. Google Autosuggest 3. Google Keyword Planner 4. Competitor Research
  • 26. @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to come up with content ideas 5. Google Analytics* ● Take a look at the content that is already performing well How to get to this: Behavior > Site Content > All Pages *This requires Google Analytics installation on your website. Go here to learn how: http://www.google.com/analytics/learn/setupchecklist.html
  • 27. 6. Research Top Things in Your Industry or City “Top 10 Plumbing Tools” “Top Places to Buy Plumbing Tools in Atlanta” ^^geotargeted These are some ideas: @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to come up with content ideas
  • 28. @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould How to come up with content ideas 7. Research Popular How-Tos
  • 39. @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Social media best practices The 70/20/10 Rule 70%: business and brand- building 20%: shared from other sources 10%: self-promoting
  • 40. @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Real Time Responses • Real-time customer service; respond to questions, comments, complaints within an hour • Never remove negative reviews (unless it is truly spam). Rather, address them and take them offline. Transparency and authenticity are the names of the game. Social media best practices
  • 41. @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Find Your Voice • Make it approachable and conversational, but also authoritative. • Talk to your social media audience like real people, having a real conversation Social media best practices
  • 42. CONCLUSION Plenty of low-hanging fruit your business can take advantage of for link acquisition and content development. WWW.ADVICEINTERACTIVEGROUP.COM Google My Business Bing Places Niche & Geolocation Citations Local Directories Yahoo Local Data Aggregators BBB Share content Come up with content ideas Create a posting schedule Find writers @rachelkmorgan @nataliekgould Chamber of Commerce