Search engine optimization has been an important part of online marketing for years now. With 93% of all online experiences beginning with search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo!, according to Search Engine journal statistics, optimizing your appearance in search results remains crucial to tapping into that ever growing eCommerce revenue stream.

In the last couple of years, SEO services have seen a shift away from generalized SEO to a focus on local SEO. As ever more web users continue to increase the number of local goods and services they’re searching for online, finding ways to improve local search SEO is only going to become more important.

What is Local SEO?
Now, if you’re reading this and asking “what is local SEO,” don’t worry. In essence, localized search optimization is just like “classic” SEO, except with geo-specific content and keyword targeting to reach audiences in specific areas of the country or world, as Search Engine Watch writes.

Why Does Local Search Optimization Matter to Your Business?
Local SEO matters to your business because more and more consumers are using localized search terms to find goods and services. Recent statistics from Search Engine Land show that 250 billion localized searches are carried out every year in the United States. Learning to make your pizza shop, hardware company, or other type of business pop in Google SERPs for localized search terms can therefore open your business up to a huge stream of new traffic.

Three Tips for Improving Your Local SEO Strategies

Claim and Optimize Your Local Business Pages
All three of the big online search engines offer businesses free local listings to help promote companies. By claiming local listings, you can optimize the copy with local SEO content, ensure that your contact information is correct, and help draw more traffic to your website and more dollars into your store.
Encourage Customers to Review Your Business Online
As The Huffington Post suggests, encouraging your customers to leave reviews for your business on popular online platforms, like Yelp!, can help you build your local SEO campaign. Quite simply, the more your business name appears online, the more likely you are to appear in searches for businesses of your type in your area.
Know When to Ask for Help
The biggest mistake you can make in marketing, whether it’s local SEO or content marketing, is being too prideful to ask for help. SEO costs a lot of time and money, especially if you’re doing it wrong. If you’re spending time on an ineffective campaign, know when to turn to the pros.

Stop asking “what is local SEO,” and start taking meaningful steps toward improving your business’s visibility online. By following these tips, you can greatly improve your chances of reaching more local customers and growing your business.