How to Improve Your Local Internet Marketing Efforts

Did you know that there are over 4 billion local desktop queries every month in the US alone? Or that over 50% of mobile searches are local? These numbers speak for themselves. Making local Internet marketing a priority is a sure way to generate more traffic and increase conversion rates. Whether you already have a local web marketing strategy in place or have just begun to systematize your SEO efforts to create one, here’s what you can do to make the most of local Internet marketing.

10 Local Internet Marketing Tips to Get You Started

1. Begin by figuring out what you want to achieve with your website. Do you want to acquire new customers? Generate leads? Improve your branding? Encourage existing customers to buy more? Consolidate your online presence? Answer these questions and then set goals, key performance indicators (KPI), and targets. For example, if you run an e-commerce business, your long-term goal could be attracting new customers. A key performance indicator would then be the number of leads you generate; a target, on the other hand, a minimum number of leads within a specific time frame.
2. Calculate the lifetime customer value (LCV) and the cost of customer acquisition (CCA) for your business. These figures, together with your goals and targets, will help you set a realistic marketing budget that will help you perform cost-effective Internet marketing. Even if you run a very small business, you should clearly define your web marketing budget and separate it from your total marketing budget. Going a step further, you want to determine your maximum local Internet marketing budget. Specificity helps you optimize your local web marketing strategies and get the best return for your investment.Review your website and optimize it for local searches. Does your contact page mention the location of your business? Are your phone numbers and address up to date? Have you confirmed your location on a Google Map and integrated it into your contact page, to make it easier for prospective customers to find you? Does your site and blog refer to your location and include locally-relevant content?
3. Review your website and optimize it for local searches. Does your contact page mention the location of your business? Are your phone numbers and address up to date? Have you confirmed your location on a Google Map and integrated it into your contact page, to make it easier for prospective customers to find you? Does your site and blog refer to your location and include locally-relevant content?
4. Use a keyword planner to find the right local keywords for you. Regardless of your market or niche, your local Internet marketing efforts will likely be more effective if you focus on quantitative keywords, rather than on qualitative ones. Other keyword research tools you may want to use include Ubersuggest and the SEOBook Keyword Tool.
5. Localize testimonials, gallery images, pages, and make sure your website works well on mobile devices. If you’re using WordPress, a free plugin like WPtouch ensures your site is user-friendly.
6. Build links naturally, by guest blogging on local websites relevant to your business and getting your business listed on local directories. Also, get listed on Yellowpages.com, Yelp.com, local.yahoo.com, Citysearch.com, Yellowbook.com, Local.com, Foursquare.com, and other similar major listing sites. Ensure the information you provide is up to date. Google and other search engines tap into these listings when displaying local search results.
7. Use social media to establish a stronger connection with your community and local customer base, but leave direct advertising to PPC campaigns. Don’t advertise on social media. Instead, connect with your audience.
8. Monitor and manage reviews left by customers on your Google My Business page, Yelp page, Facebook page, and website. Respond to all comments and reviews and address negative feedback in a positive, constructive way. Reviews have become an important aspect of local Internet marketing, and responding to bad reviews quickly and offering solutions helps you mitigate them.
9. Build a presence on Craigslist.org and other classified sites.
10. Use Google Analytics, KissMetrics, or other analytics to track the performance of your local website marketing efforts as well as to better understand your website visitors and their patterns of behavior.

Effective local Internet marketing is a long term strategy. Incorporate all of the tips above into your local web marketing campaign and keep at it. Working on your local internet marketing consistently is a major factor in attracting your best prospects.