Introduction

Ranking for location-specific terms can be a big boost to your business. Some business owners and entrepreneurs may think local SEO makes a big difference, but that’s just not true. Especially in today’s market when more and more consumers are starting their purchase journeys online.

The good thing is that it’s usually quicker to rank for local keywords instead of trying to rank for high-volume keywords. That’s because there’s a lot less competition in your local market. While there might be tons of sites trying to rank for the keyword “dentist,” there are significantly less trying to rank for the phrase “Chicago dentists.”

So how do you rank higher for local SEO keywords? Here are my top five tips to help you get results quickly.

#1 Claim Your Google Business Profile

All local SEO efforts begin with your Google Business Profile listing. This is a free tool for businesses and entrepreneurs to manage their online presence. Once a business owner has claimed their Google Business Profile, they can build on it to improve all other aspects of their SEO efforts.

This, in addition to the fact that a Google Business Profile listing helps consumers find businesses, is why it’s the most important thing any business owner can do to boost their search rankings.

#2 Use Local Keywords In Your Title And Content

Optimizing your content with keywords is the second-most important thing a local business can do to rank higher in search results. Each page of your website should have a specific keyword that you want it to rank for. Put the keyword near the beginning of your page title in the H1 heading tag, as well as in the content a few times, but don’t overdo it. This is what lets search engines know what your webpage is all about; making it more likely you’ll rank higher on your chosen keywords.

#3 Create Great Meta Descriptions

After the title tag, the next aspect of any webpage that search algorithms will search through is the meta description. The meta description is the one or two lines that appear underneath a page’s title in the search engine result pages. Like title tags, meta descriptions appeal not only to the search engine robots, but also to readers who are looking for specific information.

Also, like title tags, there are tips local business owners and entrepreneurs can follow to make sure they’re creating great meta descriptions.

• They should contain important keywords relevant to the business and have a high search volume
• Each meta description should be unique, just as title tags should be
• Consumers will also see the meta description, so it’s important that it’s engaging and entices them to click onto that webpage
• Like title tags, for local SEO purposes, the geographic location should also be included in meta descriptions

#4 Use Anchor Text To Your Advantage

When you do get links to your site, make sure the anchor text (the actual link text) includes your main keyword or keyword phrase. Search engines look closely at the anchor text to let them know what the site being linked to is all about and it helps them understand the keywords business owners use to describe their own page.

So, if you have one hundred links pointing to your site, and seventy of them say “Houston roofers”, they will be able to surmise what your page is about.

However, you don’t want every single link to say the same thing. Search engines, especially Google, like natural link building. So, if 100% of the links say “Houston roofers, they will view this as unnatural, and this may affect you in a negative way. As I stated before, you’ll want to make sure that each page has a specific keyword that you’re trying to rank it for, and you’ll want to include that keyword or keyword phrase in your anchor text.

Bonus Tip: Make sure your website images contain relevant keywords in their alt-text description. This is what Google assigns as the anchor for the image and is another great way to help boost your search rankings.

#5 Get More Backlinks and Citations from Quality Sites

You may not realize it, but backlinks are directly tied to your anchor text. And, because anchor text is the text that is used when one website links to another, that means it’s part of the backlink. Business owners want anchor text linking to their website that is relevant to their business, so keywords such as “plumbers in New York” or “plumbers near New York” would be a good example of this.

Every link is not created equal, and Google puts more weight on the links from quality sites. Therefore, be sure to target legitimate sites when you’re ready to implement a link building strategy for your local business.

Citations in the local SEO world are any mentions of a local business on other websites. In order to be considered an actual citation, however, the name, address and phone number must all be included. This is known as ‘NAP’, and search engines love citations even when there is no backlink to accompany them.

One of the best ways to get citations is to create profiles across all relevant online directories including your business’ social media pages.

Summary

The bottom line is that implementing a local SEO keyword strategy is a great way to not only boost search rankings for your local business, but it can ultimately attract more consumers and, therefore, increase your revenue.

Implement these five tips and you should see results from your local SEO strategy in no time!

And, if you’re serious about implementing a solid SEO strategy for your local business, then download the How to Build and SEO-Optimized Website Checklist so you can take your website from the last page of search results to a top-ranking website!

I designed this FREE checklist especially for local service-based business owners, coaches, or consultants and inside you'll discover...

• 3 Common Struggles Most Business Owners Face When Building a Website
• 3 Simple Steps to Building an SEO-Optimized Website
• 18-Point SEO-Optimization Checklist
• 9 Clear Steps To Help You 2X-10X Sales Within 12 Months And Build A Successful And Thriving Business
• BONUS: FREE Video Training after you download today!