Upload
irina
View
24
Download
3
Tags:
Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
SEO For Local Search. Mary Bowling Twitter: @ MaryBowling Blog: www.MaryBowling.com. Optimized! www.MaryBowling.com. www.LocalU.org. SEO is…. S earch E ngine O ptimization. Optimized! www.MaryBowling.com. www.LocalU.org. For Local Businesses, SEO is. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
Citation preview
SEO For Local Search
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Mary BowlingTwitter: @MaryBowling
Blog: www.MaryBowling.com
www.LocalU.org
SEO is…
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Search • Engine • Optimization
www.LocalU.org
For Local Businesses, SEO is
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Making it as easy as possible for prospective customers to find
information about YOUR BUSINESS
wherever they may be looking online for you or for the
goods and services you sell!
www.LocalU.org
To Achieve That, We Need To:
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Create and improve our website so that it will rank highly on the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) to help potential customers find the business’ website.
• Create and improve business listings in important local places across the web to help potential customers find the business’ information on other websites.
www.LocalU.org
SEO Helps You Rank in 2 Ways
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
PAID ADSLOCAL MAP
PAID ADS
LOCAL RESULTS
ORGANIC RESULTS
www.LocalU.org
Who Gets The Clicks?
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
US Search Engine Market Share August 2012
66%GOOGLE
Other5%Bing
15%
14%Yahoo
BingHoo 29%
www.LocalU.org
Bing provides organic search results for Yahoo! Search
Aim for Ranking on Page 1 !
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
#1 - 42.13%#2 - 11.90%#3 - 8.50%#4 - 6.06%#5 - 4.92%#6 - 4.05%#7 - 3.41%#8 - 3.01%#9 - 2.85%#10 - 2.99%
www.LocalU.org
The SEO Process
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Pick the right keyword phrases• Decide which pages on our website to optimize for
which terms• Implement the keyword phrases within the content
of your web pages appropriately • Link between your own pages• Gain links and citations from other websites• Eliminate technical problems
www.LocalU.org
The Algorithms(What’s the secret formula?)
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Google Algo Super Simplified!
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Incoming Links
On pageKeyword
Use
Everything Else
www.LocalU.org
Google Says:
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
“People often talk about “the Google results” but the truth is there is no single “Google” — at any given time there are 50-200 different versions of our core algorithm out in the wild. Millions more when you realize your search results are personalized to you and you alone.”
In other words, we are all seeing differing results all the time. Source:http://www.google.com/insidesearch/playground/underthehood.html
www.LocalU.org
Local Organic Search Trends
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Google increasingly favors businesses with powerful websites that are well-optimized for local terms.
• There is much more personalization of results, including personalization for the searcher’s location
• It’s getting harder and harder to spam, which helps legitimate businesses
www.LocalU.org
To Dominate the SERPS
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Organic SEO (optimizing website)+
Local SEO (optimizing location)
www.LocalU.org
What Search Engines Want
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• To return the most relevant, useful results for every search query.
• So, we have to demonstrate and reinforce the relevance and usefulness of our pages to searchers.
www.LocalU.org
Relevance=Location
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Google knows where we are:• via automatic detection • via our settings and info in our Google account
The business’ location and distance from the searcher help the Search Engine determine relevance.
www.LocalU.org
Relevance=Keywords in
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
HTML titles and headline tags we place on our web pages:
www.LocalU.org
Relevance=Keywords in
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
The text content we place on our pages
www.LocalU.org
Relevance=Keywords in
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
The text in the links that point to our web pages
Link text: insurance agentLink text: Cannizzaro InsuranceLink text: austin renters insuranceLink text: car policyLink text: affordable auto coverage
www.LocalU.org
A link tells Search Engines and humans what the page it points to is about.
Recap on Relevance Signals
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Our location in relationship to searcher’s location
Keywords in • page titles and html tags• website text• text in links pointing to pages
www.LocalU.org
On-Site Optimization(What we put on our own web pages)
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Start with Keywords
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
On-page Keyword
Use
www.LocalU.org
We have total control over what we put on our own pages
Which Keywords? Don’t Guess!
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Keyword research = foundation of SEOLearn:
• Search terms• Search volumes• Competitiveness
www.LocalU.org
Free Keyword Research Tools
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
•Google AdWords Keyword Tool • generate keywords and get competition data
•Keyword Discovery • generate keywords and get competition data
•WordTracker Questions Tool • see questions people are asking in the search boxes
•Market Samurai • use for research and competition data – lots of free
training material
www.LocalU.org
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Google Keyword Tool
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Sign into your Google account • Use “phrase” match numbers
• Searches include all the words in the phrase in any order (bike austin, buy a bike in austin, austin bike rentals)
• Local Monthly Search numbers are NOT for your particular location. They are for the entire country. https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal
www.LocalU.org
What Makes a Good Keyword?
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• How many searches?Ideal = low competition and high volume
• How competitive? And how strong is your website?• MOST IMPORTANT: How likely is the searcher to
turn into a customer?
www.LocalU.org
Focus on Most Targeted Terms
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
“BWI airport hotel with pool and free wi-fi”
“BWI airport hotel”
“hotel”
Research Local Keywords
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Google Trends Tool
http://www.google.com/trends/explore
www.LocalU.org
Add search terms Choose locationChoose time period
Keyword List Tips
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
After you’ve done your keyword research:
• Eliminate• “Iffy” terms• Very competitive terms
(unless you have a strong website).
• Terms without search traffic • Organize your list in a way
that works for you and your website.
www.LocalU.org
Keyword Mapping
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Create a plan of how your keywords will be used to optimize your website.
• Critical step that will guide all of your ongoing search engine optimization efforts
• Begin by mapping your site structure.
www.LocalU.org
Map Your Site Structure
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
The higher up a page is in the site structure the more natural potential ranking power it has.
www.LocalU.org
Match Pages to Keywords
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Keeping the terms you choose relevant to the content on the page, match a page’s potential ranking power with the competitiveness of the term.
www.LocalU.org
Focus Your Optimization
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Target 1-3 closely related keywords per page: • Okay to optimize for only 1 term, especially on
interior pages and new/weak sites. The more closely related the terms are, the easier it will be to rank for all of them.
• Match a more competitive term with 1-2 longer tail terms.
www.LocalU.org
Sample Keyword Map
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Where to Use Keywords
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Use assigned keywords in the important TEXT areas of your pages:
• URLs• HTML Page Titles• H1, H2 (headlines and subheads)• Text-based content• Navigation links• Other internal link text• Image file names, alt tags and captions
www.LocalU.org
Page Title
URL
Header (h1)
Subheader (h2)
Location
Navigation
Content
Image
Optimize Your Search Results
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
When a page appears in the SERPs, people usually see:
www.LocalU.org
HTML Page title
HTML metadescription
URL
Create Good Ads
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Page title + Meta description + URL = “Free Ad” in the SERPs
www.LocalU.org
Make Ads Enticing
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Focus on the searcher, who’s thinking:• What’s in it for me?• What problem can this help me solve? • Why should I go to this page instead of another?
Include a call to action : call today, get a free quote, get help, learn how, download , etc.
Ads read better if they are not cut off in the search results
• Page Title: No more than 65 characters • Meta Description: No more than 130 characters.
www.LocalU.org
Local SEO Tips for Your Website
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Help with Location Trust
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
To make your location absolutely clear to the Search Engines:
• Place your business name, full street address and local phone number on all pages of your website in text form.
• Consider using www.Schema.org microdata format for this
www.LocalU.org
Contact or About Page
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Use the natural ranking potential by:• Putting business name, city and phone number in
page title• Embedding a Google Map showing your location on
page• Writing out directions to your location on the page
www.LocalU.org
To Rank for Multiple Locations
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
With a physical presence (you have an office, shop or store in the location) you do qualify for a business listing for each location. It is eligible to rank in Maps and in the organic results.
Without a physical presence (you service the location, but do not have an office, store or shop there) you do not qualify for a business listing and you are not eligible to rank in the Maps results.
www.LocalU.org
To Rank for Multiple Locations
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
In either case (with or without a physical presence), create a separate website page for each location.
• Unique, useful page about that location•Optimize the page for main service or product + location•Use good internal linking (between your own pages)•Build external links to each page (from other websites)•For each local page on Google+, point your link to your website URL about that particular location
www.LocalU.org
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Manhattan Insurance
Office Located Here
Bronx Insurance
Service area – No Office
Brooklyn Insurance
Service Area – No Office
Website pages
Queens Insurance
Service Area – No Office
Manhattan Insurance
Local Business page on Google+
Maps SERPs
Organic SERPs
www.LocalU.org
Internal Link Text
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
When linking from one of your pages to another, use descriptive link text to tell Search Engines and humans what the page they will be taken to is about:
• Replace click here, view more, learn more, etc to location+keyword terms to point to the page optimized for those terms.
• For a page optimized for Towson Accounting, change Click Here to See all of our Towson accounting services or Tax advice in Towson
• Mix up your link text to make it look more natural
www.LocalU.org
Recap: On-site Optimization
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Pick the right keyword phrases• Map keywords to pages• Implement keywords on chosen pages• Make your “ads” enticing• Put location information in text form• Give each location its own unique, useful web
page• Use location terms in your internal links
www.LocalU.org
Off-Page Optimization(aka link building)
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Off-Page Optimization = Links
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Incoming Links
www.LocalU.org
Links = Votes
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
The more votes you have the better,
BUT not all links are equal.
Quality counts and crummy links can hurt
you!
www.LocalU.org
Links and Local Search
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Aim for a natural link profile. Get links: • From different domains• From different types of sites (blogs, forums,
directories, news sites, etc)• To different pages on your site (not all to home
page)• With varied link text
www.LocalU.org
Improve Existing Links
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
You can see links with this free tool: http://www.opensiteexplorer.org/
Look at the pages that link to you• Is all the information correct?• Can you add more detail? (Description, photos,
videos, services, hours, payment types, etc.)• Are you in the right categories?• Can you add a link?• Can you improve the link text?
www.LocalU.org
Links from Relationships
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Business groups • Social groups • Charities and sponsorships• Local school and college websites• Clients and partners• Businesses you already have referral
relationships with
www.LocalU.org
Links from General Directories
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• BestOfTheWeb.com• Manta• HotFrog • Brownbook.net• DirectoryM• GetFave • MojoPages
Some links are worth paying for, especially if you have a new website.
www.LocalU.org
Links from Industry Sites
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Trade associations• Licensing organizations• Your suppliers & resellers• Manufacturers of your products• Commercial directories for your industry:
• Martindales.com (lawyers)• ServiceMaster.com (trades like electricians,
plumbers, carpet cleaners)• UrbanSpoon.com (restaurants)• Trip Advisor (hotels, attractions)
www.LocalU.org
Links from Niche Sites
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Free Wifi• ATM• Minority-owned• Woman-owned• Non-profit• Other Languages• Maps • Adult only• Handicapped accessible
• Blog• Product Types• Videos• Images• Coupons• In something• Near something• Kid-friendly• Pet friendly
www.LocalU.org
Links from Local Directories
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Yelp• Kudzu• CitySearch• InsiderPages• DiscoverOurTown• Topix• WCities
• AngiesList• CitySquares• MerchantCircle• CityVoter• JudysBook• Foursquare• Internet Yellow Pages
Pages
www.LocalU.org
Links from Local Sites
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Better Business Bureau• Convention & Visitor’s Bureau• Local Media - Newspapers, Magazines, TV• Chamber of Commerce• Local Business Directories• Local city guides• Local blogs• Local and regional tourism sites
www.LocalU.org
Links from Social Media Sites
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Social Media Profiles:• LinkedIn • Flickr • Facebook Fan Page
And from interaction on Social sites:• In Tweets• On Facebook pages• Google+ interactions (conversations, reviews, etc)• Commenting on appropriate blogs and forums• Guest posting on the blogs of others
• Twitter • YouTube Channel• Google+ profile
www.LocalU.org
Partner Up
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Get listed in all of the places where prospective customers may be looking for you
Technical Issues(stuff you may need help with)
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Check Crawlability
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
If the Search Engines can’t find or crawl your pages, they cannot appear in the Search Results.
www.LocalU.org
Why Don’t Pages Get Crawled
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Blocked from the Search Engines• No follow-able links to the page(s)• Redirect improperly• Search Engines perceive them as duplicate
content• Weird, jacked up things or combinations of
things
www.LocalU.org
Duplicate Content
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
• Do not expect it to rank• Having a lot of it can hurt the entire website• Automatically generated by some CMS sites• Some possible causes:
• duplicate page titles• tracking codes• pages in multiple categories• multiple URLs for the same page (www.home.com ,
www.home.com/ ,www.home.com/index.html )• insufficient text content on pages
www.LocalU.org
To See What Google “Sees”
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.comwww.LocalU.org
Check your home page and all other important pages on your website
Use Free Webmaster Tools
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
http://www.google.com/webmasters/ http://www.bing.com/toolbox/webmasters/
www.LocalU.org
THANKS!
Optimized!www.MaryBowling.com
Mary BowlingTwitter: @MaryBowling
Blog: www.MaryBowling.com
Online Class information: http://www.marybowling.com/local-search-optimization/local-search-classes-at-planet-ocean
/
www.LocalU.org