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SEO How to Get Top Search Engine Rankings

in Local Markets

By Brian Offenberger, CeM, CSMA

April 24, 2015

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Today’s Objectives

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My Discussion Points

• Discover what local search is all about

• Learn the factors search engines use for local rankings

• Give you an action plan you can follow to get top rankings in

your local market

• Discuss common local search marketing mistakes and how

you can avoid them

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About Brian Offenberger

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Certified By

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Trusted By

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The World Has Changed

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Search Engine Use

• 9 out of 10 people look for things via search engines

• 91% of search engine users find what they want

• 66% say search engines are fair and unbiased

• Google has about 68% of US Search market (comScore)

Source: Pew Internet

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Search with Local Intent

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About Search Engines

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3 Main Goals of Search Engines

• Relevancy

• Location

• Personalization

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Personalized Search

• Considers a person’s

search history and social

connections to provide

search results

personalized to the user.

• Key concept behind

Facebook becoming a

search engine

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More About Search Engines

• 78% of Google search answers change DAILY

• Google updates its ranking formulas 500-600 times per

year

• Position 1 on Google gets about 43.2% of the clicks,

position 2 gets 30.7% and position 3 gets 23.3%

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Mobile Search

• Expected to be the most

popular way people

search

• Local results more likely

in mobile

• People use shorter

queries

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What is Local SEO?

Optimizing what you do online to generate high search

engine rankings and to attract a localized, targeted prospect

base

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Local vs. Regular SEO

• Optimization built around local markets

• Keyword focus with geographic references

• Local linking and citations very important

• Different display by search engines

• Optimization for national

or international markets

• Keyword focus with non-

geographical references

• Industry relevant linking

and citations very

important

Local Regular

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Local Search Engine

Ranking Factors

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Top 10 Local Ranking Factors

• Claiming your Google My Business page and other local listings

• Business address in city being searched

• Associate Google My Business page with proper categories

• Address relationship to centroid

• Product/service keyword in Places page business title

• Product/service keywords in Google My Business descriptions

• Associating photos and videos with your Google My Business page

• Local area code with your Primary Google My Business phone number

• Associating Google My Business page with marginally related categories

• Location keyword in Google My Business title

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Other Important Ranking Factors

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N.A.P. Consistency

Establish “NAP” you will promote and use it

consistently in all online channels, including local

listings

5530 E. Beck Lane

-vs-

5530 East Beck Ln.

-vs-

5530 E. Beck Ln.

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Volume of Citations

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Quality of Local Links

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Find Your Links

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Types of Links You Need

• From local directories

• From local community

organizations

• From local news sources

• From established

local businesses

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How to Get Links

• Ask your friends and

organization members

• Ask your vendors

• Remarkable content

• Guest blog posts

and articles

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Localized Social Connections

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Hyper Transfer Protocol Secure

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Responsive Site – April 21

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# 1 - Know Your Keywords

• Goal – 30 terms

• Discovery using research tools

• Evaluate keywords (volume,

competition, relevance, stage

of buying cycle)

• Localize your keywords

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Keyword Research Tools

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# 2 - Update Page Titles

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How to Find Your Page Titles

• Right click on

any webpage.

• Select “View

page source”.

• Look for the <title>

HTML tag in the

source file.

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Unique Titles for Every Page

• Do a basic search to find duplicates:

site:yoursite.com intitle”the words in the title”

• Add location to the title

• Webpage text that uses the terms you are targeting

• Make sure meta description tags are unique and apply

these same concepts as well

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Business Address on Every Page

• Same format all pages

• Should have phone number, including local area code

• Ideal is separate page for each location

• Can also put all locations on one page, although this is

less than optimal

• List as many practical location names on the home page

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# 3 - Eliminate Site Technical Issues

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Common Site Difficulties

• Flash

• Audio

• Video

• Sliders

• Cloaking

• Broken links

• Bad URL redirects

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# 4 – Claim Your Profiles

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Make a Video/Post Photos

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YouTube

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Google Videos

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Add a Blog

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# 5 - Get Inbound Links

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# 5.1 Encourage Citations

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# 6 - Followers to Social Media

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Your Action Plan

1. Know your keywords

2. Optimize your meta titles

3. Eliminate any site technical issues

4. Get listed properly in online directories

5. Get inbound links from others in your community

6. Cultivate online citations

7. Connect and engage on social media

8. Mobile compatible website

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Free Mini Marketing Plan

• Leave your business card

• We’ll do a one hour marketing review covering

anything you like – you set the agenda

• My team will contact you next week to schedule

our meeting

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Connect with Me On LinkedIn

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Contact Information

• Toll Free: (877) 837-8803

• Fax: (602) 412-3663

• Local: (602) 412-3168

• Website: www.RightOn-NoBull.com

• Email: Brian@RightOn-NoBull.com

• Facebook: www.facebook.com/RightOnNoBull

• Address: 5530 East Beck Lane

Scottsdale, AZ. 85254