Local SEO: The Keys to Driving Traffic to Your Small Business

In South Africa, small businesses are flourishing, and to stand out amongst the competition; it is essential to understand the importance of Local SEO.

Long gone are the days when word-of-mouth was enough to generate business; now, more than ever, customers are turning to the internet for information about local businesses.

According to a study by BrightLocal, 78% of consumers use the internet to find information about local businesses more than once a week!

What’s even more impressive is that 72% of consumers that did a local search visited a store within five miles?.

Yes, local SEO is a powerful tool for small businesses in South Africa.

With 68% of online experiences beginning with a search engine, businesses need to create content and optimize their website for higher rankings on the search engine result pages (SERPs).

Why the top?

Well, studies have shown that the top page in a Google search has an average click-through rate of 32%, which means more traffic.

And it is simple to get there.

Local SEO helps drive local traffic to your business by optimizing your website for targeted keywords related to your products or services and location-specific information.

Table of Contents

What is Local SEO?

You already have an idea; local SEO is a way of helping a business show up higher in search results when people are looking for things online in their local area.

For example, if a person is looking for a pizza place near their house in Pietermaritzburg, Local SEO can help Scoozi’s Pizza place show up higher in the search results, so it’s easier for the person to find.

Benefits of Local SEO

Why should you care?

It helps businesses attract more customers from their local area. When a business shows up higher in search results for people searching for things in their local area, it’s more likely that those people will visit the business.
Local SEO can help businesses establish credibility and trust with potential customers. When a business appears in the top search results for a particular keyword or phrase, it can give the impression that it is a reputable and reliable source for that product or service.
It helps small businesses in South Africa compete with larger companies. It can be difficult for small businesses to compete with larger companies regarding traditional forms of advertising. Still, Local SEO levels the playing field by allowing small businesses to reach potential customers through search results.

Key Elements of Local SEO in South Africa

Now, let us talk about how to get started ASAP!

a. Optimize Google My Business

Google My Business is an essential tool for local businesses looking to increase traffic in South Africa.

It allows business owners to manage how their business information appears on Google Search and Maps.

In fact, 86% of consumers use Google Maps to locate a local business (source: Safari Digital).

When optimized, it can help draw customers to your business by improving online visibility and providing accurate, relevant information regarding location, contact details, and services offered.

To open a Google My Business page, you can follow these steps:

Go to the Google My Business website (https://www.google.com/business/) and click the “Manage now” button.
Sign in to your Google account. If you don’t have a Google account, you will need to create one.
Enter the name of your business, your address, and your phone number.
Choose the primary category that best describes your business.
Add additional information about your business, such as your website, hours of operation, and a brief description.
Choose whether you want to allow customers to book appointments through your Google My Business page.
Select the appropriate age and country/region for your business.
Review and agree to the terms of service.
Click the “Finish” button to complete the setup process.

It is crucial that your Google My Business listing contains up-to-date information such as an address, phone number, website URL, and opening hours.

Don’t forget to add photos of your store or product range and a brief offer description.

This way, potential customers can easily find what they are looking for and better understand what makes your store unique.

b. Optimize Your Website Content

Once you have a GMB page, the next thing is content.

You should not only create content that appeals to the search engines but also caters specifically to the needs and interests of your customers.

Start by optimizing page titles, headings, and meta descriptions for each page on your site.

Here, use local keywords on your website.

For example, if you are a coffee shop in Gqeberha, include keywords like “Gqeberha coffee shop” on your website.

This will help searchers find exactly what they need when searching for information about businesses like yours.

At the same time, make sure all images have an alt-text attached so the search engines can index them.

c. Build Local Links

Local link-building is an important strategy for South African businesses to increase their visibility and attract more customers.

A backlink is a link from one website to another website. Backlinks are also known as “inbound links” or “external links.”

Backlinks are important because they can help improve the search engine ranking of a website.

When a website has a lot of high-quality backlinks, it tells search engines that the website is popular and trustworthy. This can lead to higher search rankings for the website.

One way to do this is by getting listed in local online directories and citations.

This helps search engines understand that your business is a relevant and reliable source for the products or services you offer in your local area.

Other strategies to get local backlinks include:

Partnering with other local businesses and organizations. This can lead to mutual backlinking and help improve your local search ranking.
Participating in local events and sponsoring local organizations. This can often lead to backlinks from event websites or local news websites.
Reaching out to local media outlets and offering to write guest posts or articles for their websites. This can lead to backlinks from local news websites.

NOTE:

Not all backlinks are created equal.

Some backlinks are more valuable than others because they come from more reputable or popular websites.

For this reason, focus on building high-quality backlinks from reputable sources.

Local SEO Strategies for South Africa

a. Encourage Customers To Leave Reviews On Your Google My Business

The importance of local SEO cannot be overstated when it comes to driving traffic to your small business in South Africa.

One key component of a successful local SEO strategy is encouraging customers to leave reviews on your Google My Business (GMB) page.

Studies have shown a direct correlation between the number of reviews and the visibility of a business in search engine results; 75% of users don’t even scroll past the first page, so businesses must ensure they maximize their online visibility.

You can use various methods, such as email campaigns or in-store signage, to encourage customers to leave reviews on your GMB page.

In fact, including links directly to the GMB page makes it easy for customers and clients who may not be familiar with how Google works.

b. Identify Your Target Audience

Knowing your target audience and their needs, interests, and behaviors is essential for any successful local SEO strategy.

Identifying your target audience involves researching the local demographics of South Africa to determine the age range, gender, economic levels, and other factors that are important to consider when marketing a small business.

Understanding who you are targeting will allow you to create relevant content and tailor campaigns specifically for them.

Better part?

78% of local searches on mobile devices result in an offline purchase.

Businesses can tailor strategies accordingly if they can identify their potential customers’ preferences for using technology such as smartphones or tablets to search for local products or services.

For example, optimizing website content for mobile devices or creating social media ads specifically geared towards those searching on mobile devices could be very effective in reaching their target audience and driving more sales.

c. Create Local Content

By producing content relevant to the local area, businesses can engage potential customers and provide them with the information they need to make purchasing decisions.

Such content should focus on products, services, and events specific to your region in South Africa.

Feature local news, showcase local sceneries, etc.

d. Leverage Social Media

Don’t ignore social media because it is a key element of local SEO.

According to a Media Post survey, 72% of consumers follow brands on social media specifically to get discounts or special offers.

Platforms like Facebook and Twitter are powerful tools for small business owners in South Africa.

They can be used to create targeted campaigns that promote the business’s services or products among their desired audience.

Furthermore, content shared through these platforms can be made more visible by using relevant hashtags for easy searchability by customers.

Conclusion

Small businesses need to focus on their local SEO in South Africa to drive traffic to their business.

Utilizing the three keys of keyword research, content optimization, and link building can help small businesses increase their visibility online and maximize their potential customer reach.

Over 60% of consumers will disregard a business if they cannot find it online (source: Safari Digital), so companies need to ensure that their website has been properly optimized for local search engine results pages.

By investing in local SEO strategies, your brand can differentiate itself from competitors and reap the rewards of increased brand awareness, higher website traffic rates, and more leads.