subject: A Few Simple Tricks To Maximize Your Seo Success [print this page] Try to put yourself in the frame of mind of one of your own customers when you plan your local SEO strategy. A crucial part of search engine optimization is thinking like the customer. You have to picture yourself as a prospect using a search engine to locate the kind of item you sell, and try to figure out exactly what they would type into the search field. If your store specialized in golf accessories, for example, you would try to picture how people would search for your products.
Search engine users who type in "golf" are doing an extremely broad search and are mostly not going to be looking for what you have. Those who search for "golf balls" are not right for you either, as this isn't the kind of item your store stocks. However, if they put in "golf accessories," that's where you want to target such keywords. Business owners, who are looking out to drive local traffic, forget to go for these less popular keyword phrases that can bring in real sales. They tend to target the same keywords everyone else is trying to rank for, the very top ones with the most traffic. The more you can think like a prospect, the better you can plan your SEO campaigns. Your ability to find targeted keywords will improve with practice, and you'll find more customers and you will eventually be able to rank for a variety of relevant keywords.
SEO experts all know the value of a good title tag. Many new internet marketers ignore the title tag, and then wonder why they don't rank as well. If you're going to focus on local SEO, you need to concentrate on your title tags. One of the biggest benefits of targeting local searches is that you don't have a high level of competition when compared to the general keywords.
That's why you'll always want to create title tags that use the keywords you've chosen as well as the location you're going after. This lets the search engines know right away who you're targeting. This method is invaluable when it comes to search engine optimization. Remember that when it comes to title tags, fewer keywords are always better.
If you can get significant local websites to link to your site, this will help you rank well in your area with the search engines. You can start off by getting listed in the Better Business Bureau, local chamber of commerce website or find some more similar websites that offer big benefits. You can find such sites by Googling your city name along with the keyword "business directory." This process will supply you with a number of websites that it would be very useful to get a listing from.
This is another simple task that you can get a lot of benefit from. In conclusion: local search engine optimization requires more work from you but it pays off later on when you are better able to reach your target market.
