Figuring out how to drive the customers you reach in the online realm to your business’s physical location is one of the key challenges faced by businesses such as pet spas. Thankfully, this is where a local search-optimized content strategy can help.
By fine-tuning your content strategy to target local customers, you can increase brand awareness in the neighborhoods you serve and reach local customers who are searching for a nearby pet spa. To help you get started, here is an in-depth guide on how to create a local search-optimized content strategy for pet spas.
Understanding Local SEO
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your business’s online presence so that it shows up in more relevant search results. Local SEO has almost the same definition, except with local SEO, the relevant search results you’re trying to rank for are those conducted by local customers.
Let’s say, for example, that you’re running a pet grooming business in Houston. In this case, searches such as “pet groomers in Houston” or “pet grooming business near me” (when the search is conducted by someone located in Houston) are the types of searches you want your business to show up in. And local SEO is how you make sure it does!
There are a lot of different elements that can impact a company’s placement in local search rankings. Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the more impactful factors:
- Online Reviews and Ratings: Positive reviews and high ratings on platforms like Google, Yelp, and Facebook will help enhance your local SEO.
- Local Keywords: The presence of local keywords (like “pet spa in Seattle”) in your website content will improve your ranking for searches that include those keywords.
- NAP Consistency: Make sure that your business Name, Address, and Phone number (NAP) are consistent across all online platforms; inconsistencies can confuse both customers and search engines.
- Local Citations: Listing your business in local online directories and citation sites—such as Yelp, TripAdvisor, and local chamber of commerce websites—improves local SEO.
- Mobile Optimization: 57% of all local searches are done on mobile devices. This makes it vital to ensure that your website is mobile-friendly.
- Localized Content: Creating content that resonates with your local audience drives more local traffic to your website and improves its local SEO.
- Social Media Engagement: Like localized content, social media marketing that’s aimed at customers in your area boosts local SEO by driving more local users to your website.
- Backlinks From Local Sources: Backlinks from reputable local websites signal to search engines that your business is a trusted local authority.
Local Search-Optimized Content Strategy for Pet Spas
Now that we’ve covered all the different factors that can influence a pet spa’s local SEO, let’s explore the proven optimization strategies you can use to target each of these factors. If you’d like to start reaching more potential customers in your area, here is a local search-optimized content strategy for pet spas that is sure to deliver results!
Website Content Optimization
Your company’s website is the cornerstone of its online presence, so optimizing it for local SEO is a natural place to start. The first key to website content optimization is to incorporate localized keywords and phrases in your website content. You should aim for a keyword density of about 1-2%, meaning that localized keywords should appear once or twice per every 100 words of content. Utilizing location-based meta-tags and meta-descriptions will further boost your website’s local search visibility.
Be sure to also include local information on your website, including things like your business hours, the address of your location, and your phone number. That way, local customers who do find your website will have easy access to all the information they need.
Speaking of making your website appealing to local customers, it’s beneficial to write web content in a natural language that employs local lingo. This goes for blog content as well, and your blog gives you even more opportunities to create content with a local focus (such as covering local news and events).
Directory Listings Optimization
Your pet spa’s presence in online directories like Yelp and TripAdvisor will have a major impact on its local SEO. Choose the directories that are relevant to your business and area, and list your business on them. Remember, it’s important to make sure that your NAP information is consistent across all of these directories.
Encouraging customers to leave reviews for your business on the directories where it’s listed is another strategy that will go a long way toward boosting your local visibility. More positive reviews not only help improve your company’s search ranking, but they also make your business more appealing to the potential customers who come it across it in the search results.
Google Business Profile Optimization
Google Business Profile is another online business directory, but it’s so much more than that too. You can use this free tool to manage your online presence across Google, including Search and Maps, and optimizing your profile is a major key to local SEO.
Start by completing all sections of your profile and double-checking that the information in each one is accurate. You’ll need to include all of your basic business information, such as NAP information and the category of your business. Be sure to also include your business hours and any attributes it offers (such as whether it is wheelchair accessible, offers outdoor seating, or provides free Wi-Fi). If applicable, you can add information on your products and services as well.
Once your profile is all set up, the next key to optimizing it is to encourage customers to leave reviews on Google. Like we mentioned earlier, this offers the dual benefit of both improving local SEO and making your listing more appealing to potential customers. Another way to keep your profile appealing and engaging is to utilize photos, add questions and answers, and respond to customer reviews (though, when responding to reviews, it’s important to make sure you do so in a way that’s polite and professional).
Social Media Localization
Driving more local traffic to your website improves its local SEO, creating a snowball effect that will help you attract more and more local customers. And one great way to get this snowball rolling is to leverage social media.
By engaging with your local community on social media and creating content that is tailored to a local audience, you can grow brand awareness in your area while at the same time boosting your local SEO. As for how to go about this, the sky’s the limit. However, doing things like promoting local events, covering local news and trends, and covering topics that are interesting to your local audience are a few ideas to get you started.
Online Advertising Localization
If you run a business like a pet spa where customers are required to visit your physical location, you should always target your advertising campaigns to people located in your area. Beyond getting your targeting settings right, though, there are a few other things you can do to localize your online advertising campaigns.
Start by writing ad copy that will speak to local customers. Displaying your business address and/or phone number in your ads will also help anyone who views them realize that you are a local business. One effective way to do this is to use ad extensions. Extensions like location extensions, call extensions, and review extensions let you include additional information in your ads and make it easy for mobile users to pull this information up. For example, customers can click on your phone number to automatically dial it in their phone or your address to automatically pull it up in Google Maps).
Measuring Success
As with any type of marketing, it’s essential to measure and analyze the results of your local search-optimized content strategy. Track your local search rankings and website analytics to see the impact of your efforts. You can also analyze metrics like customer engagement and conversion rates to form a more complete understanding of how local SEO is impacting your bottom line.
You can use the insights you uncover to improve your local SEO strategy further. Keep in mind that optimizing your online presence for local customers is a process of continuous learning and improvement. It’s not something you’re likely to master overnight, but it is something that can deliver exceptional results if you stick with it.
Optimize Your Local SEO Strategy With Help From Surefire Local
Leveraging local SEO is one of the most powerful ways to reach more customers in your area. If you own a pet spa or a pet grooming business and would like to start showing up higher in the results for local searches, Surefire Local can help!
Surefire Local is an all-in-one marketing platform for local businesses that includes content marketing tools, review management tools, directory management tools, and more. Plus, Surefire Local provides powerful AI recommendations and detailed reporting features to help you analyze and optimize your local SEO strategy.
To learn more about how Surefire Local can help you reach more local customers for your pet spa, be sure to sign up for a free demo today!