For smaller businesses, local SEO is incredibly important as it allows you to tap into your immediate demographic and those customers who are most likely to use your services and/or products. This isn’t something that blossoms automatically though and the process can be helped with the local SEO tools I explain below.
Importance of Local SEO Tools
So why bother with local SEO? Any leading SEO consultant in London or around the world will tell you how beneficial this process is and it offers a range of benefits including:
- Increase visibility in your immediate demographic.
- Target local customers who can travel to your premises.
- Keep a check on the local competition.
- Create more focused SEO that yields better conversions.
By implementing a local SEO campaign you make sure that your marketing efforts are reaching the right people. What good are keywords if the people searching for them live in the opposite part of the country and would never use your services due to geographical limitations?
Local SEO makes sure that you capitalize on customers in your immediate area – those people that are most likely to use your company.
List of Essential Local SEO Tools
To get you started with local SEO I have given a range of tools that cover the main areas. This includes listing management, review management, business listings, and local analytics tracking.
1. Semrush Listing Management
Semrush Listing Management has several useful features including the ability to manage your business listings and sort your online reviews. The listing management feature is comprehensive and easy to understand and it tracks listings on platforms like Yelp, Google Maps, Apple Maps, and Foursquare for example.
The review management tool is especially useful too in managing your local business reputation. It collates your reviews and gives you metrics like an overall star rating. You can also reply to reviews directly without even leaving the platform.
2. Georanker
Georanker is an incredible website that allows you to see how your company is performing on a global scale. That could be a little irrelevant for your business though, but Georanker also allows you to look at your ranking and performance locally.
You can create heatmaps to show how you are fairing against local competitors but there is also a host of information relating to keyword usage and other analytics.
3. Synup
Tracking your performance on search engines is incredibly important but so is your performance on things like local business directories and review platforms. Synup allows you to do this and has an active monitoring system that checks over 200 search engines, directories, and platforms.
You can use the reports to check activity and leads, but also look for errors in your business listings and quickly make sure everything is up to date. Like Semrush, Synup also allows you to manage business reviews and respond to comments to boost your social engagement and credibility.
4. Local Falcon
Local Falcon offers a more specific benefit relating to local keyword usage. The premise is simple – you enter one of the local keywords you are using together with a scan radium from your business location in KM and a grid size.
A search is then run and Local Falcon provides detailed information relating to that keyword in the specified geographical location. This is excellent for local targeting as you can see where the most business is coming from among other information. The visual approach with Google Maps makes it easy to understand and look for keyword trends.
5. Google Business Profile
Before investing in paid tools and advanced local SEO tools the first thing you should do is to create your Google Business Profile. GBP is a free service and it’s a fantastic starting point that can instantly enhance your local SEO.
With the GBP you can enter a range of info and the more you can complete, the more your business stands out to local customers. This includes things like customer reviews, images, videos, opening hours, etc.
6. Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free tool and every local business should register an account. It can also be used in conjunction with platforms like Google Ads if you want to start a PPC campaign. Google Analytics is great for understanding local SEO fundamentals and it provides a wealth of metrics and reports that you can use to look at your local customers and how they are using your website.
Considerations in Choosing Local SEO Tools
Local SEO tools aren’t suitable for every business and you must do a little planning and research beforehand. Some considerations to make include:
- Budget.
- Suitability of the tool for your business.
- The size and scope of your company.
- Your business type.
I recommend starting with free tools such as Google Business Profile and Google Analytics. These are easy to use, won’t eat into your budget, and can yield great results.
After that, you have to look at your budget and where your business stands in terms of its local SEO progression. Over time, look to implement the above tools as local SEO becomes more important as part of your overall SEO strategy.
Boost Your Local SEO With These Essential Tools
To fashion a successful local SEO campaign you have to incorporate the use of local SEO tools into your repertoire. These tools give you useful information and targeted analytics, and allow you to manage your local SEO effectively including things like reviews, listings, and keyword research.
