20+ Ways to Improve Your Local Search Campaigns

There are countless ways of getting more traffic on your Web site and thus more conversions from your local territory.  However, I would like to list up the few ways which have helped us improve the search engine visibility for our customers in Japan and elsewhere.  All or at least some of these tips may help you monetize your website fast once you have developed a search engine-friendly website, are also passionate about your business, and really want to take it to the next level.

1. Do keyword research based on the keywords related to your local language, dialect, and culture you are targeting
2. Ensure your Web site is crawlable by search engines
3. Make sure each page on your website has some useful unique content. Indeed, the more the better.
4. Submit your website to  few select directories in your niche
5. Build other related links organically
6. List up your site in local directories
7. Advertise in local web portals
8. Become a member of your local chamber of commerce and/or any other organizations/professional bodies in your niche
9. Implement Google site map listing on all the main pages of your site
10. Buy a localized domain (pretty much a MUST if you are serious about succeeding in your local business initiatives.)
11. Host your website with a local host (IF possible). That may have a positive impact on your site rankings.
12. Build links with relevant local sites aggressively
13. Create Google Map on your website so that people could feel the nearness phenomenon even if they do not visit you personally
14. Register your site with Google Places
15. Post your local address at least on the homepage and one other page. The other page could be your contact page and/or About page if possible
16. The portions of the address written on the above mentioned pages should not be separated by html tags
17. Write the text in bold igri and capital  first letters
18. Distribute your visiting cards to anyone you bump into (and it is no kidding)
19. Target one town per page
20. Build strong internal linking
21. Submit to Yahoo Business Directory and DMZ before submitting to any other directory
22. Submit to other business directories related to your business
23. Link only to these sites which can bring value to your site and not just any site
24. Get as many local links on authority web sites  as possible. For example Local Chamber of Commerce, local government sites, other trade organizations, niche publications, niche blogs, and niche directories

I would love to see folks talking about the true importance of local search on these pages.  Please feel free to leave your comments below.  Tell us what’s bugging you and what other details we should have brought here on these pages on this topic.