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Use Location-Based Marketing to Attract More Local Customers

by Dan Finney | Apr 26, 2018, 13:00 PM
use-location-based-marketing

When was the last time you checked a paper copy of the phone book? Or looked in the newspaper for a service you needed? Chances are your answer is something like, “Not in the past decade.”

As traditional display advertising inches toward obsolescence, businesses must find new ways to connect with local digitally-savvy consumers. Location-based marketing is the best way to do that.

What is location-based marketing?

Location-based marketing is based on geolocation – a tool that search engines use to deliver localized results. Search engines may use a combination of GPS coordinates, IP addresses, and server data collection to help someone hunting for pizza find restaurants nearby, rather than top-ranked options hundreds of miles away. Search engines are effective at delivering local search results for users, but to appear in those results, businesses need to optimize their location information.

Why does location-based marketing matter?

According to Google, four out of five consumers use search engines to find local goods and services. When someone in your area is searching for a product or service you offer, wouldn’t it be great if your business popped up at the top of the search results?

How can I start location-based marketing?

These are the fundamentals of location marketing:

Add your location(s) to your website. You might be surprised at how many businesses fail to include their address on their website. If you’re trying to attract local customers, put your address in your website header, footer, and contact page. Make the address easy to find, avoid stylized fonts that could be misread, and be consistent in all instances (for example, using either “St.” or “Street,” but not both terms).

Grab your Google My Business listing. If you’re a business owner, Google will let you list your business for free in its Google My Business index. This index offers you an opportunity to share additional details – photos, reviews, expanded service descriptions, and other content – that could help consumers find you and make purchasing decisions.

Ask customers for reviews. Word-of-mouth reviews matter, but did you know that 88% of local customers make purchasing decisions based on online reviews – even when they don’t know the reviewer? Most people are happy to leave a review on Facebook, Yelp, or other popular platforms, so don’t be afraid to ask.

Other than Google, Yelp, and Facebook, do you know where consumers might encounter your business information? Use our free listing scan tool to see how your listing appears on various websites.

Use Our Free Listing Scan Tool

 

Ready to go beyond the basics? Here are a few more advanced techniques:

Work on your search engine optimization. SEO – infusing your content with terms that help users find you – can significantly boost your rank in local search listings. (If you’re not sure how to do this, don’t worry – BoxCrush can help).

Make sure your site is mobile-friendly and loads quickly. Most consumers use mobile devices to search for products and services, and the average user will abandon a site that takes two seconds or longer to load.

Use location-based copy in your Google Ads and PPC campaigns. You can attract local customers and drive traffic to your website with Google Ads and Pay-Per-Click (PPC) ads. (BoxCrush marketing professionals are wizards at this sort of thing).

Consider optimizing for voice search. Natural language searches are on the rise. To really target your location-based marketing, optimize your website content with casual wording consumers use in voice searches.

Help Customers Find You

Geolocation gives you the chance to rank high in online searches happening in your area. If you want to use location-based marketing to attract local customers and stay ahead of competitors, contact BoxCrush.

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