Any business owner struggling to understand the importance of local SEO might be able to figure it out pretty simply by analyzing the following phrase: ‘SEO services near me‘. Actually, it doesn’t even have to be SEO related. Any type of service would work. I have chosen SEO because it is something I’m familiar with.
If I type the phrase ‘SEO services near me‘ into Google’s search box, the search engine artificially reads and understands something specific. It then searches its entire list of indexed pages in hopes of finding what I’m looking for. If Google gets it right, I walk away a happy user.
Now, let us break the phrase down to get a better understanding of what Google understands. If this makes sense to you when we are all done, you should have a greater appreciation of why local SEO is so important to businesses whose audiences are primarily local as well.
SEO Services
The first thing Google understands is that I want to know more information about SEO services. SEO is an acronym that stands for ‘search engine optimization’. Companies offering paid SEO services leverage different tools and strategies designed to ensure that a client’s website performs well during organic searches.
Webtek Digital Marketing is one such company. They have offices in Salt Lake City, UT and Austin, TX. When clients in either of those cities search for paid SEO services, Webtek wants its site to appear near the very top of the search results. Therefore, they do certain things with their website intended to let Google know that they specialize in SEO services.
Near Me
The next part of the phrase is ‘near me’. When Google’s search algorithms identify that phrase, they know the person is looking for organizations within a reasonably close proximity. Let’s go back to Webtek and their services. If I am in downtown Salt Lake City and I search the phrase, Google does not want to show me websites from companies located in Los Angeles or New York. It is going to show me Salt Lake City SEO providers.
The same is true for any type of company in any industry. A Salt Lake City resident looking for lawncare services near him doesn’t want to see pages from service providers located on the other side of the country. But wait. It gets even more granular than that.
Proximity Matters
If I’m looking for SEO services in Salt Lake City, it’s reasonable that I would consider every provider located in the city and its suburbs. But what if I am looking for dinner? What if I really have a craving for barbecue? Google algorithms have been trained to pay attention to wording in order to determine how close search results should be. In other words, proximity matters.
I might be willing to work with an SEO agency that is 25 miles away. But when I’m hungry and ready for dinner, I would prefer a barbecue restaurant within a few miles of my house. The phrase ‘near me’ takes on a new meaning when I am hungry. Google knows this.
Why It Matters
So, why does all this matter? Because the whole point of local SEO is to reach customers in need of local services and products. A local company trying to reach a national audience is wasting time and resources. If most of that company’s customers are local residents, the SEO focus needs to be on them.
It’s amazing that a phrase as simple as ‘seo services near me’ tells Google so much. But it does. And that’s why local SEO is so important.
