Search engine optimisation or SEO is often misunderstood. Many people will believe that if you are at the top of Google for a particular keyword, you will be ranking for that keyword everywhere in the world, or at least in the country! Unfortunately, that is very rarely the case, and in most instances, it would be a waste of time and effort trying to rank for a specific keyword nationally.
Most companies have a specific geographic area where they conduct their business. That might be the county, such as Dorset, or a smaller area, such as their town, such as Bournemouth or Christchurch.
This is where Local SEO comes into play. Local SEO is the practice of targeting a keyword in a specific area. Sometimes that area may be a county, such as Dorset or Hampshire or a city such as Bournemouth or Southampton. Or it may be an area such as the New Forest or even a village such as Christchurch.
Local SEO is the process of ranking highly for a particular keyword or search term for a specific area.
Local SEO keywords (the terms your customers type into Google when looking for your services) should always include a geographic reference for the area you are targeting.
This can either be the name of the area you are targeting such as Bournemouth or Christchurch or it could be a term such as ‘web designer near me’ or ‘web design Southampton’.
Whether you are trying to target customers in Dorset, Bournemouth, or Southampton, Hampshire, the process is very similar. What can differ is the time and effort required and the language used in the copy of your website. As always, the time needed to rank at the top of Google for a particular key will depend on how competitive that keyword is.
Local SEO requires specific techniques and tools to increase the visibility of your website in a specific location. An optimised Google Business Profile is essential to help your rankings in a particular area.
Optimising your Google Business Profile is relatively simple. First, ensure that it has correct information such as your address and opening hours, post updates regularly and get as many good reviews as possible.
The next key part of an effective local SEO strategy is ensuring that your website’s content has the correct information about the areas you service on it. You may want to build specific pages for certain areas in certain instances.
Blogging can also be used to enhance your local SEO rankings. For example, if you have recently helped a customer in a particular area you can write a Blog or ‘case study’ detailing the service you provided and reference the area that your customer is located in.
Adding your website to local directories will also help to push you up the search results. There are hundreds of online directories, most of which are national, but ensuring your name, address and phone number are listed will help. It is also helpful to look for other more local directories, such as Chambers of Commerce and list your business there as well.
The cost of an SEO is a ‘piece of string’ question. Primarily it will depend on the experience and expertise of the SEO consultant or agency you are engaging with. Prices for search engine optimisation can start from £200per month up to several thousand pounds per month. Some industries or regions can be highly competitive, particularly in cities that are saturated with a particular sector.
It is always good to shop around and speak to several SEO agencies. However, with local SEO it is usually best to engage with an SEO agency or consultant who is located in the area and has good local knowledge.
This depends on several factors, firstly how competitive the keyword is. Secondly, the expertise and competence of the SEO agency or consultant you are using and, finally how much time and effort is being put in to rank for the keyword.
Search Engine Optimisation is primarily about time and effort. The more time and effort you put in to ranking for a particular search term, the better and quicker results you will get.
Generally speaking, you should expect to start seeing results within 3 to 6 months. Trying to rank for a term such as ‘Web designer in Christchurch’ is easier and quicker than ‘Web Designer in Southampton’
However, there is no guarantee. Search engine optimisation is like a race with no finish, it is the person in front who is winning, and if someone puts in more work than you, generally, they’ll be winning the race. However, that can and does change all the time.
Good web designers will factor good search engine optimisation practices into any new website build. This is because the structure of your website is an important SEO factor. So ensuring that best web design and SEO practices are built into your website can be the difference between being able to rank highly on Google or not.
Certain factors like having a mobile friendly website and fast load times may seem obvious. Still, there are also many other factors such as internal linking of web pages, image sizes and word count that can also impact your SEO performance.
The cost of a search engine optimisation service can be from a couple of hundred pounds to several thousand pounds per month.
SEO is an on-going process that does not have a definitive answer in terms of time. It can take weeks, months, or even years to see results from SEO efforts, and the time frame will vary depending on the competitiveness of your industry, the quality of your SEO strategy, and other factors.
However we generally expect to see progress from about 3 to 6 months
There are many reasons to bother with SEO. First, it can help you get more traffic to your website. Second, it can help you get better search engine rankings, which can lead to more traffic and more customers. Finally, SEO can help you improve the quality of your website, which can lead to more customers and more sales.
There is no one definitive answer to this question. However, here are some factors to consider when choosing an SEO agency:
SEO is short form for “Search engine optimization”. It is a long-term marketing strategy employed in order to improve a websites visibility and organic search results in google and other global search engines.
Local SEO on the other hand is a sub-set of SEO that is focused on optimizing a website to be more visible for searches with geo-modifiers (like “SEO agency in Bournemouth”).
Whether or not you need a local SEO agency depends on your specific business needs. Local SEO is an important aspect of digital marketing that businesses can use to increase their visibility in local searches. SEO agencies can help businesses optimise their website for local search engine rankings, manage local directory listings, and ensure their website is properly optimized for local search results.
However, some businesses may be able to successfully optimise their website for local search results with the help of available tutorials and resources. Ultimately, you should make the decision to utilise a local SEO agency based on your knowledge and understanding of the services they offer and the resources needed for successful local search optimization.
Please visit our Local SEO page For more information
Yes, it is better to use an SEO agency with local knowledge. Local knowledge can be beneficial in many ways. A local SEO agency can help you understand the local market, the demographics, and the competition. They can use this information to create a more targeted strategy based on the local area, which can help you reach a more relevant audience and create more effective campaigns.
Furthermore, they can provide insights into local trends and can help you adjust your strategy accordingly. Local SEO agencies are also likely to be more familiar with the local search engines, and can ensure that your campaigns are optimised for the local market and reach the desired results.
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