Local SEO and Why It's Important

Businesses may not realize that Google has a separate algorithm for local results. So, even if you have done a ton of research on traditional SEO and can implement it yourself, figuring out local SEO in Vancouver is another ballgame. Let’s figure out why local SEO is important for any local business:

While online shopping comes with its convenience, customers prefer the local shops when it comes to services and certain highly valued items. So, for businesses like gym chains,  spas or even traditional retail store chains and supermarkets, local SEO is highly relevant and sometimes their most important form of digital marketing.

Sometimes, it’s more important to rank high on the local search than on the national level. Moreover, most people who look for nearby businesses end up purchasing within just one day. 

2. Higher Website Traffic 

Local SEO in Vancouver can also significantly boost traffic to certain web pages and your website in general. With higher traffic, your website’s visibility is increased and it pushes brand awareness. When your business becomes more recognizable among a local audience you can easily promote your business and drive sales with the addition of multiple marketing channels. 

3. From Search To Sale

Even without the data from numerous surveys, you know that most people search for a product online before they make a purchase. Even if that purchase is to be made at a local brick-and-mortar store. No wonder small businesses focus on local SEO since around one-third of all web traffic goes to the first result on the search page of Google.

It’s important to optimize your website and have an active local SEO campaign so that your brand is the first thing local customers get to see when they search for a product or service. This  increases the probability of converting relevant online searches to offline purchases at your store. 

4. FREE Local Advertising

For most businesses, local SEO can be a form of free advertising if you’re not hiring a marketing consultant or agency. With local SEO, you can attract traffic to your website and show everything that you want. It may be marketing material, information related to after-sales support, or a special query about the business. You can advertise anything that you want and take advantage of the organic traffic flowing from local SEO ranking. 

5. Get Valuable Reviews

Everyone wants to know about first-hand customer experience before they try out a product or a service. Local SEO is a great way of gathering reviews about your business or its products from customers.

If you put your business on local listing directories like Google My Business, Yelp, or Bing, you invite customers to review your products and services. A high number of positive reviews also pushes your local SEO rankings and creates a positive cycle of growth. The customer feedback also lets you know what you can do to improve your products or services.