If you’re a restaurant owner, you likely know that customer satisfaction is the number one driver of your business. But customer satisfaction isn’t just about the food you serve or the ambiance of your restaurant. It’s also about how easy people find and visit you when they want to enjoy your services. A robust local SEO strategy will help customers easily find and connect with you online.
Importance of Local SEO
Local SEO is essential because it helps to drive customers to your business. Local SEO is a great way to attract new customers to your company and help increase brand awareness in the local area.
Local SEO can be done through a variety of methods, including:
- Building links from websites that have high domain authority, such as news sites and blogs about restaurants in Charlotte
- Creating quality content on your website
- Optimizing your website for local-focused keywords
Local SEO is vital to bring the people looking for the dishes you offer to your restaurant. According to HubSpot Marketing Statistics, 72% of consumers who did a local search visited a nearby business within 5 miles.
Considering the above data, suppose you own a restaurant near Carowinds. A group of people visiting Carowinds searches for a nearby restaurant. If your restaurant shows up in the top results, there are chances that the group of people will come to have lunch or dinner.
How to Do Local SEO for a Charlotte Restaurant
There are many ways to implement local SEO. Here are some tips that can help.
Take Help From the Experts
There are several ways to get your restaurant more visibility in Charlotte. Here are some expert recommendations on how to build a local SEO strategy for your restaurant:
- Find the right company. Since you are looking for local SEO services, it is best to get help from a local Charlotte SEO company. The reason is that the local company will understand the market and can help you with the right local SEO strategy accordingly.
- Know what you’re looking for. It’s important to understand what kind of service you want. Is it solely keyword research, or do you need additional services like content writing and marketing? Based on the requirements, you should look for a Charlotte SEO service provider who can cater to your needs.
Optimize for Google My Business
Optimizing for Google My Business is crucial. According to research by Brightlocal, 94% of calls to local businesses are received through Google My Business on weekdays. This free service lets you manage your local presence on Google.com and map pages and make changes to your business information and photos.
Once you’ve claimed your listing, make sure the following are accurate:
- Address
- Phone number
- Hours of operation
- Description of your business
Try to use keywords like local, Charlotte, etc., in the description. This will help your bio stand out from other businesses.
Appear in Relevant Business Directories
One of the first things you should do when building a local SEO strategy is to get listed in local directories. These listings can be found on Google, Yelp, and other places users visit to find businesses. They’re essential because they help you build brand recognition, leading to more traffic and customers. You can also go for listings on general restaurant directories like Kayak or websites like Charlottemagazine.com.
Listings are easy to set up and maintain, but it’s crucial that you only register with directories that fit your niche or industry. Otherwise, they will only offer a little value. For example, if you own an Italian restaurant in Charlotte, NC, don’t waste time registering for Chinese takeout restaurants nearby.
Many people will use local directories and business information sites to find your restaurant. Business Listings Trust Report 2021 shows that 94% of consumers have used a business information website to find out more about a company in the past 12 months.
Create Localized Content
When it comes to content, you want to ensure that your restaurant produces engaging and valuable content. This means using keywords that people in Charlotte might be searching for and local images, videos, and reviews. Here are some tips on how to do this:
- Use Local Keywords: The best way to ensure that the search engines understand what you’re talking about is by including the words or phrases relevant to your location in your content. This can look like “Charlotte restaurants” or “restaurants near me” but also include other keywords like “bars” or even specific events going on around town.
- Use Local Images: If someone searches for a keyword associated with your business, Google will show them an image next to each listing, so they know what kind of place it is before clicking further into their search results page. You want these images to reflect those exact keywords, so make sure they’re relevant online and offline.
- Create Videos & Reviews: Adding reviews from customers can help establish trustworthiness, while adding videos helps break up some of those long paragraphs we discussed earlier in our blog posts. Both should be written naturally without sounding forced.
Build a Mobile-Friendly Website
Building a mobile-friendly website is an essential part of local SEO for restaurants. The easiest way to do this is with a responsive design. This means that your site will automatically adjust to fit well on any device, from desktop computers to smartphones and tablets.
Another option is using a mobile-friendly template or theme for your website’s layout and design. You can also choose CMS software specifically designed for mobile use so that you don’t have to spend time coding every page yourself.
Mobile-friendliness is also a Google ranking factor. Hence, making your Charlotte restaurant website mobile-friendly will make it load faster and improve Google rankings. This will further improve your potential customer’s search experience, tempting them to visit your restaurant over other websites loading slowly.
Conclusion
Building a local SEO strategy is integral to your restaurant’s digital marketing plan. As we have outlined in this post, there are many ways to boost your business’s visibility and appear in Google searches. Taking just one of these tips can help you improve your rankings right away.