Podcast Episode: #1

Topic: Top 5 Tactics to Boost Local SEO

Participants

Andreas Georgiades, CEO and Co-Founder of Seedhub Media

Sergiu Popescu, Founder of HPO Media, Cyprus

Topic

In the first episode of ‘Let’s Grow with Local SEO,’ Andreas Georgiades talks with Sergiu Popescu about Organic and Local Search Engine Optimization (SEO). 

What is Local SEO and how can it help businesses increase their online visibility and boost their conversions? What are the top 5 key tactics for growing a business’s local presence on Google? These are the main topics of this episode combined with many tips, real-world examples, stats and insights into the SEO world. 

Listen & Learn

Here are some key takeaways from Seedhub Media’s Podcast Let’s Grow with Local SEO, Episode #1:

• SEO enables businesses to rank at the top of Google for keywords relevant to the services and products they offer. For example, if you’re a florist in Nicosia, Cyprus, you can get right in front of the eyes of Google users searching for ‘flower delivery near me.’ Having an SEO-friendly website and a search engine optimized Google My Business account can get you straight to the top of Google results in your local area!
• Around 65,000 businesses closed down within six months since the pandemic started.
• You might already have a business website, but that’s not enough. It should also be discoverable by people interested in the products or services you offer. That’s what SEO does for your business.
• SEO is like a black book. Nobody knows precisely what you need to do to get to page #1 of Google search results. SEO specialists spend hours experimenting, studying, and figuring out what SEO strategies and tactics actually work. On top of that, there are almost 3,000 Google algorithm updates each year. That makes it difficult for marketers who’re not specialized in SEO to keep up with updates on how to grow a business’s organic visibility.
• Two SEO focus areas are: 1) Creating high-quality content. 2) Generating quality backlinks and citations.
• SEO is not only about organic traffic. It also helps build brand awareness. People who have found you on the first page of Google, the next time might search for your products by your business’s name. That’s why sometimes organic traffic might be declining. Yet, direct traffic to your website will be skyrocketing.
• SEO is an untapped treasure for the Cypriot market as only a few small and medium-sized businesses know how to use it. Whether you own a pharmacy, a café or a restaurant in Nicosia, Pathos, Limassol, or elsewhere in Cyprus, you’ll see immediate results with SEO.
• White Label SEO helps digital marketing agencies offer advanced SEO services to their clients without adding a single SEO expert to the agency payroll.
• Including the name of the city you serve into your official business name can boost your local visibility.
• After you’ve set up a Google My Business account for your local business, fill in as much information as possible. Company descriptions, photos and reviews are a must.
• Once you manage to get into the Google Local Pack, your conversions will skyrocket!
• Don’t try to cheat with fake reviews. Google and customers know.
• Around 40 to 50 authentic reviews would work for a local business.
• Be proactive with reviews. Ask your customers for a review while they’re in the shop. For example, if you’re a pharmacy owner in Nicosia, you can give your customers an NFC card or show them a digital or print QR code. That’s an efficient way to ask them for a quick review before they leave the shop.
• Use an ‘internal review system’ to keep negative reviews for yourself while publishing the positive ones.
• Leverage the power of Google images. Hire a professional photographer to take high quality images of your store’s interior, exterior and staff. A 360-degree image can be one of the highlights of your Google My Business account. Google Maps users love it!
• Use online local directories. Also, make sure your business information, such as the Name, Address, Phone number (NAP) and opening hours are consistent and up to date across all web pages.
• No marketing strategy can work in the long term if you do not offer good customer service. We’re human beings, after all, who love to connect and know that other people care about us. Therefore, communication, friendliness and approachability should be the continuation of your online marketing and SEO efforts.
• Optimization and monitoring go hand in hand – if you want to reach the top and stay there!
• When doing SEO for websites targeting different markets and countries, focus on one language at a time.
• Use ‘smart listening’ tools to track the conversion of phone calls and ROI.
• Paid ads (PPC) usually offer immediate results for a specific time. But SEO offers consistent results, increases your website’s value and authority, and has a much higher ROI (return on investment). Combining these two key digital marketing strategies is ideal for local businesses that just started investing in online marketing. Split your budget in two and as your SEO gets better, your Google Ads spending can decrease. SEO needs six to 12 months to show its magic!

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We love to hear your feedback

Are you an SEO guru or a business owner interested in finding out more about search engine optimization strategies? We’d love to read your feedback and questions. So head to YouTube’s comments section and make sure to share your thoughts on the episode with your friends!