Having a strong online presence is essential for businesses of all sizes. However, an important part of this presence is often overlooked by business owners. What we are talking about is local SEO. Local SEO helps you connect with potential customers who are searching for your services in your specific target area. Whether you’re a cosy café, a trusted plumber, or a boutique retail store, local SEO can boost your visibility and drive more foot traffic to your door. Think about it: when people Google search for services or products, they’re likely to add location-based keywords to their queries, such as “best pizza in [City]” or “reliable mechanic near me.” If your business isn’t optimised for these local searches, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to capture the attention of nearby customers who are ready to make a purchase. In this article, we’ll run through our ultimate local SEO checklist. From claiming your Google Business Profile to leveraging local keywords and encouraging customer reviews, our local SEO guide will cover everything you need to know to make your local business a favourite. 1. Claim and optimise your Google Business Profile Number one on the local SEO checklist, make sure you claim or create your Google Business Profile (GBP). This is crucial! Fill out all the details – business name, address, phone number (NAP), hours of operation, and a brief description. Add high-quality photos and encourage customers to leave reviews. Staying active on GBP Another important part of optimising your profile is staying active on GBP. One way you can do this is through posting updates. These updates can be on any topic related to your product or service whether its a commonly asked question, info about the product or service, about your business or a new blog you’ve added to your site. Adding a link to these updates also provides another avenue to get more traffic over to your website. Another way to stay active on GBP is through adding questions and answers to your profile. This section is an easy way to fill out your profile and add in relevant keywords to help you rank higher. Filling out products and services If you want your business to rank well on Google, it’s essential that you fill out all of your products and services in detail. As a service business when setting up your GBP, it’s easy to just go through and add simply the titles of all of your services. But did you know you can actually go in and add a description for each of these services as well? In fact, you have up to 300 characters to pack keywords into each description! Similarly, if you are a product based business, you have up to 1000 characters for each description. You can also add photos and prices. 2. Make sure your business info is consistent Your business name, address, and phone number should be consistent across all online platforms. Check your website, social media, and any local directories to ensure they match exactly. Consistency builds trust with search engines and is an important part of any local SEO strategy. 3. Get local reviews Ask your happy customers to leave reviews on your Google Business Profile and Facebook. Respond to reviews, both good and bad, to show you care about your customers. Reviews not only improve your reputation but also boost your local search rankings. You can also like positive reviews to help them show first in your profile. Tips for how to get more reviews: Make it easy: include direct links to your Google Business Profile across your emails, website, receipts and follow-up messages. You can even create a QR-Code for customers to scan in person. Just ask: sometimes the simplest approach is the best. Ask your customer in-person after you’ve provided your service to give you a review. They are much more likely to actually write one when they are standing in front of you. Create an incentive: offer a small incentive such as a discount, coupon or entry to a giveaway, to encourage people to leave a review. Use follow-up emails: send a follow-up email after a purchase or service asking for feedback. Include a direct link to your review page and thank them for their time and input. 4. Local keywords are key Including local keywords in your website copy is essential. Think about what your customers might search for. Use local keywords like “best coffee shop in [Your City]” or “affordable plumbing services in [Your Suburb].” Try to incorporate these keywords naturally into your website content, blog posts, and meta descriptions. You can use keyword tools like Google Keyword Planner, Semrush, or ahrefs to research and find local keywords and popular local search terms related to your business. The goal is to find keywords that have a high search volume but low competition. 5. Optimise for mobile Most local searches happen on mobile devices. Make sure you have a mobile friendly website – it should load quickly, be easy to navigate, and display correctly on all devices. Google favours mobile-optimised sites in local search results. How to optimise your website for mobile: Responsive design: make sure your design adjusts your website content when on a smaller screen like a mobile phone. There’s nothing worse than having elements cut off or text too small. Fast loading speeds: mobile users expect quick access to information. If a website takes too long to load, they will just go to another site. You can use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to test your website’s loading speed and find areas for improvement. Local SEO features: use click to call buttons and embedded maps to make it easy for people to contact and find you. 6. Create local content Blog about local events, news, or anything relevant to your community and industry. This helps to attract local traffic and shows search engines that your business is active in the community. Plus, it’s a great way to connect with your audience. 7. Local backlinks matter Number seven on our local SEO guide is local link building. Backlinks from local websites can significantly boost your local SEO. Network with local businesses, sponsor local events, or write guest posts for local blogs. Each link back to your site tells search engines that your local business is trusted in the community. Best practices for local backlink building: Focus on quality over quantity: aim for high-quality backlinks from reputable local websites. A few strong backlinks are more valuable than a bunch of low-quality ones. Create link-worthy content: produce high-quality, valuable content that local sites will want to link to. This could include blog posts, infographics, research reports, and guides relevant to your community. Build relationships with other businesses: invest time in building genuine relationships with other local businesses. Networking and maintaining good relationships can lead to more natural backlink opportunities. 8. Engage on social media Stay active on social media and engage with your local community. Share updates, promote local events, and interact with your followers. Social signals can indirectly influence local SEO for businesses, plus it helps to build your brand’s presence. You can also make posts that link through to your website which can be a great way to get more eyes on your website. How to engage on social media: Post about local events: post about local news and events related to your industry and local community. This will help attract local followers. Highlight local partnerships: showcase collaborations with other local businesses or organisations. Tag them in your posts and encourage them to share your content. This not only builds relationships but also expands your reach to their followers which helps with brand awareness. Engage with followers: respond to comments, messages, and mentions as quickly as you can. Engaging in conversations with your followers builds a sense of community and shows that you value their input. Use local hashtags: use city and suburb related hashtags in your posts to help increase their visibility among the local crowd. 9. Create location pages If your business has multiple locations, create a separate page for each one. Include the address, phone number, business hours, and any unique features or offerings specific to that location. If you’re a service area based business with no physical locations, you can create a location page for each suburb you service. Optimise each page with local keywords and focus on effective SEO copywriting. What to include on a location page: Business name and location: it’s an obvious one but make sure you clearly state the name of your business and the specific location. For example, “Joe’s Coffee Shop – Downtown Branch.” Or if you’re a service business “Joe’s Plumbing services [suburb]” Embed a map: include a map of each suburb or location on each page. Local keywords: optimise each page for local keywords and include the city or suburb in the page title, headers, meta descriptions and in the content. For example, keywords such as “Joe’s Plumbing, your local [suburb] plumber” or “Joe’s plumbing in [suburb]”. Show reviews: display reviews and testimonials from customers in that specific location. This builds trust and provides social proof. Add photos: add high quality photos of each location. Or if you’re a service area business, include a gallery of completed works from jobs in each area. 10. Leverage local listings and directories Submit your business to local online directories. Make sure your information is accurate and consistent across all listings. This is usually a great starting point as it’s free and very simple to do. Most common local directories: Yelp Yellow Pages White Pages TripAdvisor True Local StartLocal LocalSearch dLook Oneflare Boost your local SEO with White Chalk Road Ready to boost your business’s local visibility and attract more customers from your community? At White Chalk Road, we specialise in local SEO strategies tailored to Perth businesses. Whether you need help with optimising your Google Business profile, creating engaging local content, or building high-quality local backlinks, our team of experts is here to help. Don’t let your competitors take the spotlight. Contact White Chalk Road today to schedule a free consultation and discover how we can elevate your local SEO game. Let’s make your business the go-to choice in your neighbourhood!
