Today there are two type of businesses which are running successfully, one is globally/nationally targeted business and the other one is local market targeted businesses.
In this article I am going to discuss the local market targeted business, as most of the people are now focusing on their local market compare to nationally/globally. Google is also doing some changes regarding the local market searches. In mobile search results the local business will be shown before the ones that are not targeted locally.
What do you need to do to become a leader in your local market? Below you’ll find some suggestions which will really help you in local branding, and achieving top ranking in local searches.
1) Local Community Participation
Many business owners are not doing this kind of thing, as they think that by doing some seo or link building, they will get the top ranking and will stay at the top forever. Times have changed. Google is more clever then you think. It is possible that by doing seo or link building that you will not get the top ranking, or that you will stay at the top forever.
Once Google updates their algorithm and you get hit, then you may never recover from that. Take control of your business before Google does! It’s time for you to be one step ahead of Google and show them that you are doing good and you’re not afraid of any update. You can do this by doing some local community participation.
If you see that someone is organizing a business fair or a trade show, then go there and participate in those activities. Show your quality services to the people in your local market. Tell them why you are good and what good you can do for them. Share all these activities on every social media profile of yours.
Another thing you can do is organize a small show for your customers. By doing these things, you will increase your local branding and people will recognize you locally.
2) Offline Marketing
It is a really good idea to promote your business through offline marketing; this will help your online marketing campaign as well. In offline marketing you can promote your business though local newspapers, local business guides, street banner advertisements, and etc. Don’t forget that you should include your website URL and social media profiles in every offline marketing campaign. These kinds of things will boost your online presences and strengthen your brand.
3) Local Site Submission
There are many local sites online where you can submit your business site. These sites will help you to get local ranking in Google searches. These sites include Yelp, City Search, and Manta. This will give you leads for your business because customers can share their experience with your business by putting up their reviews. The more positive review you have on your profile, the more business leads you will get.
4) Partner Links
It is similar to paid linking, but it is not the same. In this you have to find some sites which are related to your business. Approach them and ask them if they can give you a link in their support section or partner section. This not only increase your area, but also gives you the benefits in search results. Remember, don’t take a backlink from sites which have too many partner links on their partner link page. It looks spammy and unnatural.
5) Content Marketing
One of the best techniques we are using today is guest blogging for content marketing. If you have a local business, then you should do some guest blogging on local blogs. For example, if you have a business in Florida then you’ll want to search blogs which are also in Florida. Don’t forget about relevancy, but try your best to get a backlink. These links will give you more search engine benefits than other links. Make sure you use your local keyword term in your content and optimize it to get the most results!
I hope that these five techniques will help you gain top ranking in your local market. Always remember to be genuine and show the quality of service that you can provide.
Source - www.searchenginejournal.com