With the growth of geographic search, Local Search Engine Optimization (SEO) allows small businesses to improve their visibility on maps and reach local customers.

We know that social media does not directly influence search engine ranking. However, there are many indirect ways that social media supports SEO.

You are already extremely busy promoting your business.

Adding even more marketing tasks seems overkill.

However, ignoring social media integration in your marketing plan can be expensive, not only in terms of new leads who do not know you but also in terms of keeping customers.

And make no mistake; your competitors are sniffing around and happy to be found.

By building relationships with your customers, you increase your chances of keeping them and increasing their lifetime value.

Let’s look at how your small business can use local SEO and social media marketing to stay ahead of online competition.

Why Do Small Businesses Need Local SEO and Social Media Marketing?

Nearly half of all Google searches today are local searches. Even when someone does a normal daily search, there is a high chance that Google will show local businesses nearby.

It is recommended to use special social media to get the best results in research. Your social media profiles must be perfected to send followers directly to your website.

Social media now offers endless opportunities for building backlinks. The idea is simple: any communication or mention of your brand online, including social media, is a good network on Google.

Local SEO benefits small businesses looking to improve their digital marketing strategy. Here are three reasons small businesses should use local SEO and social media marketing for maximum impact.

• Increase Brand Awareness

One of the substantial benefits of using social media for a local business is the number of people you can influence. Developing an online presence can help you connect with more people and raise awareness.

The more relevant, high-quality content you create, the more likely local customers will be to engage with your business, leading to an increase in the reach and exposure of your brand. 

By keeping unique WooCommerce Product Badges, you can stand out from the clutter of product images and help customers get to know you better in various communications.

• Cost-Effective Marketing Strategy

Local SEO is an inexpensive marketing strategy that allows small businesses to target local customers and track the effectiveness of their efforts.

Using evaluative tools like Google Analytics, you can track website traffic and find the keywords that drive visitors to your website.

The main advantage of local SEO is its ability to reduce marketing costs by adapting and improving websites, using online resources, and cutting advertising or print media.

• Improve Local Visibility

As social media information becomes an important search engine, localization with hashtags allows you to target people in your state, region, or city.

You can connect with customers, other businesses, and potential employees in your area by using local hashtags on platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.

Social media accounts also give you more options to create local content. Include NAP information and information (such as company name, address, and phone number) on your social media profiles.

Making it easy for your customers to find your business online and keeping NAP records regularly will also help show Google your authority.

Top 5 Tips to Maximize Local SEO and Social Media Marketing Efforts

1. Create location-based content

After keyword research, you must create content to categorize local search results. Creating pages for specific sites and blog posts allows you to:

• Demonstration of authority in your area.
• Target local keywords.
• Place it at the top of the local search bar.
• Share local business news and events.
• Keep search engines updated with important business news.
• Encourage purchases from local customers.
• Inspire customer loyalty and repeat purchases.

If your business has multiple locations, create custom content so local users can find and visit the location closest to them.

Content is one of the key elements of your local SEO checklist, and it is immensely significant to improve your local ranking.

2. Encourage reviews from local customers

Getting reviews from locals helps optimize your Google My Business page and adds social proof to encourage people to buy. To get reviews on Google, you can create a link that helps customers find your business and leave a review.

Add the above URL to your website and marketing materials and remind customers to leave a review for your local business. Respond to reviews to gain customer trust—post reviews on your Google My Business profile.

You can encourage people to leave your online business reviews on your website, social media, and third-party review sites. Information that affects the SEO ranking of local companies and responses to reviews will increase your credibility in the eyes of potential customers.

Therefore, getting reviews is crucial for SEO for a local business.

3. Optimize Your About pages and Bios

About pages and social bios are small sections in your profiles but can make a long-lasting impact.

First, it is the best place to highlight your brand, share your story, and supply insight into your brand’s mission.

While it is unclear how Google uses About Us pages to understand your business, it is safe to say that if Google indexes public information, they are probably reading some of those pages.

If you are of that mindset, optimizing these About Us pages just like any other page on your website is a promising idea.

You must add keywords to these pages to help Google associate those keywords with your domain name.

Doing this can influence the ranking that Google chooses to give you.

4. Cut Your Ad Costs by Switching to Local Advertising

Social media platforms are not made for users but for advertisers. Location is one of the many distinctive features you can target in your ads.

If you target your ads to people who live in your area, their interests, and other specific groups, you will achieve the highest level of customers at the lowest cost.

Plus, by customizing the intent and content of your ads, you will learn more about effective leads than any survey can tell you at a fraction of the cost!

What if you do not use these ads? You keep shooting aimlessly while your competitors focus on gold nuggets.

Remarketing is another way worth considering.

Let us say someone visited your site but did not buy anything.

Do not worry now – by adding the Facebook pixel (an indicator in Facebook Ads), you can redirect these visitors to targeted ads based on the product/service pages they checked out on your website.

5. Optimize Your Social landing pages

Social media pages, more commonly known as “link in bio” pages, are another social media platform with local SEO benefits.

If you have never heard of these pages, they are mobile landing pages whose sole purpose is to direct social media users to other pages, apps, and content you want to promote.

Social landing pages can be good for two reasons:

• Direct users to external content related to your social networks.
• Create valuable links to your objects.

It is important for local SEO because they make it easier for users to find your content on your website from social media, which will help drive traffic.

Also, the links feature allows you to create links that help Google understand your content. While they may be “non-terminal” links, Google still uses the images and anchors of those links to understand your content.

Conclusion

Being online for business has become very, very local.

Everyone on social media talks about what they like and what they do.

Social media can be a great and affordable way to get more exposure for your local business.

So, it has become one of the favorite things of many locals in their news feeds, and many will subscribe.