With an estimated 46% of all searches containing local terms such as “near me,” it’s clear that local search is more important than ever. If you aren’t optimizing your local search profiles to generate the newest business possible – and, therefore, the most revenue possible, you’re missing out on connecting with the people who conduct these searches. You also risk frustrating the people who are searching directly for your business, as improperly maintained local search profiles often contain inaccurate information, which means more lost revenue from clients who choose not to work with you in favor of businesses that are easier to get ahold of. Here are three easy ways to make your local search listings start (and continue) to generate more revenue.
- Make inaccuracies your #1 enemy. Inaccurate information on a local listing profile is incredibly frustrating. If you’ve encountered it, you know exactly how it feels. Driving to a business only to find out their hours are incorrect or their address is wrong is more than enough to cause potential clients to not want to do business with you. You might not have any inaccuracies in your online listings, but the thing that makes these such a problem is that they pop up so frequently. Whether through Google indexing new information about your business, a suggestion from a user, or through data collected from third-party companies, the truth is that your online listings are subject to change at any time. The best way to avoid losing revenue through inaccurate listings is to audit your listings as frequently as possible. At the bare minimum, checking all of your directory listings at least once per month will help cut down on these incidents.
- Work on optimizing your listings. Once your listings are straightened out, it’s time to start optimizing them. That means adding information beyond the basic stuff, like your name, address, and phone number (aka NAP info). Google and other search engines utilize “relevance” as one of the search metrics to rank local search profiles, which measures how likely your business is to provide the service or product the searcher is looking for. Without complete profile information, it’s hard for search engines to tell precisely what your business does. So filling out the primary and secondary categories your business falls under, adding photos of your business, including all of the services you provide, your business attributes and hours, and all of the additional contact information people might be looking for, like your social media and website links can make a huge difference. Optimization also involves regularly posting new photos and updates on your profile to show that your profile has active updates.
- Generate new reviews. Reviews are massively important to local search. In fact, in a survey we conducted earlier this year, 57% of the businesses we polled told us that generating new reviews had the most positive impact on their local search performance. They’re incredibly important to potential clients interested in your business as well as search engines. That’s right, search engines are indexing your reviews! Another metric used by search engines to rank local search profiles is called “prominence,” and it consists of every mention of your business online. That includes your online reviews. Setting up an automated system to request reviews from your clients, and making sure to respond to the reviews you do get goes a long way towards helping your local search profile generate more revenue. Make auditing reviews a part of your local search audit system to avoid missing a review that needs a response.
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MyAdvice has been working with practices to build their local search presences for more than 20 years. Our digital marketing experts can help you improve your rankings. Contact us for a complimentary consultation today!
