According to one recent study, about 81% of people say they conduct research online before making some type of purchase. Another study indicated that over 90% of all online experiences between a brand and its target audience begins with a search engine like Google.
Taken together, these two statistics tell a very clear (and compelling) story. It doesn’t matter what type of business you’re talking about – consumers want to research and confirm that their hard-earned money is going to the right place before they will even think about buying from a business. The vast majority of that activity will begin with a search engine, highlighting the importance of SEO (search engine optimization), among other techniques.
Especially if you’re operating in a niche field like a veterinarian services business, these should be the only two statistics you need to prove that having a strong online presence is invaluable. If most people are going to find you online, and most of those people are going to find you via a search engine, it stands to reason that you need to give them something worth finding to begin with. That’s what your online presence is.
This is also where the concept of directory listings will intersect with your larger online marketing efforts. Directories for SEO purposes are essentially just like any other business directory or listing you would find “in real life,” only on the Internet. But in terms of local search ranking success in particular, they are undoubtedly one of the keys to your ability to get to the top and stay there. This is true for a wide range of different reasons, all of which are worth a closer look.
Understanding the Impact of Directory Listings
One of the major reasons why directory listings are so important in terms of search visibility has to do with the backlinks they create. A directory will link to your business’ website and the more frequently that happens from reputable domains, the more authority engines like Google assign to your website as a result.
But the situation becomes crystal clear when you think about the information people need to actually find your business. According to another recent study, about 53% of mobile searches in particular look for directions to businesses they want to visit. 50% look for a business’ address. Yes, all this information is on your website – but it should also be on the various business directories. If you make it easy for someone to find this information, they will – and that makes it even more likely that they take your desired next step.
Because there are so many different directories, this is why it’s so important to make sure that your contact information is accurate and consistent across all of them. If there are 100 different directories that you’re on, that’s 100 different opportunities for someone to find your veterinary practice. It would be a shame for the relationship to end there because your phone number was wrong.
Steps to Localize Your Online Presence Through Managing Directory Listings
As you start to expand and localize your online presence through directory listings in particular, there are a number of core elements you’ll want to make sure are accounted for.
Claim and Verify Business Listings
First, begin by identifying those directories that are the most relevant for your business. Which are the directories that your ideal customers are likely to be paying attention to? Don’t just blast your information to any that you find – be selective. Go where your audience is, not where you hope they’ll eventually be.
Go to Google and search for veterinarians nearby and see which directory listings sites appear. Once you’ve identified them, you can claim and verify your business listings on those major directories.
Ensure Consistency in Business Information
As you update this information, make sure to maintain consistent NAP data across the board. This means that the way your business name is presented, along with your address and phone number, should be identical from one directory to the next.
If you do find any discrepancies that may already be out there, be sure to address them as quickly as possible.
Optimize Business Descriptions for Local SEO
Another thing to keep in mind about these directory listings is that you should add and update information with an eye toward local SEO. Whenever possible, incorporate location-based keywords and local lingo into business descriptions. So don’t just say that you’re a veterinary practice – say that you’re a veterinary practice in [CITY]. Use terms that only people who live in the area would identify with so that the descriptions resonate as much as possible.
You’ll also want to provide highly detailed (and relevant) information about your products and services. Not only is it good for local SEO, but it’s also helpful for your visitors – which in and of itself is the most important thing of all.
Utilize Additional Features of Directory Listings
It would be a legitimate mistake to think of online directory listings as little more than just an Internet-based version of the phone book. Yes, you want to make sure the contact information for your veterinary practice is accurate and up-to-date. But these directories also have a lot of additional features that you’ll want to capitalize on.
This means adding photos, videos, and any other multimedia options that you can think of to truly enhance your listing and separate yourself from your competitors. You’ll also want to encourage your existing, satisfied customers to leave reviews on your directory listings whenever possible.
According to another recent study, 98% of people say that they at least “occasionally” read online reviews before visiting local businesses. Getting people to leave reviews is a perfect opportunity to boost your social proof, which goes a long way towards instilling a sense of trust and authority in your audience as well.
Leverage Industry-Specific Directories
It’s also important to leverage industry-specific directories as you focus your attention on this task. Again, go where your audience actually is – not where you hope they are. Identify industry-specific directories that your ideal customers are most likely to be paying attention to and prioritize them as much as possible.
Use these industry-specific directories as an opportunity to highlight your unique offerings. Anything that you can emphasize to separate yours from other veterinary practices in the area will pay off in the long run.
Monitor and Update Directory Listings
Whether you’re talking about directory listings or content marketing in general for your veterinary practice, one of the most important things to understand is this: consistency is king.
This means that as you work on your local business listings management strategies for veterinarians such as yourself, you need to establish a regular schedule for monitoring and updating those listings.
If you launch new products or services, directories need to be changed. If your business hours change, those directories need to change with them.
You can utilize various tools and services that help streamline the management of these directory listings, with the all-in-one marketing platform from Surefire Local being chief among them.
Analyze the Impact on Local Search Rankings
Finally, always make it a priority to track the improvements you’re making as a part of your directory management strategies. The decisions that you’re making shouldn’t exist in a vacuum. As you make changes and updates, you’ll begin to see which of your techniques are working and which ones aren’t. That way, you can double your efforts on those types of changes that help improve visibility and search rankings.
Adjust your local business listings management strategies for veterinarians based on analytics and actual, tangible performance data. Don’t operate on gut instinct or intuition. Start with what you know for certain and work your way forward from there.
Surefire Local: Your Guide to Directory Listing Success
By now, it shouldn’t really be up for debate whether localizing your online presence is worth the effort. If the vast majority of people who find your veterinarian business for the first time will do so online, AND they’ll probably do so while conducting a “near me” search on their phone, AND a statistical majority of those searches convert within 24 hours, this level of online localization is no longer a recommendation. It is a requirement.
Directory listings by default have become a big part of how you accomplish precisely that. That’s why you should both prioritize and actively manage your directory listings whenever possible.
That’s also a goal that our team wants to help you with. Our all-in-one online marketing platform is aimed at small businesses like your veterinary practice, giving you the chance to establish your online presence and create the local signals you need across platforms and profiles. You want to make it easier for new customers to find you and that’s exactly what we want, too.
Our marketing platform includes a number of invaluable features that will help to that end, including but not limited to things like:
- Directory management. We help you claim, edit, and publish new content (like photos, videos, or special offers) across more than 80 online directory listing platforms, right from a single easy-to-use solution.
- Content marketing. You’ll finally have access to the tools you need to create locally targeted and highly relevant content for your audience. Let that content live on your blog, on business directories, on your social media profiles, or even on your Google Business Profile.
- Analytics and reporting. Stop wondering about how much value your marketing dollars are generating in return. You’ll have full transparency into campaign performance like never before. Thanks to AI-generated recommendations, you’ll also know exactly which actions you need to take next to continue to see improvements.
As part of our commitment to your success, we also offer educational resources like webinars, blogs, and more. All this is designed to help small business owners and entrepreneurs like yourself learn and master all things local online marketing.
If you’re interested in taking your efforts regarding local business listings management strategies for veterinarians to the next level, or if you have any additional questions that you’d like to go over with someone in a bit more detail, please don’t delay – contact us today or click here to attend a Surefire Local demo in your area. We can’t wait for you to see what the platform can do up close and personal.