Local SEO: How to Use Areas We Service Pages

Local search engine optimization, or SEO, focuses on helping your business be more visible in local search results on Google and other search engines. All companies that operate within a physical location or defined geographical area can benefit from emphasizing local SEO strategies in their digital assets. Local SEO strategies can increase the foot traffic to your physical location, increase your brand visibility in the communities you operate in, and ensure that customers looking for your goods and services can easily find them.

Google still dominates the search engine landscape, with over 90% of all searches going through its platform. The next popular ones, Yahoo and Bing, have a market share of less than 4%. It is estimated that over 8.5 billion search queries are submitted to Google daily, with nearly half of them having local intent. This data supports the idea that Google remains – by far – one of the most powerful avenues businesses have to connect with customers. Its Local Search platform, including the free Google My Business tool, provides an excellent opportunity for businesses to connect with the right customers at the right time.

As Google has evolved over the years, its local SEO features have improved, but they are still imperfect. For instance, when it comes to local searches, companies with more than one location in a single metro area and those that border two cities or suburbs can find it harder to create effective SEO strategies. Using the ‘Areas We Service’ features is a great way to overcome these challenges and contribute to more accurate Google responses.

Best Practices for Maximizing Results Using Areas We Service Pages

Service area pages are similar to landing pages. As such, they are meant to be the place where a potential customer or search engine user first lands when conducting a local search. Ideally, this process is a great way to get your business as a top result. However, unlike landing pages that have separate stand-alone websites, each search area page is one page that lives on your main website.

The following best practices can help ensure that your service area pages do their best to connect with the right customers.

Create one for each location: If your business serves multiple towns or cities, creating a search area page for each location is vital. While it’s tempting to assume that the search engine will be able to include neighboring cities automatically, it would be a mistake only to include the city where you are physically located. This tactic will leave a lot of potential customers in surrounding neighborhoods in the dark and represent a huge missed opportunity to cast a wider net and attract a broader customer base.
Use unique content for each page: While creating multiple service area pages, the process can become tedious. But that doesn’t mean you should take shortcuts and copy and paste the same info across multiple locations. The reality is that Google does not tolerate duplicative content, and this tactic can downgrade your rankings. The best outcome is that the search engine will ignore your search area pages (which then defeats the point of having them), while the worst case will be a major downgrade in rankings, elimination from the rankings, or penalties. The best strategy is to create unique pages for each search area with relevant keywords for the community.
Be concise and informative: Writing content for multiple search areas is repetitive. While it’s good practice to include information about the services you offer, you also want to ensure that each page is unique. Using bullet points that link to service pages is a great way to let the search engine know how to find more information about your business.
Include local info: Writing about local landmarks, such as parks, lakes, distinct neighborhoods, city nicknames, and annual events, is a great way to reinforce your defined geographical area. It’s even better if you can add photos that underscore the location. It’s also good to highlight your company’s connection to the region. You can include any organizations you belong to, such as the local Chamber of Commerce or charities and non-profits you work with. You can also link to other affiliated businesses if they agree. It’s a great way to boost your visibility and theirs.

Service area pages are an integral – and often underutilized – component in local SEO. Enhancing these pages can have a huge payback in terms of increased business. To learn more about local SEO and developing or refining Areas We Service pages, contact ELocal Web Solutions.

eLocal Solutions specializes in marketing your business via the digital marketplace. We use search engine optimization, social and review promotion, and Email marketing for all types of businesses, from local to global. We utilize various digital marketing techniques to increase your internet presence, optimize your traffic, and generate new business.