Local SEO Services, Your Website And Why Both Are Still So Important
- 5 October, 2017
- Jason Ferry
- Local SEO Services
Local SEO services can have an incredible impact on your business’ profile, and therefore on your company’s profitability. There is a strong temptation these days for small businesses to concentrate their limited resources primarily on engagement with existing and prospective customers through social media. There’s no denying the popularity of Facebook, Twitter and so on; nor the results to be achieved from using them well.
But if you really want to stand out among your competitors, social media should not be used at the expense of a well-optimised website. Some small businesses choose not to have a website at all; or at least try to avoid the expense of hiring a web designer, by using one of the many free templates available to create a token online presence. Do this, though, and you are making a mistake. Spending time, money and effort on a quality website, which is search engine optimised by an experienced SEO company, will pay dividends in the future. Most consumers still prefer to use company websites when looking for a local business. They don’t search Facebook if they need a local restaurant, plumber or toy shop, for instance. They may well go onto check a company’s reputation through social media, but only after they have identified it through a search engine and/ or company website. If they source your company through an online business directory, such as Yelp, YellowPages.com or Google My Business, the first thing they expect is to be able to click through to an informative, engaging website to find out whether you offer what they are looking for.
On Facebook, there’s a limit to what you can do to present your business effectively to your public. You’re restricted to a standard format, which is pretty much the same for you and your competitors. Your website, on the other hand, is your showcase. If all your attention is focused on your Facebook profile, you’re missing out on a chance to establish your firm as a credible, well-established presence in the marketplace. A well-presented website that is fully optimised for local SEO allows prospective buyers to see that your company offers quality products or services, and is established, trustworthy and dependable. Without small business SEO, people might not find you at all. Most internet users employ a search engine to look for businesses that match their criteria. But you won’t be appearing in any results lists unless you have a website that is correctly optimised. And that’s because the top ten factors Google uses to determine the rankings of search results are related to websites, not Facebook profiles. To be seen, you need local SEO services that help demonstrate and build the authority of your business on the internet. An optimised website with relevant, quality content and meaningful, trustworthy links to reputable third-party sites, is critical to your success as a business.
So, don’t make the mistake of thinking social media is king. Yes, it’s important, but not at the expense of local SEO services applied by experts in SEO to your website. Getting the balance right and allocating your resources appropriately between the two will pay dividends.