Time to read: 9 minutes
While we may truly never know how Google’s algorithm works in total, one thing we know for certain is that when you are doing local SEO, a major variable to keep top of mind is proximity.
Keep on reading to see what information we have gathered to gain a better understanding of how much proximity plays a factor in local search.
An Overview of Local Search Engine Optimization
As industry experts are aware, local search engine optimization is the process of implementing location-specific strategies for a company in order to gain organic traffic and qualified leads in that set area. Because if you need to get your teeth cleaned, you wouldn’t be searching for a reliable dental office 500 miles away, right?
It’s important to note that local SEO can encapsulate a multitude of tactics depending on both your business’s needs and goals, with just some of them including the following:
- Google Business Profile (GBP) optimization
- Local link building
- Review marketing
- Schema implementation
- Metadata optimization
- And more!
When conducting one or more of these strategies, results should include a boost in organic search volume from the city or town that you’re trying to target.
How Location Plays a Key Role
The age-old phrase that location is key really is true when it comes to local search. Say, for example, you are a flower shop in the Indianapolis area, but your store is located in a nearby city outside of the Indianapolis city limits.
Now, while you do serve the area and likely do get customers from all around the city, your business may have trouble ranking for “Indianapolis flower shop” solely due to the store’s address.
Using a Google Chrome extension, GS Location Changer, I was able to set my browser’s location to Indianapolis, Indiana, and searched for “flower shop in Indianapolis.” The final results were confined to a small area of downtown:
As you can see from the blue dot on the map (my location), the businesses Google displayed were all extremely close, with one even being a few hundred feet away from the center of downtown. Now, let’s take a second to look at how these businesses and sites actually perform on the local SEO side.
- JP Parker Flowers Indianapolis
- 62 reviews with an average rating of 4.4
- Additional keywords in their business name
- An optimized website that works on mobile
- A little over 1.6k backlinks
- Andrews Florist
- 28 reviews with an average rating of 4.1
- An older website that’s not mobile-friendly
- Only around 500 backlinks
- Urban Contessa Floral & Gift Boutique
- No reviews
- Small website, though it is mobile-friendly
- 31 backlinks
In the example above, the first listing does seem to be on their SEO A-game, despite them going against GBP rules by using keywords in their titles. The other two listings’ profiles and websites have not been tended to in the same way, however.
Next, I changed my location to Carmel, Indiana, which is about thirty minutes outside of downtown, and did the same search:
Even though my location changed, my search still showed results for businesses located in Indianapolis. You will see the results are at a much further distance than before, are different from my first query, and are listed in order of proximity.
Let’s examine these companies’ SEO the same way we did for the first search:
- Gilbert’s Flower Shop
- 33 reviews, with an average rating of 4.8
- An optimized website that is mobile-friendly
- 311 backlinks
- McNamara Florist
- 26 reviews with an average rating of 4.6
- An optimized website with mobile abilities
- Over 3.8k backlinks
- McNamara Florist (again!)
- 40 reviews with an average rating of 4.4
- Same as the other details listed above
What is super interesting here is that McNamara has two locations that are showing up in this result 3-pack. And these two businesses are pretty well optimized, despite being far from my location.
Lastly, I searched with my location still in Carmel, but removed “Indianapolis” from my search:
And as you see this time, we actually got results that were in proximity to my location. One of the things that immediately stood out to me was that for the first time, one of our results does not have the “florist” category, but rather “flower delivery.” As before, let’s do a little SEO evaluation on these listings:
- Rusted Window
- 26 reviews with an average rating of 4.9
- An optimized website, however, doesn’t appear mobile-friendly
- 402 backlinks
- The Carmel Florist
- 31 reviews with an average rating of 4.7
- A quite outdated website that is not secure or mobile
- Over 5.6k backlinks
- McNamara Florist
- 31 reviews with an average rating of 4.6
- Same other details as other listings
Conclusion: The Effects of Local SEO in Google’s Map Pack
This little experiment goes to show how much proximity and search query work together diligently to show you business listings that Google believes are most relevant to your search. Here’s an overview of the results:
- “Keyword” in “location” searched within city = results for city less than 1 mile away
- “Keyword” in “location” searched outside the city = results for the city, all over 5 miles away
- “Keyword” searched in neighboring city = results in neighboring city, all less than 2 miles away
Overall, it is important to understand that for local SEO, these are factors that you need to keep in mind when evaluating your GBP listings, websites, locations, and more.
FAQs: More on Local Search to Further Improve Your Strategy
To gain a better understanding of local search and how to utilize it for your business or franchise’s SEO strategy, check out some of the responses to some of our most frequently asked questions.
What are some ranking factors for local SEO?
Based on information gathered from Google’s support page (straight from the source!), some of the most prominent ranking factors include the following:
- Relevance – This refers to how well your GBP matches what a person is looking for. Things such as your business name and main category help Google determine this.
- Distance – Based on the location term used in the search, this factor considers the proximity of the result compared to what you’re looking for.
- Prominence – Local search results will take into consideration how well-known a business is when ranking.
With these key guidelines in mind, ways to improve your ranking factor in local search include the following:
- Filling out your GBP as completely as possible with helpful, relevant information for the consumer
- Verifying each of your business’s profiles so can fully appear in local search results
- Ensuring your company’s hours are as accurate and up to date (which can also include various holiday and special hours if applicable)
- Adding custom services that Google doesn’t provide, as categories such as “roof repair services.”
- Overseeing and responding to each location’s positive and negative reviews in a respectful and timely manner
- Adding several photos or videos of your company, including the inside and outside of the office’s physical location, as well as your employees
How long does it take to see results for local SEO?
Just like optimizing your company’s web pages through on-page SEO, it does take time for your local SEO efforts to be reflected in your organic traffic and, ultimately, your ranking.
With that being said, it should usually take anywhere between 4-8 weeks in order to see your results reflected online. This gives Google plenty of time to crawl your newly updated page or profile adjustments, review the content, and index it accordingly. Then, you should see these changes start affecting your local business’s standings, as well as how you compare to competitors in the surrounding area.
Though the process of standing by as Google crawls and indexes your site may seem daunting initially, the results that it presents for your business and franchise for years to come make the entire process worth the wait!
How do I best optimize for multiple locations?
Some key tips for optimizing multiple locations at once to satisfy proximity guidelines include:
- Creating location pages for each establishment and its services so customers get an idea of your company’s reach and diverse offerings
- Producing location-specific content for your blog, such as niche stats and facts about Columbus, Ohio
- Encouraging customers who are satisfied with your products or services to leave a review on your location’s Google Business Profile
- Conducting continuous competitor research for each location to help you better understand the market and how to tailor your local SEO strategy
How important are local listings for your company?
When wanting to establish your business in the nearby area, local listings are essential to doing just that. This can include building backlinks from local partnerships, sponsorship opportunities, other local businesses, and even the Chamber of Commerce in your area.
For example, if you’re a retail goods store located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, looking to increase business and sales in the local community, obtaining local links from the following sites can help increase your online presence within the community:
- The Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce
- Pittsburgh partner directory
- Directories such as Yelp, Yellowpages, and Angi
- Businesses you either sponsor or partner with
Ultimately, the local links you receive are dependent on the amount of research your company conducts to find free business listings, as well as the rapport you build with other businesses or partners in the area.
With that in mind, we advise your local business to continuously check for new directory linking opportunities in your community, as well as fill out each profile as completely as possible for uniformity across all platforms.
Read More on Local SEO
- Do Citations Still Matter for Local Search?
- Local SEO Statistics: What You Need to Know
- Have You Seen This Big Change to the Local Pack?
- Types of SEO to Know About and Implement
- Long-Tail Keywords: How They Can Help Your SEO
This post was originally posted in 2020 and has been updated to reflect the current SEO landscape.
