7 Tips for Getting Your Business Found Locally

Last Updated On:
November 1, 2022 |
10:07 pm

Last Updated on: 23rd April 2024, 11:28 am

If you run a brick-and-mortar business that’s found locally, your online presence should be one of your top priorities. This article will show you how to make improvements so that you appear in local business searches.

Ways to start showing up in local business searches

Paid and organic search placements are the two types of search results in your brand may get by buying advertising. Paid advertisements, also known as sponsored listings, are paid products or services that appear on a Google Search Engine Results Page (SERP) in response to certain keywords. Organic search results, on the other hand, come from websites that have agreed to include your brand’s name and description in their content.

Three ways your business is looked at when a search is done:

Relevance
Proximity
Prominence

Is it possible to improve the relevance and visibility of your web presence while you can’t always control the distance? Here are 7 strategies for doing it:

Create your business listing accounts (Google Business Profile, Bing Places, Apple Maps, Facebook, Foursquare)
Optimize and update each network listing
Generate more reviews
Add your business to relevant business directories
Make sure your business information is correct across the entire web
Include your business address on your website
Target local keywords related to your business

What are local business searches?

Google’s algorithms are intended to provide users with the most relevant and helpful information possible. Just as you don’t want your Tampa company to come up in search results found locally for Dallas, Google doesn’t want a Dallas searcher to see listings for businesses in Tampa. As a result, Google has built its search algorithm to display local results based on location.

These results are shown in multiple ways.

Get Found Locally With:

Organic search results

Organic search results are unpaid listings that appear on search engine results pages (SERPs) as a result of the website’s good SEO. The goal of SEO is to improve your website’s ranking in organic search results. The higher you rank, the more likely users are to find and click on your listing. Local business directories are online listings of businesses in a specific geographic area.

These directories often include information such as the business name, address, phone number, website, and category. Many local directories also allow customers to leave reviews. The local pack often appears for searches that include location-based keywords, such as “plumber near me” or “restaurants in Tampa. Google My Business (GMB) is a free platform that businesses can use to manage their online presence on Google Search and Maps. GMB allows businesses to control how their listing appears in SERPs and provides insights into how customers are interacting with their listing.

Paid search results

Advertisements that appear on search engine results pages as sponsored listings through search engine marketing are referred to as paid search results. The local pack is a section of the SERP that includes three local business listings. The listings include the business name, address, phone number, and website. Pay-per-click (PPC) ads are paid advertisements that appear on SERPs. They are bought through Google Ads and Bing Ads, and they allow businesses to control where their listing appears on the page. PPC ads are a good choice for businesses that want immediate visibility in SERPs.

Google My Business results

Google My Business results are featured, rich search results that highlight businesses that have Google My Business pages. These results include the business name, address, phone number, website, reviews, and photos.

How to optimize your listings for the best results (we will use Google because most of the other networks built theirs from the same principles)

It’s not enough to create your Google My Business profile just yet for it to appear in local business searches. To enhance the odds that your firm will display at the top of search results, you must optimize and update your company page on a regular basis:

Add photos and videos
Use keywords in the “from the business” section of your profile
Add products and services
Publish weekly posts from your page
Regularly share offers and events
Use related local keywords in updates and posts
Add FAQs
Answer questions posted by users
Respond to reviews
Adjust hours when they change or the holidays impact operational hours

Generate More Reviews

One of the most important elements of any local SEO campaign is to generate more reviews.

According to several studies, the quantity and quality of reviews on your profile may have an immediate influence on search visibility. To put it another way, the more excellent evaluations you have on Google, the more visible your brand will be.

Make a strategy to obtain many high-quality reviews for your Google page. Make the strategy a part of your ongoing marketing campaign so that customers leave positive feedback on a regular basis.

To generate reviews, set up a system that invites past customers to leave feedback about their purchases. Also, generate even more reviews by working with bloggers to get them to write blog post reviews about your products.

Here are 7 ways to generate more reviews:

Highlight current product reviews.

Make it easy for customers to leave online reviews.

Ask customers to leave product reviews.

Don’t be afraid to follow up.

Respond to bad reviews.

Engage with good reviews.

Ask bloggers to review products.

Add your business to relevant business directories.

Google My Business isn’t the only local business listing you should create for your brand. Each listing sends signals to Google telling it that your business is credible and therefore, worth showing as a top search result.

Create business profiles on:

Facebook
Yelp
Angie’s List
Yellow pages
City Search
Foursquare
Any industry-relevant directories

How Simply Be Found helps you get your business found locally

By following Simply Be Found’s step-by-step plan, you can generate and respond to more reviews and get found by more consumers who are looking for your products and services. And as a member of Simply Be Found, you will have a well-executed local SEO strategy, to ensure that your potential clients see your business first on local search, directories, maps, and social media when they are searching for your industry type in your local area.

About the author:

Dean Koehler

Dean Koehler stands as a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit, co-founding Simply Be Found and with over 30 years of entrepreneurial business experience. His journey is marked by both successes and failures, each contributing to his profound understanding of the business world. What truly sets Dean apart is his light-hearted and compassionate approach towards everyone he interacts with. His Roots: Dean’s lineage is rich with educators, embedding in him a deep appreciation for the power of storytelling and analogy in teaching. This background has honed his ability to simplify complex concepts, making them relatable and easy to grasp. Love for Reading and Audio Books: An avid reader and now an audio book junkie, Dean immerses himself in a variety of genres. This extensive reading not only fuels his expansive vocabulary but also enriches his perspectives, allowing him to connect with a diverse audience. Unique Communication Style: Dean’s conversations are often peppered with witty one-liners from classics like ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and ‘Monty Python.’ These references are not just humorous but also serve as effective tools in making his points more memorable. Creating passion for storytelling; his love for books and movies is an integral part of how he communicates. He skillfully weaves narratives into his teachings, making complex ideas more accessible and engaging, which he skillfully drove his now adult children to exasperation with his comments. Engineering Mindset: With a background in engineering, growing up with a science teacher, and his wife still teaching science, Dean naturally gravitates towards a methodical and analytical approach. He often draws parallels between science experiments and business strategies, demonstrating his knack for innovative problem-solving. If fact he and his wife spend several hours talking about real life situations for science experiments to parallel which creates story for her students. Passion for Storytelling: Dean’s love for books and movies is an integral part of how he communicates. He skillfully weaves narratives into his teachings, making complex ideas more accessible and engaging, which he skillfully drove his now adult children to exasperation with his comments. Dean’s unique blend of experiences and skills makes him an invaluable leader at Simply Be Found. His approachable demeanor and insightful perspectives have been key in guiding the company through the ever-changing landscape of online marketing and business growth. Although he does talk much about it, his academic and professional journey is a complex blend of hands-on experience and formal education, embodying the spirit of dedication and perseverance. His path reflects his commitment to continuous learning and adaptability in the face of evolving industry landscapes. Dean’s career began with a machinist apprenticeship program, a rare and valuable starting point in today’s world. This experience laid the groundwork for his practical understanding of the industry. He furthered his education with an associate degree as an electronics technician, a testament to his technical acumen. Dean didn’t stop there; he pursued a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology from Colorado State University, sharpening his skills in corporate leadership, process, and plant engineering roles. Next, earning a Master of Science Degree in Industrial Management from Northern Illinois University marked a significant milestone in his career. Notably, Dean accomplished this while juggling a full-time job and starting a family, showcasing his exceptional time management and dedication. Lastly and what he considers the most important is the School of Hard Knocks: Dean takes immense pride in his experiences outside the classroom. The ‘school of hard knocks’ has been instrumental in teaching him invaluable life skills. These experiences have given him a unique understanding of the challenges faced by small business entrepreneurs, aligning perfectly with his role at Simply Be Found. Dean’s journey, marked by a combination of formal education and real-world experiences, has equipped him with a diverse skill set and an empathetic understanding of the entrepreneurial journey. This makes him not just a leader but a relatable figure for those navigating the complex terrain of small business ownership and online marketing.

Small Business Owned & Operated

We are a small business for small business. There is a 1 in 5 chance of talking to a co-founder. We are not a big coporation or a place where you are going to get lost.

Get free access to the Simply Be Found platform, offering easy-to-use tools for managing your Google Business Profile. This is part of our small business giveback program.

Love these dialogs guys - two high preformance low pressure guys doing their thing!

If you don’t know Rob your living under a rock

Good information. Appreciate the honesty about not having to pay for a source to do what we entrepreneurs are able to do ourselves. Bravo

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Between Dean & Rob They Have

5000+

Small Businesses
Helped

48+

Years Of Small
Business Ownership

60+

Years Of Marketing
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