Local optimization is very important as your target market is from different parts of the world and using optimization strategies from a single location can make you lose a lot of business.
However, you can optimize local SEO for multiple locations to ensure that you reach your target markets even if you are operating in different countries.
You need to keep your customers within the constraints of your location and reach them as soon as possible. You also have to understand the local needs and requirements before selecting your optimization strategy.
Optimizing for multiple locations does not mean you neglect quality in your site content. It simply means that you need to think outside the box to come up with unique ideas that will work on each of the sites.
The first thing you need to analyze is your target audience. If you are catering to professionals in a particular location, it is necessary to focus more on the content on your site to cater for the needs of this group. This is what we call a local optimization strategy.
Once you understand your audience and have an understanding of the local SEO requirements, you can now select the optimization strategy that suits you best.
Geo-targeting: A great example of a local SEO strategy that has been used successfully by a lot of webmasters across the globe is geo-targeting. Geo-targeting is done to get highly optimized websites with relevant content to rank higher on Google and other search engines.
Also, Read: Digital Marketing Strategies for Small Business
Build Links to Each of Your Location Pages: This involves finding local web directories that are related to your niche and submitting your website to them. You should also submit your site to Yahoo!
Once you have submitted your site to the local directories, you have to take care of things locally. For instance, do you have any local events scheduled?
Do you sell or give away any products at local events? All these things help you in local optimization and will help you rank better on Google, MSN, Bing and other search engines when you have a localized strategy in place.
There are multiple ways to do it but you should keep things simple. The first thing you need to do is to know your customers and target them specifically. Understand their likes and dislikes, their expectations and their needs and make sure you meet them.
For instance, if you sell shoes online then you should optimize for local keyword phrases such as shoes, buy local, shoes online, a shoe store in a town near me etc. This is a basic process that you should never skip and will help you rank better in multiple locations.
Also, Read: Benefits of Local Business Listing to Business Owners
Another important factor that you should consider is link building. When you optimize for a local keyword, you should include local link building in your campaign to help you rank better on Google search engines.
There are several good services that offer link building services for a fee and you should use them for multiple locations. For instance, if you have multiple websites for a particular product or service, you can put the links on all of your sites but this will cost more than doing it on one site.