Why Small Philadelphia Business Benefits More From Local SEO

Today, when you talk about websites or businesses, sooner or later search engine optimization (SEO) gets mentioned. SEO is so closely tied to managing your brand’s online presence, until the two are nearly inseparable. Local SEO, in particular, is a necessity for most business websites.

This article discusses advice from a dependable Philadelphia SEO company to maximize local SEO benefits:

• Understanding the difference between SEO and local SEO.
• Five benefits Philadelphia SMBs get from local SEO.
• Three steps to start up local SEO for your business.

There is a lot to discuss, so get ready to take notes.

Let’s go!

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Setting Apart Local SEO from SEO Practices

SEO means optimizing website elements to meet guidelines based on search engine algorithms. It aims to make a website rank higher in search results while avoiding penalties from search engines. Local SEO is a subset.

What sets the two apart is the scope and intensity of the strategies. SEO, being broader and more general, reaches a wider audience on a national or global scale. On the other hand, local SEO uses more refined techniques and applies them to smaller areas, such as major US cities.

The techniques and strategies are mostly the same, except local SEO has stronger targeting and uses richer keywords than SEO alone. Targeted keywords are why Philadelphia small businesses benefit more from local SEO strategies than just SEO.

5 Local SEO Benefits for Philadelphia SMBs

While local SEO is better for a local business, what specifically does it do for one? Philadelphia SEO company experts have many answers. Below are five major local SEO benefits:

     1. Build a Better Brand

Your brand identity presents your business as you see it and operate it. That matters a great deal in local SEO because your target market, the people around you, want to support business that feels personal to them. By doing local SEO, you create better branding.

For example, your Philadelphia business might be known for its quick service or quality output. It might also be known for its atmosphere and friendly staff. These facets are part of your brand identity that show up in your products, company culture, and anything else that your business does.

     2. Capture More Traffic

SEO often plays a crucial role in attracting more traffic to your website, while local SEO draws from your area's consumer population. Getting more local traffic means using local tactics, such as getting free press mentions from the local news using a PR outreach or networking strategy.

A targeted geographical paid ad campaign is another quick way to get more traffic for your website in a way that does not use too much of your budget. Additionally, you get more customers through profiles, such as Google My Business (GMB), accounts on social media platforms, and local directories.

     3. Remain Competitive

In all likelihood, your competitors are using local SEO strategies to grow their businesses, which means you should too. This means staying current with industry trends and best practices to stay competitive. Applying these practices is part of what makes local SEO so effective.

For instance, many businesses use social media to keep up with their rivals. Starting trends or joining them is part of the process and often marks the line between stunted growth and expansion. Local SEO brings you to the forefront of great digital marketing and keeps you relevant.

     4. Earn Customer Trust

If SEO involves reaching people, then local SEO is about creating a community of people who share the same problems and want the same solutions. Building trust is the core of good local SEO because a lot of the work is proving yourself to people who could just as easily pick big brands.

Backlinks, high-quality local content, and citations are all factors that affect trust in your brand. The more you earn, the better your public standing becomes. Once people see the value in your business and engage with it more, your local SEO efforts show return on investment (ROI).

     5. Convert More Leads

Lead generation and conversion are two parts of a long process — the buyer’s journey — that follows a person’s slow change from a lead to a customer. Local SEO naturally fits into this process because it involves knowing your target market from as many angles as possible.

Your customers’ wants, needs, and intent are key to adjusting your strategy and delivering the best SEO possible. Local SEO emphasizes reach, especially through local profiles, which adds to its ability to draw traffic and generate quality leads for your Philadelphia business.

3 Quick Steps To Create a Local SEO Strategy

Now that you know why Philadelphia SEO company experts recommend using local SEO to get more traffic, the next step is learning how to create a local SEO strategy for your business. The elements needed may vary depending on what you want to achieve (as with any strategy), except for these important parts:

1. Do in-depth research and learn as much as possible about your business, target market, and competitors. Carve a niche for yourself using the information gathered and turn it into a selling point for your business. Research is a basic requirement that should not be skipped. 

2. Build a content strategy and focus on what you can do for your target market. Although local SEO helps your business grow, it places more emphasis on what you provide than on what you receive. Create content that provides unique value to draw in new customers.

3. Set up business profiles on different platforms. Do not limit your business, website, or social media channels. These add to your online citations and let Google verify your business and its location, which helps the search engine return local search results based on proximity.

Summing Up

Philadelphia small businesses gain the most from using local SEO versus general SEO tactics because it brings them closer to their target markets. Targeting your SEO efforts makes a noticeable difference in building trust and nurturing relationships with your customers.

Need help applying local SEO to your Philadelphia small business? Contact Digital Authority Partners (DAP) to learn how we can help, including our award-winning fractional CMO services in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.