All businesses have one thing in common: they want to use their marketing dollars wisely in their quest to reach their ideal customers. Whether you’re just beginning your marketing efforts or you’ve been at this game for awhile, local SEO should absolutely be a part of your strategy.
Why?
Because having a beautifully designed and well-optimized site is no longer enough, especially if you’re in a very competitive industry or market.
Businesses today need to know how to leverage the resources and algorithms of the internet and local SEO to help propel their business, outrank their competitors in search, and get in front of their ideal local customers.
Reaching your ideal customers through local SEO is a must if you want to stand out from your competition, but how much should local SEO cost?
Factors That Affect Local SEO Cost
The cost for local SEO services varies and depends on a few factors, including the number of locations you have as well as how competitive your industry is locally and within your region.
Do a quick Google search for things your business offers (without using your business name). Where do you land in the search results? And more importantly, where do your competitors rank locally?
If you’re in a highly competitive industry, you may have to spend more to rank higher. In a slightly less competitive industry? You may not have to spend as much.
The same is true for the number of locations your business has in a particular area. Each location will need to be optimized in order to boost your rankings for your entire business. This can increase your costs slightly. Again, the cost of local SEO will depend on a number of factors relative to your particular business and your competition.
Avoid Automated Services
Making the decision to invest in local SEO efforts is just that: an investment. Like other investments, you want to be sure the money you spend to maximize your local SEO will produce a good return — not make one of those automated service companies richer.
Don’t throw your money away with an automated service and, instead, choose a professional consultant or an agency. They’ll conduct an analysis, see where your weak spots are, and help boost your local SEO so you can get the biggest returns on your investment and outrank your competition.
A consultant or agency will do the real ‘roll up your sleeves’ work of conducting manual search engine optimization and monitoring your website monthly. They can see where any pitfalls may be and they can and will adjust in real-time.
Also, they can help you maximize your local SEO presence to let customers know you’re a local business, right in their community, and that you offer the products and services they need.
Local SEO Isn’t A One Time Effort
Like any other approach to marketing and promoting your business, investing in local SEO isn’t a “one and done” effort. It must be an ongoing, long-term strategy that is flexible and adaptable to consumer demands and internet search algorithms. Your best bet is to work one on one with an agency or consultant on a monthly retainer so they can monitor and measure the impact of your local SEO and respond with adjustments and improvements for maximum results.
Businesses are only as successful as their closest competitor. And there’s no doubt your competitors are constantly improving their efforts to reach their target customers – and so should you. A consultant or agency like Big Rock Marketing is the best choice and the best investment for local SEO. They (We) do a market analysis of your competitors so you know who they are, what they’re doing, and how they rank. Then, armed with that data and local SEO expertise, they refine and improve your SEO, help propel your business to higher search rankings, and leave your competition in the dust.
