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Do you want to find out more about Local SEO, how local searches work and the strategies by which you can improve the online presence of your business?

In this guide, you will find a clear explanation of the concept of Local Search, the SEO optimization strategies in a Local key and the advantages they can bring. If you want to understand how to do Local SEO, make your company more visible to those who search nearby and find out all about the tools made available by Google, you just have to continue reading!

Local SEO: What It Is

The term local SEO indicates a particular branch of marketing activities aimed at increasing a company's popularity on the web. In this case, the goal is to increase visibility in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Page) returned by Google for local searches.

Local SEO: Why It Is Essential to be Visible Online

The massive spread of smartphones and other devices allows you to connect to the network and search for information at any time and wherever you are. It has significantly changed the way you search and also the type of results that users expect when they query an engine. 

More and more people are taking advantage of mobile searches to find the commercial activities or services they need and, in order to respond in the most correct and complete way possible to this need of users, Google aims to provide results based on the 

The geographical position of the person making the query, ordering them, as usual, according to their relevance. The concept of local search is part of the broader concept of semantic and personalized search based on the characteristics of the user. Google's goal is, in fact, to be able to provide answers and information increasingly in line with consumer requests through a correct interpretation of the search keys and their careful contextualization.

Geolocation of The Results: How It Works

Offering more and more precise and tailored answers, which take into account all the data obtained through user profiling, is the main aim towards which all the most recent updates are launched by the search engine point.

When searching for terms such as "pizzerias," "hotel," or "electrician," Google is able to discern between the request for simple information and that of a particular service, providing results that take into account the geolocation of the IP or the antenna GPS from which the query started.

The Benefits of Local Optimization For SMEs

It is clear how this strategy adopted by Google can influence the life and success of a company that offers its services to the public, typically based on its active presence in the area and knowing how to make itself visible in the eyes of potential customers.

The importance assumed by local results is set to continue to grow in the coming years. The increasing diffusion of smartphones and tablets will increase the need of users to obtain information through mechanisms that take into account the specific needs of the moment (and above all, the possibility of easily and quickly reaching the commercial structure of interest).

Failing to adapt to the new standards, which are gradually establishing themselves, can result in the loss of important portions of the market. For this reason, there is a clear need to optimize their web resources, not only as a function of the classic high positioning in organic SERPs but also of local search, especially in the case of small and medium-sized local businesses.

Google, in particular, has therefore developed an entire ecosystem with the aim of providing relevant results for local searches. Local SEO is, therefore, the process of optimizing your company's web presence in order to improve its visibility for potential customers who carry out proximity research related to your industry.

The integration of Google Ads into the local SEO strategy is relevant to occupy all the visible space of the search engine in addition to the other levers.

Local SEO: Who Can Benefit From It And How

Developing a good local search strategy can allow you to achieve very important results.

As already mentioned, it is mainly commercial activities that sell products or provide certain services to the public that benefit from the possibilities offered by local optimization.

From the shoe shop to the beauty center, obviously passing through restaurants and hotels, being more visible for those who carry out a specific search in the vicinity of the headquarters determines obvious advantages.

For many, searching for information online to find the nearest point of sale before making a purchase or choosing the place to spend the evening based on the opinions of other users has become commonplace.

In short, Local SEO has several advantages:

Target Local Search Intent: 

Internet users doing local searches look for nearby businesses, often in the city, for a specific purpose. Being present and visible to these potential customers is an important advantage. Local SEO makes it possible to connect with those customers who are looking for quick answers and close to their location.

Local SEO Increases The Visibility of Your Business:

Being able to place the contacts of your business among the first results returned for a local search allows you to obtain visits or, in any case, visibility for your brand by a highly targeted user.

Stimulate Store Visits: 

Internet users looking for a local business are often ready to go. According to a Google survey, 76% of people who search locally on their mobile phones visit the site within 24 hours.

Improves Conversion Rate:

Several surveys and studies conducted by web marketing specialists have shown that the conversion rate, or the percentage of online contacts that result in a visit to the business or in the purchase of products or services, increases thanks to good optimization considerably.

Increased Sales: 

Local search has a high buying intensity. Often, users looking for a local store are more sophisticated and ready to shop during their trip. 78% of local searches on mobile devices lead to in-store or online purchases.

For local search, Put simply, a gym, a pub or an ice cream parlour whose pages are competitive not only in organic results but, above all, in local ones, will see the interest of the public soar and consequently their success.

Obviously, the strategies undertaken are also very useful for increasing one's brand awareness and brand reputation, helping to increase the company's popularity both online and offline.

On the other hand, it should be emphasized that local SEO is much less important when other types of activities are taken into consideration, such as e-commerce activities which, by definition, are disconnected from the territory and, indeed, focus on the possibility of offering services that they do not take into account the position of the buyers.

Conclusions

Undeniably, the world of local search and local SEO is increasingly articulated, and, in all likelihood, in the years to come, the complexity of the mechanisms designed by Google will continue to increase.

On the other hand, no business should give up this extraordinary opportunity to make itself known and be increasingly accessible to the people who live or are in its area and who, consequently, represent its ideal target.