Updated for 2023: The Internet is a very big place. You can get it just about anywhere but it doesn’t have zip codes or area codes or zones. Everything is sort of lumped in there together. That’s where Local SEO comes into play.
So how can brick and mortar local businesses like chiropractors survive and advertise online?
Our chiropractic SEO experts have developed a system that answers this need.
Local SEO helps search engines narrow down search results by optimizing chiropractic websites for specific geographical locations. It basically puts chiropractic businesses on the virtual world wide web map so that they can be found when a search is conducted for that type of business in a particular area.
Why is this important?
Because 97 percent of consumers go online to look for local businesses.
What’s more, 69 percent of searches involve a specific location or geolocation. And, yes, in the United States almost 90 percent of the population uses the Internet — your prospective patients are not only using the Internet, they are using the Internet to find you!
As your website stands right now, will they be successful? If someone typed “your city chiropractor” would your practice pop up?
If not, you can make your site visible to people searching for chiropractors in your city using simple and basic local SEO tactics that’ll turn your website into a relevant traffic attraction machine.
This quick guide will give you the local SEO basics for chiropractors so that you can optimize your own web page so that new patients can find you.
1. Grab a Google My Business account.
If you haven’t set up a Google My Business account, take the time to do it as soon as possible.
Make sure you complete it thoroughly with not only your contact information, but also products, coupons, videos and photos. A Google Places profile also means that your business will show up in searches on Google+ Local mobile as well.
Use your keywords when filling out the descriptions fields, but work them in naturally and don’t keyword stuff. When you are finished with Google, do the same by creating accounts on Yahoo Local and Bing Local.
2. Use geo-targeted keywords to optimize your site.
Add city names to your title tags, meta data, h2 tags and throughout your content.
Don’t stuff the keywords or have nonsensical strings of keywords instead of actual text. The search engines, Google especially, are looking for sites that contain relevant content that provides value to the reader.
You can also use punctuation and stop words in a long tail keyword to make it flow in the text easier. Stop words include a, and, the and other words that the search engines essentially ignore.
For instance, say your keyword is “Chiropractor North Dakota.” You can write “chiropractor in North Dakota” or “It is good to visit a chiropractor. North Dakota has many.”
Get the picture?
3. Use “Contact Us” and “About Us” pages to reinforce your location.
Your “About Us” page should include an optimized photo or two as well as your business info including contact information, hours of operation and directions. These are great areas to work in keywords naturally, especially geo-targeted ones.
4. Play the ratings game.
Sites like Yelp are great for helping people find local businesses. But in order to get found there you have to have a profile.
Take a few photos, do a nice write up and create your review page. Then ask your customers to give you reviews. Use your social media, newsletter and mailing list to ask for feedback.
You can also include a promotional offer to prompt a rating and review.
5. Optimize your social media accounts.
While you may use your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other accounts to network, build relationships with clients and foster community, it is also very effective for improving your search engine rankings as well.
Complete your social media profiles thoroughly with keyword rich descriptions and your location.
6. Go mobile.
More than half of the people who are using the Internet are accessing it through a mobile device. Having a mobile version of your website is a smart move. People searching for a business, your business, often find it much more convenient to search while on the go.
If your website is not easily viewed on a mobile device you could discourage a potential customer as they click off of your site and on to a business that does have a mobile version website.
7. Use directory listings.
There are many business directories that you can use to get links — thus improving your search engine rankings and increasing your visibility.
Sites like CitySearch, CitySquares, SuperPages and Yelp are all popular directories with a good deal of traffic. By completing profiles on these sites (and others that may interest you) you can effectively boost your search engine ranking while making yourself available to local web traffic.
8. Exchange links with other local businesses that are complimentary to your business.
Get with other local businesses that are related to your business or that have products or services that are complimentary to your business and promote each other. Often small, local businesses are eager to support each other and by providing a local link exchange everyone wins.
These are just the basics of local SEO. There is a whole wide and wonderful world of opportunity out there. Whether you are just starting your webpage from scratch or sprucing up an existing page, a little local SEO can work wonders. Your prospective and current patients will certainly appreciate it; they won’t have to look so hard to find you. 🙂
