Mobile is predicted to overtake PCs for local search by 2015. More people are relying on smartphones and tablets for purchasing decisions. How can you be sure your business appears in their local search results?
Here are three essential components of local mobile optimization:
1 Local SEO best practices
Users won’t sift through pages of search results on mobile devices, so you need to be on page one. SEO campaigns highlight your specific location to help boost your business in the top results for geographic searches.
Consider optimizing your website with location-specific keywords. Also complete your Google+ Local and Bing Local listings, as both Google and Bing place local listings at the top of their local search results.
2 Mobile-friendly website
Mobile users are on the go and looking at smaller screens. Make sure the mobile version of your website clearly communicates important information phone number, location, office hours to prevent
customers from moving on to the next search result. Make your text large enough to read on mobile devices and your font simple enough to read on a small screen.
3 Social media integration
- Yelp!: Encourage customers to leave positive reviews. Check your business’s profile regularly so that negative reviews can be remedied and won’t appear first when new customers search for you.
- Foursquare: Recent updates to Foursquare let users find businesses in their current location and see what customers have to say. Be on the lookout for any negative reviews and consider offering check-in specials to engage customers and encourage referrals.
- Facebook Nearby: With the introduction of Graph Search, users can look to the social network’s nearby feature for local ratings, reviews and recommendations from their networks. Now more than ever, make sure your business’s page is complete with address, phone number, hours and other key details.
