Category: Local Search

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Local Search

How To Attract Local Search Traffic

So you have a website and it looks great. You click over there every five minutes and admire it. The only problem is you’re the only person on the planet who knows of its existence. In other words, you’ve got no traffic.

No traffic means no prospects. No prospects, no sales. No sales…well your online marketing strategy sucks!

Traffic is the foundation of your online marketing strategy. Before you figure anything else out, you’ve got to figure out how to get traffic. This article is designed to give you some ideas on how to do this.

Paid or Free Traffic?

Traffic falls into two categories: paid and free. You can actually pay to have visitors come to your site in a variety of ways. You can buy exit traffic from other websites. You can place ads on other folk’s websites. Or, best of all, you can run PPC (pay-per-click) ads with Google, Yahoo, MSN, and a number of other search engines.

The only problem with paid traffic is that, well…you have to pay for it. If you’re new to online marketing, you probably should stay away from traffic you buy, at least for a while, and learn how to use what’s called search engine optimization or SEO to create free traffic.

Free Traffic

web-traffic“Free” or organic traffic is traffic that comes to your site from a search by prospects on a search engine. So, let’s say someone is new in a town like Irvine, CA and wants to find a dentist in their area. What do people do nowadays? A recent Nielsen-Online study showed that by far the majority of shoppers turn to the Internet first in order to gather information.

People generally find information on the Internet by using a search engine. If you are a dentist in Irvine, it would be beneficial to optimize your site for a search term such as “Irvine Dentist” or “Dentist – Irvine, CA. And, since 60%+ of all searches are currently done on Google, you can see how getting your website to rank highly in the top search results for an Irvine dentist could lead to your getting a ton of free traffic.

The “science” of getting your site to rank highly is called search engine optimization, or SEO. There’s quite a lot to know about SEO, but it basically boils down to two things: 1) writing quality content that addresses the needs of your visitors, and 2) getting other sites, like online directories or community portals, to link to your site using the keyword phrase you would like to rank for.

While there are several strategies you can employ to attract traffic to your site, paid and/or free traffic serve as a good foundation to get you started. Organic traffic is recommended when starting out, followed up by paid traffic to attract even more visitors.

To learn more about traffic generation and getting a custom local search marketing campaign, contact us today!

Categories
Local Search

3 Tips For Local Online Marketing

Reaching a local audience has become a vital marketing strategy.  Consumers are increasingly searching online for local business information.  This locally focused traffic typically results in higher conversions and sales.

Local search, and the tools associated with local online marketing, is an effective way to get qualified traffic to your site.  Here are three tips to help you bring in local customers:

1.  Optimize your site for local search.  You do this by developing a target keyword list based on the most popular search terms for your business.  Then align your keywords with your geographic area.  For example, “Las Vegas Plumber,” “NY Car Insurance Company,” or “Bay Area Estate Planning Attorney.”  Include these keywords in your meta tags, title tag and the text on your site.google-maps-for-mobile-devices

2.  List your business with Google maps. With applications for the iPhone and other mobile devices, as well as an automatic top spot on Google searches that specify locations, Google Maps is the killer app of local online marketing. You should make sure your business is listed so that it will help attract customers. Once Google has verified your address with either a telephone call or postcard, your listing will appear. You can write your own descriptive text, offer coupons for potential customers to print out, and even adjust the indicating arrow in case, for instance, the entrance to your business is on a different street than its legal address.

3.  Incentivize customers to join your mailing list.  Most people these days are aware that their email address is a valuable commodity, and they also fear spam.  So simply asking customers or potential customers to opt in to your email marketing list may not be enough.  However, providing an incentive can yield desirable results.  For example, offering a chance to win a prize, receive exclusive coupons or advance notice of promotions will entice current and potential customers to join your mailing list.  Once you have their information, make wise use of it.  Follow up with good quality information they can use, either via a newsletter or an autoresponder series and occasionally give them a call to action to purchase one of your products or services.

By optimizing your site for local search traffic and creating content people want, you establish credibility which inspires trust and motivates your prospects to make that first contact to hire you or, to locate your store so they can visit your shop and buy from you or, get their credit card out to buy from your online store.

Categories
Local Search

Understanding How Consumers Search Online

Over the past five years, it has gotten increasingly complicated to reach and get the attention of consumers. Consumers are more distracted, less engaged and more in control of their media than ever before. That’s why it’s more important than ever for local businesses to have a balanced marketing plan in a variety of media.

local-searchAccording to a report by TMP Directional Marketing in 2008, search engines became the most referenced primary source of local business information. Search engines were followed by Print Yellow Pages, Internet Yellow Pages and Local Search Sites (such as Google Maps or Yahoo Local).

While most local businesses have a presence in offline media sources, few have an online presence. The TMP report showed that online local business searchers look for specific information such as phone numbers, addresses, driving directions and whether a business has the product or service they need.

Once a consumer has conducted a search and found the information they are looking for, they then make a selection on which business to contact and/or make a purchase from based on:

  • Business location,
  • Brand, or
  • Familiarity with the business.

Although ranking is not a top factor a consumer considers when selecting a business to contact, the position of a local business listings often makes the difference in whether it is considered in a consumers search. Noteworthy, however, is the fact that few searchers typically go past the first page of results when selecting a local business from search.

The TMP report also revealed that the majority of consumers chose to contact businesses offline via an in-person visit or phone call following their online search.

Consumers are now using the Internet as their primary source for local business information. In terms of numbers, online search accounted for 61% of all primary sources of local business information. And if your marketing strategy does not include an online marketing mix, you’re leaving money on the table.

No longer are consumers looking to just one or two different sources when seeking out local business information. They are using multiple sources, many of which are online. To ensure that you are found, you must create a diverse media mix that will allow consumers to easily find your product or service offerings, regardless of their access point.