Are you looking to attract customers within a specific geographic location or area in Nigeria? Local SEO is a strategy you should seriously consider.

Local SEO simply refers to SEO strategies that help to improve your visibility on local search results. This in turn helps your business attract more foot traffic and customers from your immediate locality.

Benefits of Local SEO

If you are a brick-and-mortar business or have a localized target market in Nigeria, local SEO is a game-changer. More than just reaching your target audience, local SEO helps you connect with a segment of your audience that matters the most to you as a local business. The benefits of local SEO for your local business are enormous, some of which include:

• Increase local visibility
• More targeted traffic
• Build trust and credibility
• Competitive edge/advantage
• Increased foot traffic
• Cost-effective marketing
• Improve user experience

Strategies on How to Improve Search Presence with Local SEO

Optimize Google Business Listing

When it comes to local SEO, your Google Business Listing is your digital storefront or digital billboard. This is where you provide essential information like your address, phone number, operating hours, and customer reviews. It is important that this listing is complete and accurate so that local researchers can find you. Do not forget to include supplemental content like quality photos, … With a verified Google My Page list, chances of appearing in the coveted three-pack on Google search results pages are high.

Create Localized Content

Creating localized content helps any brand to establish relevance and authority in an area. This is a powerful way to stand out in your community. Similar to the use of local keywords, localized content refers to messages and offerings that meet the specific needs and interests of your local audience. Whether it is an article, a blog post, a video, a press release etc., it should address and resonate with the culture, interests and customs of your locality. This SEO strategy fosters a stronger connection with your audience and serves as a signal to search engines for content relevance.

Use of Local Keywords

For any local SEO to be complete, it has to include local keywords. These keywords can be likened to signposts guiding local customers to your storefront. Local keywords are simply location-specific phrases and terms frequently used by local searchers when looking for businesses like yours. This can include the name of your city or neighbourhood. When you include these keywords in your web content, it shows search engines how geographically relevant your content is. This in turn increases your chances of showing up in local search results.

Build Local Backlinks

Backlinks are like referrals or votes of confidence from experts. Local backlinks from local authority sources will boost your site’s credibility and reputation in local search. As a local business, it is important that you develop relationships with other local businesses, organizations, and community websites as this can lead to valuable backlinks that help improve your website’s authority in the eyes of search engines.

Optimize for Local Voice Search

Local voice-activated devices and voice searches are becoming increasingly popular, even in Nigeria. With this rise, it’s essential that local businesses optimize their online presence for this trend. This can be achieved by ensuring that your website content and local listings are voice-search-friendly. That is, your content needs to be aligned with answering local questions or solving local problems. Best practices for optimizing your website for local voice search include:

• Make use of conversational tones
• Include featured snippets
• Optimize website speed
• Make use of schema markup
• Optimize for mobile

Final Thoughts

Businesses that implement local SEO strategies can more effectively connect with their local audience and drive more foot traffic. This ultimately translates to more customer base and revenue.

On another hand, local SEO can be a time-consuming process and requires some expertise. This is where partnering with a digital marketing company in Nigeria is imperative.

AdHang is an award-winning digital company that can help you achieve great results with your local SEO on a budget.