Startups have to compete with big names, which is always a difficult task. Entrepreneurs struggle to keep up and improve their business, but the most reliable way to raise brand awareness is SEO. While large companies serve large areas, startups can provide for the locals, as they grow, so they can also benefit a lot from local SEO. The first step in making your brand known to the people around you is to use local SEO, which is going to put you on the map, both online and offline.
Go local
Just catering to locals is not going to bring your business to the second level, so you have to present your brand locally. Post your address and phone number on Google, so people who search the services you provide, locally, can see your contact details. Google will take care of this, as long as your company is located on the Google Maps. It might seem a worthless detail, but the more times someone looks for a certain product or service in your area and notices your company, the more they get to know you and will eventually give you a try.
Post consistent information
Post your business information on local directories and make sure you update it regularly. Claim your business on Google Maps and be consistent with what you share. It will be painful to make sure each and every directory and site has the same telephone and schedule, but it will be worth it. Another thing to be aware of is keeping all the information about your startup consistent, from color and font to the logo.
Optimize your content for local SEO
This is probably the hardest part of SEO, as optimizing for local keywords can be really tricky. Adding the city name before or after the main keyword is definitely spam and might be penalized by Google. To avoid this, digital marketing experts at DataSauce suggest startups to use the regular keywords for your company and local information or information that is relevant for the local area. This will ensure you are going to rank well in local results, targeting the locals.
Benefit from multiple domain names
A startup can benefit a lot from using multiple domain names. This approach works when you are already catering to at least two different areas, being the reason most startups can’t use this tip. To benefit from multiple domains, you need separate listings for each location, linked to the same central platform.
Produce quality content
The last step in every marketing plan – or the first, actually – is to produce high quality content with powerful headlines. Regardless of your multiple domains and local SEO approach, content is still the most important element of online marketing. Target your customers, locally or not, then create content they will love.
Startups can be harmed by even the smallest wrong move, so you have to be very careful with your marketing efforts, in order to make your company successful and help it grow.
