Now that Google is twenty years old, and it dominates the lives of people every day, most business owners now understand that having a business website is not enough in itself. That website needs to be easily found by the people looking for the types of products or services it offers and that means it needs to ‘rank’ high in the Google search results – the SERPs – for the keywords and key phrases that describe what the business does and what it has to offer. Which means investing in SEO, search engine optimization.
Not all SEO is created equal of course. There is no one size fits all formula. And that is especially true for a local business in London. Local SEO is very different from the SEO that might work for a big, global brand. That’s why finding – and hiring – the right SEO consultant in London is a must.
Why is Local SEO So Important?
Why does a small local business really need to care about spending money on SEO, especially if they are fairly well-established ‘offline’? As any good SEO consultant London could tell you there are lots of reasons, with the following being some of the most important:
- 86% of consumers rely on the internet to find a local business
- 29% of consumers search for local businesses at least once every 7 days
- 72% of consumers say search is their first choice to find information on local merchants
- Local searches lead 50% of mobile users to visit a business within 24 hours
- 1 in 3 of these mobile user’s decisions are made right before a visit
So, as you can see, it doesn’t really matter what your local business offers, it still needs to be found easily on the web, by the local consumers who are looking for the very things it has to offer. The right SEO expert in London can help almost any local London business do that.
But what separates a great SEO expert in London from the pack? What should you be looking for when you want to hire one? Here are just a few pointers:
They Keep Up to Date – SEO changes all the time. A good SEO expert London keeps up with all those changes and tweaks the way they work accordingly.
They are Transparent – The best SEO practitioners keep their clients informed about what they intend to do, when they intend to do and why. Because it’s your business – and your reputation – it’s crucial that you can trust that what an SEO is doing online, in your name, is effective, ethical and represents your brand in a positive light.
They Listen – Your business is unique among businesses in London. A good SEO specialist in London understands that and will take the time to ask you about your business – and listen to what you have to say – so that they can create an effective SEO plan of action that will work for your business, not just what has worked for someone else before.
