For startup businesses, it is crucial to get on the radar of potential customers as soon as possible. And with local SEO techniques, you can do just that.

Local SEO involves the optimization of your online assets to attract more business from people in your locality. This can be done by targeting local keywords and phrases, understanding Google's local pack rules, building local citations, and using other on-page SEO strategies.

By ensuring your startup's website and social media presence are optimized for local search, you can reach more of your target market and get your business growing faster.

Here is a helpful guide for startup businesses on getting started with local SEO and driving their growth.

# Target Local Keywords and Phrases

One of the most essential aspects of local SEO is targeting keywords and phrases relevant to your business and location. By targeting these keywords, you can ensure that your website appears higher in search results when people in your area search for businesses like yours.

To find the right keywords to target, you can use a tool like <a href="https://ads.google.com/intl/en_ca/home/" target="blank">Google Keyword Planner</a>. This tool will allow you to see how often specific keywords are searched for in your area. You can then use these keywords on your website, in your meta tags, and in your content to help improve your website's ranking in local search results.

It's important to understand that local SEO is not just about targeting keywords that include your city or state. Instead, it would be best if you focus your targeted keyword phrases in areas that are specifically relevant to what your business does. 

For example, if you are a startup that provides online marketing services, you should target keywords like "internet marketing," "online marketing," and "SEO services." By targeting these keywords, you can reach more of your target market.

Another important aspect of local SEO is <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/nozzle-analyzed-1.2-million-google-serp-features" target="blank">understanding how Google's Search Engine Results Page (SERP) works</a>. This page is what displays when someone searches for a keyword or phrase on Google. And it includes both organic and paid listings.

Organic listings are the results that appear because of a webpage’s relevance to the search term. Paid listings, on the other hand, are results that appear because the website has paid Google to display its listing in that spot.

As a growing brand, you may find it necessary to balance your ranking in both organic and paid listings. After all, appearing in both can help you reach a wider audience and grow your business faster.

# Understand Google's Local Pack Rules

Another important aspect of local SEO is understanding how Google's local pack works. The <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/google-local-rank-tracking" target="blank">local pack</a> is the section of Google's search results that shows three local businesses that are relevant to the searcher's query.

To be included in the local pack, your business must have a physical address and be listed in Google Business Profile. Additionally, your website must be optimized for local SEO. This means that you need to have your city and state included on your website and in your content.

<a href="https://www.google.com/intl/en_ca/business/" target="blank">Google Business Profile (GBP)</a> makes it possible for your business to appear in the local pack and gives you the ability to control how your business appears in local search results.

To get started with GBP, you need to create a profile for your business. This can be done by going to google.com/business. From there, you will need to enter your business information, including your name, address, and phone number. You will also need to choose a category for your business and write a description. Once your profile is created, you can add photos, videos, and other content to help improve your ranking in the local pack.

Optimizing your GBP can be a great way to improve your ranking in the local pack and reach more of your target market. However, it's essential to understand that there is no guarantee that your business will be included in the local pack. That being said, here are a couple of tips you can deploy to increase your chances:

1. __Make sure your business information is accurate and up-to-date__. This includes your name, address, phone number, and hours of operation.

2. __Add as much content to your GBP profile as possible__. This can include photos, videos, services offered, and anything else that would be relevant to potential customers.

3. __Encourage customers to leave positive reviews on your GBP profile__. Google uses <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/why-arent-my-google-reviews-showing-up-10-possible-reasons-why" target="blank">customer reviews</a> when determining which businesses to include in the local pack. So, the more positive reviews you have, the better your chance of being included.

4. __Respond to all customer reviews – both positive and negative__. Google also takes into account how well a business responds to reviews. So, ensure you regularly reply to all reviews left on your GBP profile.

# Build Local Citations

In addition to optimizing your website for local SEO, you also need to build local citations. 

Citations are business mentions that include your name and address on other websites. These citations help to improve your ranking in local search results and can also help to increase traffic to your website.

There are a few different ways that you can build local citations. One way is to submit your business information to online directories, such as Yelp and Yellow Pages. Another way is to create profiles for your business on social media sites, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, as well as get listed in local chamber of commerce directories and other business directories.

To find other places where you can build local citations, you can use a tool like Moz Local. This tool allows you to enter your business information and then shows you a list of directories where you can submit your listing.

When building local citations, it's important to remember the significance of your "NAP." NAP is an acronym for name, address, and phone number. It's important that your NAP is consistent across all of your listings. This means that if your business name is "Acme Widgets," you should never list it as "Acme Widget Company" or "Acme Corporation." Doing so can confuse Google and hurt your ranking in local search results.

The same rules apply to your address and phone number. You should always list your full street address, including the city and state. And you should use the same phone number on all of your listings. If you have a toll-free number, be sure to include that as well.

# Create Compelling Content

If you want to drive traffic to your website and improve your ranking in local search results, you need to <a href="https://zupo.co/digital-pr-services/" target="blank">create and share compelling content</a>. This content can be in the form of blog posts, articles, infographics, videos, or anything else that would be relevant to your target market.

When creating content, it's important to keep your target market in mind. What are they interested in? What type of information are they looking for? You need to create content that appeals to their needs and interests.

In addition to creating useful content, you also need to make sure that your website is easily navigable and that your content is easy to find. This means using effective website design and organization techniques.

# Use On-Page SEO Strategies

In addition to the above local <a href="https://zupo.co/b2b-seo-guide/" target="blank">SEO strategies</a>, you also need to ensure your website is optimized for on-page SEO. This means that you need to conduct thorough keyword research, optimize your metadata, and use other optimization techniques.

Your locally targeted keywords and phrases should be utilized in the body of your content as well as in H1 and H2 headings. There's no need to inundate your pages with keywords because it appears spammy to the algorithm and is unnatural to read. This is why many SEO agencies will recommend a certain percentage usage, such as 1-3%.

One of the easiest ways to optimize your website for on-page SEO is to use a WordPress plugin like Yoast SEO. This plugin allows you to easily optimize meta tags, title tags, and other optimization features to your website.

Finally, you need to make sure that your website is mobile-friendly. This means that it should be easy to navigate on a mobile device and should have a responsive design. You can use <a href="https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly" target="blank">Google's Mobile-Friendly Test tool</a> to see if your website is mobile-friendly.

# Using Local SEO to Drive Your Business Success

Local SEO is an excellent way for startups to reach more of their target market and drive growth. By taking easy first steps such as optimizing your website for local SEO, building local citations, and using on-page SEO strategies, you can quickly improve your ranking in local search results and increase traffic to your website.


Use Local SEO To Help Drive Growth

Local SEO involves the optimization of your online assets to attract more business from people in your locality. This can be done by targeting local keywords and phrases, understanding Google's local pack rules, building local citations, and using other on-page SEO strategies.

Local SEO involves the optimization of your online assets to attract more business from people in your locality.

How Startups Can Use Local SEO To Help Drive Their Growth

![Google Reviews](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/UTAF77UefMHtAHrmBNKxe/c3abcf961ce7ffb4909b80b69d4be8c6/Google_Reviews.jpg)
<a href="https://nozzle.io/features" target="blank">SERP monitoring</a> is not the only essential part of your SEO efforts if you own a small business. Google reviews play a big part in showing up in the local pack. Have you noticed that some of your Google reviews are either missing or have been removed? You are not alone. Business owners have been complaining about this for the last year or so.  If you have experienced this issue, you may be wondering why aren’t my Google reviews showing up?

As you know, Google reviews have a huge impact on your business. Your reviews not only affect your reputation but also <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/how-to-rank-better-in-google-maps-in-2022" target="blank">how you rank in Google Maps</a>. Business owners work hard to get clients to leave reviews, so when one goes missing, it’s a big deal. This year, some business owners have seen numerous reviews go missing, not just a few.

If you’re in this situation, it’s helpful to know that in most cases there is a reason why. These are the biggest reasons why your Google reviews aren’t showing up.

## So, Why Aren’t My Google Reviews Showing UP?
The main reason why Google reviews don’t get published is that they don’t meet Google’s guidelines for reviews. You should <a href="https://support.google.com/local-guides/answer/7400114?hl=en" target="blank">review the guidelines</a> to see if you notice any patterns in the reviews that you see published and the ones you don’t.  
It might seem like they are randomly choosing some reviews over others, but in most cases, unpublished reviews are rejected because Google’s automated filters flagged them for some reason.  Here are a few of the most common reasons why.

### 1. The review was posted using the same IP address as your business.  
![using the same IP address as your business](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2IENdjgSQIzqI206RnYYPh/39be9767477b68edce49692a534aa415/using_the_same_IP_address_as_your_business.jpg)
One of the ways Google flags fake reviews is by filtering out reviews that are posted using the same IP address the business owner uses. Google considers reviewing your own business a conflict of interest. Thus, if the person leaving a review posts a review while they are at your business location, it may be flagged. 

This may happen more often if your business provides free wi-fi. This could result in more of your reviews being rejected because they look like they could be coming from you (or one of your employees).  

### 2. The reviewer posts from your computer, phone, or an electric device.
![The reviewer posts from your computer, phone, or an electric device](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5I5tfiqhQ2m80fhbzR4O2o/38cebbfbb11af2877bf8dfea1e86f252/The_reviewer_posts_from_your_computer__phone__or_an_electric_device.jpg)
It’s best not to ask a customer to leave a review using a device that you personally use or use to manage your business. Even if you are not connecting over the same IP address, posting a review from your own device may look suspicious to Google. If you ask a client to leave you a review, make sure they do it from their own device and from a different location than your business.

### 3. The review was posted from a new Google account.
![The review was posted from a new Google account](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/HlbCsAUAcQlpvC0mCUZFa/271020baaa6654602e56c074710a4019/The_review_was_posted_from_a_new_Google_account.jpg)
Google is on the lookout for businesses that create fake reviews or that buy Google reviews. Google wants customers to trust the reviews they read in Google Maps. Google may reject reviews if a customer leaves a review from a brand new account, or if they leave a lot of reviews in a short amount of time. 

They may remove reviews from Google profiles that were recently created or look for other indicators that the account is fake.  For example, profiles with no name, no profile picture or history, or that have never posted a review before could be filtered.

### 4. The person leaving the review is nowhere near your location.
![The person leaving the review is nowhere near your location](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/eU3Dp4BnB7iwk9MfAAMkG/795b27d0fb7632dd1a9a229ee540e93e/The_person_leaving_the_review_is_nowhere_near_your_location.jpg)
Sometimes a review will be removed because the reviewer is leaving a review from a completely different area than where your business is located. Although as far as we know, Google isn’t tracking a user’s location to see if they have ever been to your business, some users may look sketchy if they are posting reviews from a location that is too far away from your business.

### 5. The reviewer left a link, email address, or promoted their business in your review.
![The reviewer left a link, email address, or promoted their business in your review](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5uBH6e97CVLxPYu6amDc79/379e68f90227a4ce0a916cf72d013f3f/The_reviewer_left_a_link__email_address__or_promoted_their_business_in_your_review.jpg)
Google will remove reviews from your profile if they contain promotional content. Google does not allow links, email addresses, or coupons in reviews. Reviews are for honest customer feedback about businesses and should not be used to promote other businesses or websites.

### 6. The reviewer left a political or off-topic comment.
![The reviewer left a political or off-topic comment](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4xMUh0d1GDiXoE9OrFHdJ6/4307a9935893b075203fc63210a8e718/The_reviewer_left_a_political_or_off-topic_comment.jpg)
Google does not want its review system to turn into a discussion board. Reviews must remain on topic or they will be removed. Occasionally, you’ll see a client stray off-topic in a review and this could cause it to be removed.

### 7. You manage the reviewer’s Google Analytics or Google Business Profile.
![You manage the reviewer’s Google Analytics or Google Business Profile](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/6OzuN9bWe8nAoCpHWi7DxN/5bcb31fa6aace5a6392e340ba23e6f10/You_manage_the_reviewer___s_Google_Analytics_or_Google_Business_Profile.jpg)
This is a big issue for web designers and digital marketers. If you manage a client’s Google Analytics, Search Console, Google Ads campaigns, or Google Business Profile, it may be difficult for your client to leave a review for you without it being flagged. 

If your business email address and IP address are used when you log into their Google products, it may look like they are part of your business to Google’s automated system. To avoid this problem, create a separate Gmail account to use when logging into the client’s Google products.

### 8. The review was removed because of bad spelling and grammar.
![The review was removed because of bad spelling and grammar](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2UsLuT2jNiK7vr1e7KVXXC/9444a9bd8305db654c03c9dac519a6ea/The_review_was_removed_because_of_bad_spelling_and_grammar.jpg)
Google has been known to filter out customer reviews with bad spelling or grammar. While you might think this is ridiculous, the reason is actually quite logical. Google uses artificial intelligence to moderate Google reviews. If there are spelling and grammar errors it could look like an illegitimate review. 

Google is looking for quality reviews that meet their standards.  Because some businesses pay for fake reviews, often from people who don’t speak English as their native language, poor grammar and spelling can be a red flag.

### 9. You receive a lot of Google reviews at one time.
![You receive a lot of Google reviews at one time](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/6KI2XY9zsP9zbPd77WxREx/ae68680948c9a626b7bba1c31477d245/You_receive_a_lot_of_Google_reviews_at_one_time.jpg)
Google is always on the lookout for things that look unusual. If your business has only had a handful of reviews and suddenly gets a slew of reviews all at once, it may cause the reviews to be removed or moderated. While every business owner wants to <a href="https://www.badasswebgoddess.com/how-to-get-more-google-reviews/" target="blank">get more Google reviews</a>, it’s best to be consistent when asking clients to leave reviews. 

### 10. Sometimes Google Reviews aren’t removed but delayed.
![Sometimes Google Reviews aren’t removed but delayed](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/asfECYEiwFijezla162pA/8e4212b928b4d72604b7de336648a029/Sometimes_Google_Reviews_aren___t_removed_but_delayed.jpg)
Usually, when someone leaves a Google review, you get an email notification and it shows up right away. But, sometimes a review doesn’t show up immediately.  In this situation, the review may not be removed; it’s just delayed. A review can sit in moderation for up to a week before it shows up on your Google Business Profile.  

## What can you do if you’re missing legitimate Google reviews?
In many cases, there isn’t a lot that can be done. Google has a community where you can bring up your issue with administrators.  You can post in the <a href="https://support.google.com/business/community?hl=en" target="blank">Google Business Profile community</a> for help.  You can also check out the <a href="https://localsearchforum.com/forums/local-reviews.99/" target="blank">Local Reviews forum</a> at Sterling Sky Local Search forum for advice. 

A lot of business owners have reported that they’ve even seen Google remove their legitimate reviews.  Google admits this occasionally does happen. Unfortunately, when it does, Google is unable to reinstate missing reviews.  You will have to ask your client to leave a review again. However, be mindful of this as well, because a client who leaves multiple reviews for the same business can also be flagged.

This problem is not just a problem for your business, but for every business owner. Consistently promoting your business and asking your clients to leave honest reviews is the best thing you can do if you have had issues with your reviews not showing up.


Google Reviews Not Showing Up

The biggest reasons why your Google reviews aren’t showing up.

These are the biggest reasons why your Google reviews aren’t showing up.

Why Aren’t My Google Reviews Showing Up? 10 Possible Reasons Why

According to a study conducted by Crayon, <a href="https://smallbiztrends.com/2020/01/competitive-intelligence-statistics.html" target="blank">94% of businesses</a> invest in competitive intelligence. __Competitor analysis__ is the first step towards understanding the market and the gap your organization can capitalize on. This includes keeping track of your competitors’ websites and learning the strategies they use to improve their digital presence. 

The insight gained from this analysis can help improve on existing strategies and create new ones. This article will talk about the tools needed to monitor and track the performance of competitor websites.

# 5 Tools To Help You Track Your Competitors 
Many tools can analyze the state of your competitors’ websites and give you meaningful insight on aspects such as keyword mentions, backlinks, website changes, and even social media. The following are some examples of tools used to analyze your competitors and how they work towards helping you with insights for improving existing strategies.

## Fluxguard
Fluxguard is a tool that allows you to crawl a competitor's website, find certain web pages and monitor these pages for activity. The software can constantly crawl your competitors' websites and return meaningful insights. The data obtained from <a href="https://fluxguard.com/how-to-guides/monitor-website-changes-with-fluxguard" target="blank">monitoring website changes</a> can include cookies, headers, network activity, and the frequency of visits to the competitor's website.

This data can help you understand the types of keywords the competitor is using, the types of tracking software they have, and how they are being used to target customers. This insight can help you make specific changes to your website that will drive more traffic and result in better performance.
![Fluxguard](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/523eJpQgVyzl1kzNNeiLAo/6006256172509c5a43a680e432de5d62/Fluxguard.png)<div><center><a href="https://fluxguard.com/" target="blank">Source</a>
## Owletter
Owletter offers data about your __competitor's email marketing strategies__. It allows organizations to automatically capture emails sent to their mailing list from a website. The software then takes screenshots of this data, stores it, and analyzes it. 

The tool also alerts you about the email based on preset parameters. This process will help you learn about your competitors' email behavior and offer insight that can be used to improve your existing __email marketing strategy__.

Owletter can help you figure out the types of emails to be sent, the frequency of emails, and content ideas for future newsletters. All this data is constantly tracked to empower your email marketing campaign.
![Qwletter](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2YP0sXs5MTinBxxpXj9gSr/81f671a09a3abfde8b84ea4574f5a999/Qwletter.png)<div><center><a href="https://www.owletter.com/" target="blank">Source</a>

## Social Blade
Social blade is free to use and mainly tracks your __competition's content__. If they have a YouTube channel, this tool will fetch data about subscribers, views, earnings, and growth. 

Moreover, it also allows you to search analytics on your competitor's Instagram, Twitch, and DailyMotion accounts. This data can serve as meaningful insight and set a benchmark to surpass your competition.
![Social Blade](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/55jXbcp2QdDeD2labbIgCk/cc92327ddd1020e4ae0c2e2890898e5f/Social_Blade.png)<div><center><a href="https://socialblade.com/" target="blank">Source</a> 

## Nozzle
Nozzle is a competitive analysis tool that lets you track the __top websites in the industry__, see any <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/featured-snippet-competitor-analysis" target="blank">featured snippets</a> your competitors may have, find who owns <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/google-local-rank-tracking" target="blank">local listings</a>, and even find <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/video-rank-tracker" target="blank">video content</a> that is performing well.

This is an effective tool to monitor competitor __keyword lists__ on a monthly and quarterly basis, <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/finding-your-top-serp-competitors-across-all-your-keyword-groups" target="blank">keeping track of organizations within your industry</a> and the global SERP landscape. It can also show you the highest-ranking URLs in your niche, so you can analyze them using SEO tools for on-site optimization and backlinks. This should allow you to focus on specific keywords and work accordingly to improve your ranking. 

![Number of Domains with Featured Snippets within a specific Keyword Group (2)](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1EUKu30N1IqRd05WTCfgWK/befb0c9053d7c5323718315eefa446cd/Number_of_Domains_with_Featured_Snippets_within_a_specific_Keyword_Group__1_.jpeg)

## Semrush
SEMRush helps conduct a competitor analysis based on __search engine marketing strategies__. It allows you to track keywords used by your competitors and see how these keywords are ranked on global SERPs. 

Each keyword is accompanied by data such as domain authority, ranking difficulty, and the countries where it ranks the highest. If you are confused with your keyword research and want to look at some strategies that have produced results, SEMRush is your go-to tool.
![Semrush](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1H6S1lZTpFZIfPIJrYMUGx/39067d85a53429afe7f69726e875d86d/Semrush.png)<div><center><a href="https://www.semrush.com/" target="blank">Source</a>  

# Importance Of Tracking Your Competitors' Websites
A competitor's website can give you a clear picture of how they are performing and the strategies and keywords they are using to improve their ranking on SERPs. Getting a strong ranking on search engine result pages is primary if you want to improve your traffic and customer base. Doing this can require several strategies that need to work in unison for the results to be successful and give you a favorable outcome. Creating a strategy from scratch might not always work, and even if you do put in extensive research, it is always good to analyze any data you can extract.

A competitor doing well in the market is a clear indication that whatever they are doing is working for them. Tracking the movement and changes of successful competitors can help you gain enough data to devise your own strategy or improve on your existing one.

Competitors can give you a clear picture of how the industry is functioning, and analyzing their data can offer the following benefits:

- Get competitive insights that can be incorporated into your strategies
- Find pricing and inventory gaps to capitalize on and capture the market
- Understand what types of strategies work in your niche
- Stay aware of industry trends
- Identify and plan for new competitive threats

## Wrapping up
Businesses worldwide are looking for ways to improve their marketing practices and get the word out to more people. According to a study, <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/17515631111106821/full/html" target="blank">90% of Fortune 500 companies</a> conduct competitor analysis to find out what others are doing to achieve these goals. The resulting data is then used to devise branding and marketing strategies that deliver results faster than shooting in the dark.

Experts believe that the best way to see if a strategy works is by seeing if someone else is doing it and how it is performing. Learning from the performance of your competitors can help you tweak your own strategies and eventually produce similar - if not better - results. Several tools in the market can track the competitor's website and precisely track each aspect of the competitor and how they are going about their daily operations.

When done right, competitor analysis can be a shortcut to explosive growth and lightning-fast sales for new businesses


Competitors

The following are tools used to analyze your competitors and how they work towards helping you with insights for improving existing strategies.

The tools needed to monitor and track the performance of competitor websites.

Get One Step Ahead Of Your Competitors - 5 Tools To Help You Track Their Movements

In the pursuit of doing the best SEO work we can, one thing that may be overlooked or undervalued is optimizing for voice search. 
![voice recognition](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/7GbHFiFrUOoRh3w2K5zths/729723c516067c1ad0f4c0aff9ba22c6/voice_recognition.png)

Here is a list of things you can review to make sure you are getting the most out of the voice search capability.

# Have you read the official guides to voice search for each major platform?
Who loves to read the official “how to”s published by companies? Anyone? I didn’t think so. In this case though, it might be a great place to start so you can really understand the ‘behind the scenes' of voice search.
![read official guides](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/6qrvUv7b4MKCDPdyNYrwUK/2cf475bfbe818916d09563603bd1ceae/read_official_guides.png)
Google's <a href="https://storage.googleapis.com/guidelines-eyesfree/evaluation_of_search_speech_guidelines_v1.0.pdf" target="blank">Evaluation of Search Speech - Guidelines</a> might be a great place to start. 

__Follow that up with guides from:__
- <a href="http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/getstarted-cortana-tips" target="blank">Cortana</a>
- <a href="https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/2940021?hl=en" target="blank">Google</a>
- <a href="http://www.apple.com/ios/siri/" target="blank">Apple</a>

__Also these guides to commands from CNET:__
- <a href="http://www.cnet.com/how-to/the-complete-list-of-siri-commands/" target="blank">Siri</a>
- <a href="http://www.cnet.com/how-to/the-complete-list-of-cortana-commands/" target="blank">Cortana</a>
- <a href="http://www.cnet.com/how-to/complete-list-of-ok-google-commands/" target="blank">OK Google</a> 

# Do you understand your customers and their devices?
Have you evaluated the generation that is your targeted audience? 

Think about the Gen Zers versus the Baby Boomers. Is there an infant out there that doesn’t know how to navigate their parents' smartphone? On the other end of the spectrum, a lot of the Baby Boomers limit how they use their phones, yet they seem to use personal assistants, such as Siri and Alexa, more.

In the <a href="https://www.salesforce.com/form/pdf/state-of-the-connected-customer-2nd-edition/?d=7010M000000uQVWQA2" target="blank">State of the Connected Customer</a> report it shows the differences for each generation.
![generation voice search graph 1](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4QsaadULZbvEXMhRoT5kie/bb00b095c36106b03c27e01cb5a3413a/generation_voice_search_graph_1.png)
While 39% of Baby Boomers “love or like” personal assistants, only 10% of them use or prefer it when communicating with companies. 

Whereas 64% of Gen Zers “love or like” personal assistants and 35% use or prefer them when communicating with companies.
![generation voice search graph 2](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/xWbca8qjXjwaAFo0UK165/4ed2fe2245a2ea9289b2257dff341940/generation_voice_search_graph_2.png)
Understanding the behavior of who you are targeting, and with what device can help you focus on, and market to the right group of people. 

# Is your content personal and compelling?
Why are customers going to look for your services/product? What are their pain points that you can solve or answer for them?

Compel your audience to engage with your product by reaching them on a personal and informative level. Because people’s emotions are touched more visually, you should have relatable pictures to accompany the text.
![personal and compelling content](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2BZsUbxvG3dmF7FH7PwKNw/a37697ffa6f9e8ec98fe6b95df2da97e/personal_and_compelling_content.png)
Ask a question they may have and then answer it in a succinct way that reaches their emotions. Feel free to elaborate more after that and incorporate the keywords that you are targeting. This format is attractive to <a href="https://www.searchenginejournal.com/search-engines/algorithms/" target="blank">Google’s ranking algorithm</a>. 

# Do you use conversational words?
![use conversational words](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/6sts5XbiwW3UKcgSBFbjcB/71269e8225a8774ec809e5e03f3c67cc/use_conversational_words.png)
To optimize for voice search, optimizing for conversational queries is a must.  

Think about when you __type__ in a search versus using __voice__ search. With voice you tend to use more specific and conversational speech such as “show me” or “what do I need for” rather than just using a short phrase. It gives a direction for your answer to take you.

What are some questions your audience might ask?

For example, if they are searching for information on pruning fruit trees you may optimize for these questions:

- How do I prune fruit trees?
- When is the best time to prune fruit trees?
- What equipment do I need to prune fruit trees?
- Can I prune fruit trees if the leaves are still on?

Another great resource for thinking of targeted questions is using the People Also Ask (PAA) boxes to see what people are actually asking Google about your niche. <a href="https://nozzle.io/" target="blank">Nozzle.io</a> is a great resource for this. They generate a <a href="https://nozzle.io/paa" target="blank">PAA report</a> with all of the questions asked related to your keywords.

# Have you focused on long-tail keywords?

Now that we know that people’s voice search is more natural than a typed search is, long-tail keywords should be your focus, as they will be what those using voice search will use more. 
![long tail keywords](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/10uKEgUrL96z2dBG4M2vtd/418e01c95f97e995b4d1f4e3bb421224/long_tail_keywords.png)
This is where the <a href="https://nozzle.io/paa" target="blank">PAA report</a> comes in handy. It shows search term variations people are looking for. You can also use <a href="https://moz.com/blog/a-beginners-guide-to-the-google-search-console" target="blank">Google Search Console</a> to discover the queries that are bringing people to your site. 

Another resource is using questions people have asked your customer support.

Your content pages based on these questions should contain long, conversational terms.

# Have you built an FAQ page?

Do you have a Frequently Asked Questions page?

![build faq pages](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2dWsj4nNn8ErN6gKXU1vWz/9cea5341a8e6b74612dce70daa8ac987/build_faq_pages.png)
When you use voice search I’m guessing it starts with the word “Who,” “What,” “Where,” “When,” “Why,” or “How.”  You have a need, and you want it answered quickly.

"FAQ pages are also vital to organic performance. As they answer prominent questions of current and prospective customers, they lead them down to the path of solving their problems. Eventually, it may be a conversion for the business." according to <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/2-underutilized-onsite-optimization-strategies#FAQ_Schema_Markup" target="blank">Bernie Wong</a> of <a href="https://social-stand.com/" target="blank">Social Stand Limited</a>.  

To provide this information have a FAQ page that answers all of these questions (don’t forget, conversationally) for your audience. <a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/advanced/structured-data/faqpage" target="blank">Google loves FAQ page</a>s and often uses them in the SERP.

<a href="https://www.zendesk.com/blog/the-best-faq-page-examples-and-how-to-make-your-own/" target="blank">Here are some tips for writing a good FAQ page</a>:
1. Use data to pick the right questions
2. Form clear criteria around responding
3. Offer multiple solutions
4. Track your progress
5. Make your FAQ page easy to find

# Have you claimed your Google Business Profile and is all of your info up to date?
A key factor in optimizing for voice search is building your local listing and presence. <a href="https://www.webfx.com/blog/marketing/voice-search-digital-marketing-2019/" target="blank">Over 55% of people</a> use voice search to find local businesses.
![google my business profile](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/7BOh9KACJShAzlGTnLZW9V/cd7e915f6b54e8e328d5b70b16e53e72/google_my_business_profinle.png)
If you haven’t claimed your <a href="https://support.google.com/business/?hl=en&_ga=1.197736111.1817838323.1480536666#topic=4539639" target="blank">Google Business Profile listing</a> yet, you need to. This is where you add your business’ information such as hours of operation, address, phone, services, reviews, pictures, link to your website and a short bio about your business. The more information you share on your listing the more confidence people will have in your business and the easier it will be for someone to choose you.

<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/how-to-rank-better-in-google-maps-in-2022" target="blank">These are suggestions by Patty Malowney</a> from <a href="https://www.badasswebgoddess.com/" target="blank">Badass Web Goddess Agency</a> to optimize your Google Business Profile:
- Use your keywords in your GBP name
- Fill out your GBP completely
- Add photos
- Post updates
- Ask clients and customers for Google Reviews
- GBP Behavioral Signals

Don’t forget to use keywords related to your business while setting up your information. Also, take into account the regional slang or dialects that might be pertinent in your area. For example, in Utah fried dough is called a “scone” but is referred to as “fry bread” in most other places. In Wisconsin a drinking fountain is called a “bubbler”.

# Have you added microdata?
![add microdata](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/W03Kg383nHnX5FvYprLME/82e9a294a3499f4f9ed8f14d14394a71/add_microdata.png)
Who remembers Jerry Maguire’s famous line, “Help me, help you.”? That’s what microdata does for Google.

 “You’ll need to submit a sitemap to Google including information such as: prices, directions to your physical location, store hours, your address and phone number. Next, use microdata to help Google understand what this text means. Create markups for various use cases.”  according to the <a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/seo-how-to-optimize-for-voice-search" target="blank">Digital Marketing Institute</a>.

Helping Google to help you answer people’s voice search.

<a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/advanced/structured-data/faqpage" target="blank">This is an example from Google of microdata.</a>

# Does your brand have an abnormal spelling that you need to take into consideration?
How well can people pronounce your brand? Does it transcribe well? Is voice search going to recognize it easily?

We’re all familiar with the company Xerox. They’ve been around for decades, therefore recognized by Google, but what if it was a new company that no one was sure how to say their name? 

Be aware of the limitations that Google might have in recognizing uniquely spelled brands. You could add a pronunciation guide to help.

If your brand name is a bit ambiguous, at least try to make the product memorable, unique and easy to search for.

# Have you optimized your schema markup?
Again, “Help me, help you.” with schema markup. This helps make sense of your content and make your site discoverable to search engines.
![optimize schema markup](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3fyrfgnV8BoA4xhPXxTP1j/388291590af1999f009fea5929eefe13/optimize_schema_markup.png)
Structured data can be used to mark up all kinds of items from products to events to recipes. It is most often used to provide additional information about the following:
- Creative work
- Event
- Organization
- Person
- Place
- Product

A full list of items you can mark up with schema is available <a href="https://schema.org/docs/full.html" target="blank">here</a>.

"Each type of information has properties that can be used to describe items in more detail. For example, a "book," which falls under the category "creative work," can have the properties "name" (title), "author," "illustrator," "isbn," and more, depending on how fully you want to describe it. Similarly, an "event" can be classified as anything from a "businessevent" to a "theaterevent." according to <a href="https://moz.com/learn/seo/schema-structured-data" target="blank">Moz</a>.

Have you adopted schema markup for voice search by including an indicator of intent and relevancy to your site?

# Does your website load fast and is it mobile friendly?
![website speed](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5MpR1gt8tqmPe1VuIKHGsg/1822fd1780848354f08e282ef3a8d7e9/website_speed.png)
A big factor to bounce rate, especially in relation to voice search is your load speed. Who wants to sit and watch a circle spinning when you have lots to do?

If you’re using voice search, chances are that you are busy or in a hurry. Google is too. They will offer sites with greater loading speed and with less bounce rate.

<a href="https://neilpatel.com/blog/speed-is-a-killer/" target="blank">According to Neil Patel’s research</a>, 47% of consumers expect a website to load in no more than two seconds.
![every second counts](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4CyXyRAqbOYReIpLWIAqCG/9a89022c299670e57d204d9912cf7804/every_second_counts.png)
Every second afterward damages user experience. Viewers don’t want to wait for your page to load, and they’ll often bounce to find another business with a better user experience.

In a study cited by <a href="https://www.crazyegg.com/blog/speed-up-your-website/" target="blank">crazyegg.com</a>, the relationship between load times and conversion rates showed a <a href="https://conversionxl.com/blog/testing-tools-site-speed/" target="blank">25% decrease in conversion rates</a> with just one extra second of load time.
![loading time impact](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5Ly3ngvfiWvqUvRtqNGEwz/171e96e9ebd63ebe64405862b48f7465/loading_time_impact.png)
It’s clear that putting in the effort to increase your site speed — even by one second — could have a major impact on conversions.

<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/mistakes-in-seo-that-can-lead-to-google-ranking-drop" target="blank">Stephanie Long</a> from <a href="https://stephaniemariemarketing.com/" target="blank">Stephanie Marie Marketing</a> says: A tool I like to use and test my website for speed regularly is <a href="https://developers.google.com/speed" target="blank">Google’s PageSpeed Insights</a> (PSI) because it shows how fast your website is loading for both mobile and desktop. It also provides detailed solutions on how you can fix any issues, plus it also gives you a grade from 1-100, with 100 being the best. The tool that I think does a great job on showing what images are too large and are causing slow loading times is <a href="https://www.screamingfrog.co.uk/seo-spider/" target="blank">Screaming Frog</a>.

“In the summer of 2015, more Google searches were carried out via mobile than desktop for the first time ever – and you’d better believe they’ve only gone up since then!” according to <a href="https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/building-websites/how-to-make-website-mobile-friendly/" target="blank">WebsiteBuilderExpert</a>. 

<a href="https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/building-websites/how-to-make-website-mobile-friendly/" target="blank">To make your website mobile-friendly, you’ll need to</a>:
1. Choose a mobile-responsive theme or template
2. Strip back your content
3. Make images and CSS as light as possible
4. Avoid Flash
5. Change button size and placement
6. Space out your links
7. Use a large and readable font
8. Eliminate pop-ups
9. Test regularly

So, is your site updated with the fastest speeds possible?

Is it mobile friendly?

# Is your content scannable?
Do you know what the very best guarantee is that I will exit a site just as fast as I opened it? If there are a lot of ads or sign-ups that pop up before I can even see that homepage. I’m gone and won't return.
![scannable content](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3AVpBnGWJ7Yy4rsDsL06Ka/555584880bdfd5cf437a902002bb7969/scannable_content.png)
If I’m using voice search for something, I want to be able to scan the content quickly and easily without interference.

Is your site easily scannable with headers and links offering information that is easy to grasp? Will I find answers easily just by scanning your homepage? 

Need some ideas to get you started? <a href="https://www.bigdcreative.com/5-ways-to-make-your-sites-design-scannable/" target="blank">Here are 5 from bigDcreative</a>.
1. Design With Visual Hierarchy in Mind
2. Make Your Navigation Menu Easy to Spot
3. Take Advantage of White Space
4. Write for Brevity
5. Use Numbers Where Possible

# Do your videos rank in Google?
![videos rank in google](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2m3xoudiSsGmbq25CIcodk/f4a5d809abb371c1a468529a46f3d0f0/videos_rank_in_google.png)
How well do your videos rank in Google? In SEO you need to utilize every resource you have available, and a big component of that is video. People love to be visually stimulated, and most people learn better through being shown. 

If you’ve never made Beef Wellington before, are you more likely to use the recipe from the blog with the video tutorial, or relying on the typed out recipe?

Most sites can find a place for useful videos and then optimize them so they will draw people in. 

If you’re not sure if YouTube is something worth investing in, you should know that YouTube is owned by Google. Perhaps that is why <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/youtube-best-practices-for-beginners" target="blank">over 80% of the videos that rank in the top ten for video-related searches in Google are from YouTube</a>, as opposed to other video platforms, embeds on websites or natively hosted video.

According to <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/content-marketing-for-small-businesses-and-coaches-2022-edition" target="blank">Thomas Anthony</a>, an organic marketing consultant: 
- Videos have higher engagement than written content
- The average consumer spends 100 minutes a day watching video
- <a href="https://blog.hootsuite.com/youtube-stats-marketers/" target="blank">YouTube is the world's second most visited website</a>
- Views increase as more people work from home

## In conclusion
Optimizing your site for voice search will help increase your traffic and decrease your bounce rate. It’s worth taking the time to do.

<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/2-underutilized-onsite-optimization-strategies#Optimize_for_Voice_Search" target="blank">Paige Arnof-Fenn</a> of <a href="http://mavensandmoguls.com/" target="blank">Mavens & Moguls</a> said:

"Websites must be optimized for voice search adding usability/functionality to your site making it accessible to all users including those with limitations/disabilities. It’s not just about complying with the ADA/responsible web design/CSR goals but it is also good for the bottom line by reaching a broader audience."


voice recognition

Optimizing your site for voice search will help increase your traffic and decrease your bounce rate.

Optimizing your site for voice search will help increase your traffic and decrease your bounce rate. This is a check list to help evaluate your voice search optimization.

Voice Search Optimization Checklist

Most business owners understand the importance of ranking well in Google Maps. If you are in the SEO business, <a href="https://nozzle.io/features" target="blank">search enginge position analysis</a> isn't the only concern. Helping your clients to rank well in Google Maps is also what you do. Even if you understand the fundamentals of local SEO, Google is constantly updating its algorithm. Keeping up with these updates is the key to outranking your competition.

Google made several changes to local search this year, and some of them affect how a business ranks in Google Maps. If you want to know how to rank better in Google Maps in 2022, you need to know about these changes.

In 2016, Google introduced what SEOs call the “map pack”, “3-pack”, or “local pack”. The new design featured a map of just three business listings. This small change dramatically affected local SEO. There were no longer 7 spots, but only an elusive three. Getting your business to rank in the map pack became the main focus of local SEO.

## Why rank better in Google Maps?
It is not necessary for every business to be in Google Maps. However, for local businesses, ranking better in Google Maps is the best way to bring in more local customers and ultimately make more money. 

If someone is searching for your business on Google Maps, they will most likely search “local business near me”. So, if you own a pizza restaurant, for example, if someone is looking for pizza, they will most likely search for “pizza near me”.

This is what makes ranking well in Google Maps so important. If your business isn’t in the top 3 spots, your customers may never find you. The map pack shows up at the top of the page <a href="https://www.seoclarity.net/how-googles-local-pack-update-has-reshaped-the-organic-landscape-12952/" target="blank">in 93 percent of Google searches</a>, according to SEO Clarity, which makes ranking in the map pack the best way for small businesses to be found in Google.

Every business is trying to get into this coveted spot in Google Maps. With every business vying for it, how do you get there? And what’s changed in 2022?

If you want a competitive edge, keep reading. Here is how to rank better in Google Maps in 2022.
![google-maps](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5Fno8XdXYYukJrtvKs5gci/960062999b80fdb274573c95a4deee05/google-maps.png)
## How does Google decide which businesses rank in Google Maps?

Understanding how Google picks which businesses they display in Google Maps will help you to understand how to rank better. Google Maps was created for local businesses - not so much for online businesses. 

It was mainly designed for brick-and-mortar businesses to help customers and clients locate them on the map. This is why proximity is such an important ranking factor. Google tries to show you the businesses that are closest to you in proximity.

However, just adding your business to Google Maps doesn’t automatically make your business show up first, even if you are the closest in proximity. Google uses numerous ranking factors to determine which business shows up on top. And, Google tells you exactly what they are looking for.

### These are the ranking <a href="https://support.google.com/business/answer/7091?hl=en#zippy=%2Center-complete-data%2Cadd-photos%2Crelevance%2Cdistance%2Cprominence" target="blank">factors Google looks for</a>: 

__Relevance__: This means how closely your business matches what someone is searching for when they do a Google search. They determine this based on your business name, description, and what people say in your Google Reviews.

__Distance__: How close your business is to the person searching. 

__Prominence__: According to Google, prominence is determined by information Google has about a business from links, articles, and directories. Google also looks at your Google reviews. Having a higher percentage of positive ratings will improve your prominence in Google.

Wonder why your reviews aren't showing up? Check out <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/why-arent-my-google-reviews-showing-up-10-possible-reasons-why" target="blank">this article</a>.

## Google Maps Ranking Factors

Ranking in Google Maps is similar to ranking in organic search. Google looks at on-page and off-page factors. However, unlike organic search, where on-page SEO is done on your website, in Google Maps the on-page SEO is done on your Google Business Profile. This is why a business can rank well in Google Maps even if they don’t have a website. Here are some of the on-page and off-page SEO factors Google uses to rank businesses in Google Maps.

__Google Business Profile SEO__

- GBP (Google Business Profile) Optimization
- Google Reviews
- GBP Updates
- Behavioral Signals

__Google Maps Off-Page SEO__

- Citations
- Website SEO
- Backlinks
- Social Signals

## How to Optimize Your GBP (Google Business Profile)
The first step to ranking on Google Maps is to claim your Google Business Profile. To create a Google Business Profile go to https://www.google.com/business/. Claim your listing and verify it. Once your listing is verified, optimize your profile. 

__Use your keywords in your GBP name__

Use your keywords in your profile name if possible. Make sure your profile name reflects what your business actually does. For example, if you own a fitness center, use a name like ABC Fitness Center instead of just ABC Company. Although including keywords in your profile name can help with SEO, Google is cracking down on business owners using keyword spam to rank well in Google Maps. Therefore, having keywords in your profile name may not be as beneficial in 2022 as it was before.

__Fill out your GBP completely__

Fill out every section of your GBP including your physical address, phone number, category, and attributes. Make sure to provide a description of your business using your keywords, location, and the products or services you offer. Also, add your hours of operation.

Select the best category for your business. If you are not sure which category to choose, do a search for your keyword and see what category your competitors are using. Add as many secondary categories to your profile as you can (but be sure they are relevant).

Select appropriate <a href="https://support.google.com/business/answer/9049526?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop" target="blank">attributes</a>, for example, identified as woman-owned or veteran-owned. Select a short name for your profile. And, make sure to create a free Google website, even if you have your own website. Your Google.business.site will display information about your business, your contact info, and all your GBP updates. 

__Add photos__

Adding photos to your profile helps more than you might think. “Businesses with photos receive 42% more requests for driving directions to their location from users on Google, and 35% more clicks through to their websites than businesses that don’t have photos”, according to a <a href="https://www.brightlocal.com/research/google-my-business-insights-study/" target="blank">Google insight study</a>.

__Post updates__

Post updates on your GBP regularly. Although this does not help directly with SEO, it may help with the click-through rate. It also adds content to your Google business website if you have added one.

__Ask clients and customers for Google Reviews__

Google Reviews are one of the ways Google decides how popular your business is and what people in your location have to say about your business. Having positive Google reviews will improve your prominence and ranking in Google Maps. 

Asking your clients and customers to leave a review for your business is one of the best ways to get more Google reviews. However, many business owners have noticed that Google is filtering more reviews, even from legitimate happy customers. Since Google knows reviews are an important ranking factor, they have tightened the ropes on fake Google reviews. If you are <a href="https://localu.org/unfilter-missing-google-reviews/" target="blank">missing Google reviews</a>, Google’s filtering system may be why.

Don’t just ask for reviews, reply to your customer's reviews. According to Google, this is one way to make your <a href="https://support.google.com/business/answer/6335804?hl=en" target="blank">Google Business Profile awesome</a>.

__GBP Behavioral Signals__ 

If you want to rank better in Google Maps in 2022, focus on improving interaction on your Google Business Profile. Google doesn’t just look at the information on your GBP. They also look at what your customers do when they find you. For example, do they call you? Do they visit your website? Do they search for directions? These actions show Google how customers feel about your business. 

## __Google Maps Off-Page SEO__

The truth is it’s possible to rank well in Google Maps just by having an optimized GBP and positive Google reviews. However, there are other important factors that can improve your position in Google Maps. These are off-page SEO signals such as information from your website, directories, social media, articles, and backlinks.

__Website Optimization__

Optimizing your website will improve both your organic search results and your ranking in Google Maps. This is because Google looks for information about your business across the web to determine how they rank you. This includes the information on your website.

__How to optimize your website for Google Maps__

Optimize your website for local keywords. For example, if you own a real estate business, you might optimize your website for “Atlanta realtor” or “best realtor in Atlanta” or “Atlanta real estate”. 

Also, add location pages or city pages for specific cities you service. This will tell Google you provide services in that city and provide more information about what services you provide for that location.

Include your name, address, and phone number on your website. Embed a Google map to your business as well. You can add this in the footer of your website or your contact page.

Add schema markup to your website. <a href="https://www.badasswebgoddess.com/schema-markup-for-seo-google-maps/" target="blank">Schema markup</a> is code that can be added to your website to tell Google more about your business. It provides information like where you are located, your phone number, your business hours, and what social media profiles are associated with your business.

__Citations listing your NAP (Name, Address, and Phone Number) __

One of the ways Google determines your prominence in Google Maps is based on the information it collects from links, articles, and directories. Mentions of your business’ name, address, and phone number are known as citations. Citations are generally considered listings in directories like Yellow Pages, Manta, Yelp, or Angie’s List. Local business directories or industry-specific directories are also a good way to build citations.

__Backlinks__

A lot of SEOs think <a href="https://www.badasswebgoddess.com/what-helps-more-with-local-seo-citations-or-backlinks/" target="blank">citations and backlinks</a> are the same things. While directories often include a link back to your website, which technically makes it a backlink, they are different. A citation is any mention of your business name, address, and phone number on another website. A backlink is a link from another website back to your website. 

A backlink doesn’t always include your name, address, or phone number. It can link to your website’s home page or internal pages or blog posts. Having more backlinks will help you to rank better in local searches. 

__Social Signals__

Having an active social media presence may improve your ranking in Google, although it may help more indirectly than directly. There is a lot of debate in the SEO community about how much social media helps with SEO or if it helps at all. However, having an active social media presence can help because it drives traffic to your website, can generate natural backlinks (from people who might not have otherwise seen your content), and encourages customers to visit your website. 

## What’s Changed with Google Maps and what to expect in 2022

In 2021, Google made quite a few changes to Google Maps, including making it easier for business owners to get listed in Google Maps, changing the name of Google My Business to Google Business Profile, changing the look of the map pack, and adding new features for business owners.

__Google changed the name of Google My Business to Google Business Profile__

On November 4, 2021, Google changed the name of its business profiles from <a href="https://support.google.com/business/thread/133876833/introducing-new-updates-to-business-profile?hl=en" target="blank">Google My Business to Google Business Profile</a> and made it easier for business owners to claim and verify their business information on Google Maps.

There are now two ways to get your business listed in Google Maps. You can go to https://www.google.com/business/ to create your Google Business Profile or you can simply search for your business name in Google Maps. If you don’t see it listed, search for your business address. Then click on Add your business. This will take you to the Google Business Profile page where you can set up your profile.

__Google added new features for business owners__

In addition, Google added <a href="https://blog.google/products/ads-commerce/connect-local-holiday-shoppers/" target="blank">several new features for business owners</a>. You can now message your visitors directly from search, without having to log in to your business profile. You can also see your call history to see which visitors found you in Google Maps and called you from your profile.

Shop owners can now display their inventory directly from Google. Shoppers can now search for which stores have the item they are looking for in stock. This is a win for customers and shop owners as many customers check to see which stores have a product on hand before they shop there.

__Google added several new attributes__

There are now a wide range of attributes businesses can add to their profile, <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/google-my-business-crowd-lgbtq-friendly-transgender-safespace-32287.html" target="blank">including LBTQ+ friendly</a>, and health and safety features like “staff wears masks”. In 2022, there may be more attributes added to GBP. Be sure to check for new attributes in the upcoming year.

__Google changed the way the map pack is displayed__
![map-pack-chicago](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4VEnH5GSCZYra2CmvO286p/0eb015658fbe1f8f303cb23a17da15f8/map-pack-chicago.jpg)

In 2021, Google redesigned the map pack. Now when you search for a business on Google, the map is larger and more prominent than before. The businesses also appear on the left side of the map instead of underneath it.

__Google rolled out the “Vicinity Update”__

In 2021, Google started cracking down on spam. In the <a href="https://www.sterlingsky.ca/vicinity-algorithm-update/" target="blank">most recent Vicinity update</a>, businesses that were dominating local search simply because they had keywords in their business name noticed significant drops in their ranking in Google Maps. A keyword in your business name is no longer as important as your prominence and proximity.

Google confirmed the algorithm update in December. Although they did not specifically say that the latest algorithm places a heavier emphasis on proximity, they did say that the update “involved a rebalancing of various factors we consider in generating local search results.” 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Our November 2021 local search update has concluded. It began Nov 30 and ran through Dec 8. It involved a rebalancing of various factors we consider in generating local search results. General guidance for businesses remains the same as covered here: <a href="https://t.co/uyXFfmUEIR">https://t.co/uyXFfmUEIR</a></p>&mdash; Google Search Central (@googlesearchc) <a href="https://twitter.com/googlesearchc/status/1471546117125029889?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

What the Vicinity update did, essentially, was bring proximity back as one of Google’s main ranking factors. Google has stated before that the three factors they look at are relevance, distance, and prominence. 

As 2022 moves forward there may be more changes in store for Google. Overall, Google’s aim is to improve user experience. This includes making Google Maps more useful to customers using their services.


map-pack-chicago

This is how to rank better in Google Maps in 2022.

How to rank better in Google Maps in 2022

# Local SEO
<br>
I posed the question to SEO professionals what they thought was the most underutilized SEO strategy or tactic. I got over 100 responses which I broke up into <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/44-underutilized-seo-strategies-and-tactics" target="blank">8 categories</a>, and 44 sub categories. This is part 6, which highlights the underutilized strategies related to local SEO.
<img src="//images.contentful.com/z8uwv83tofbw/7EXJOgfCZjihviJTp0FpjV/b4a01d17b44b0316368ce5d1b2e072e0/local_seo.jpg"  style='float: right; margin: 1rem;' />

__Local SEO Sub Categories:__
- <a href="#Optimize_Local_SEO_Landing_Pages">Optimize Local SEO Landing Pages</a>
- <a href="#Google_Maps_Optimization">Google Maps Optimization</a>
- <a href="#Optimize_your_Google_My_Business_Page">Optimize your Google My Business Page</a>
<a id="Optimize_Local_SEO_Landing_Pages"></a>
<br>
## Optimize Local SEO Landing Pages
![Optimize Local SEO Landing Pages](//images.contentful.com/z8uwv83tofbw/ueaxYinRCphe69WLxgK7s/c1952af8e2d3cecee45ceb4c52eefadc/Optimize_Local_SEO_Landing_Pages.png)
__Carmine Mastropierro, Co-Founder of <a href="http://wisemedia.ca" target="blank">WiseMedia</a> points out:__

"Almost all businesses can universally optimize their website, service pages, and channels like Google My Business for local areas to generate leads and drive sales. I recommend using an SEO tool like Ubersuggest to first find local keywords to target. These are primarily a location followed by a service like "New York Business Accountant." They tend to have low competition but a high conversion rate. With voice search on the rise, these keywords are also continuing to drive more traffic. Optimize your website for these search terms and make dedicated pages for every location you service."

__Sean Darlow, Founder and business manager at <a href="https://affiliates-sloty.com/" target="blank">Affiliate Sloty</a> said:__

"The most underutilized SEO strategy is local SEO. The majority of businesses invest in SEO in order to reach a larger, often global audience. Local clients, whether online or in person, are still the lifeblood of most modern businesses. Local SEO makes a company more visible to local customers. Google has also been putting a lot of effort into regional results. As a result, adding local SEO to a small business's SEO plan is the only reasonable choice."

__Matt Tutt from <a href="https://matttutt.me" target="blank">Matt Tutt Digital Marketing</a> recommends to make use of local landing pages:__

"These have a bit of a dirty name associated - perhaps from some people who associate these pages with really thin, cookie-cutter content, which ends up being pretty spammy!

"For me I've seen them work really well when working with clients who are trying to target specific geographic areas. I actually love the process of creating these pages. Once you've got a great framework of the page, you can really scale them up in a huge way, obviously depending on how wide an area you want to target for your client.

"I've worked with a world-class dog breeder in the US who ships their dogs across the US, and this strategy has helped them to target many states where they had no kind of online presence before. It was just a case of creating a great framework page which talked about region-specific content in a way that was relevant to the topic (in this case, dogs!).

"Looking back at data from the past 12 months I can see that this landing page strategy has contributed approximately 30% of the total organic traffic for this client. So it's been massive - and has led to many additional leads the client wouldn't have had otherwise."

__Brenton Thomas founder and CEO of <a href="https://www.twibiagency.com/" target="blank">Twibi</a> says:__

"The importance of local SEO cannot be underestimated when a business has a limited service area. For example, if a small mom-and-pop restaurant is paying for ads seen by people all over the world that will never walk through the door. If there's a limited-service area such as only providing a service for several towns or counties, you don’t want people outside of that service area seeing the website. This also leads to disappointment when these visitors try to schedule an appointment.

"This is why local SEO is vastly underrated since it will generate more qualified prospects, people in that business' area who are looking for their products or service."

<a id="Google_Maps_Optimization"></a>
<br>
## Google Maps Optimization
![Google Maps Optimization](//images.contentful.com/z8uwv83tofbw/7f2qfJEODaUJE7dP9NTmoL/3eec6dee590c8d8b09a161bf1b0acb8e/Google_Maps_Optimization.jpg)
<div><center><a href="https://www.samma3a.com/tech/en/google-maps-full-article-en/" target="blank">Image Source</a></center></div>
<br>
__Danny Star from <a href="https://websitedepot.com/" target="blank">Website Depot</a> claims Google Maps Ranking and Optimization should be focused on.__ 

"For those who rely on phone calls as conversions, this is a gold mine that is often overlooked in favor of ad placement or organic SEO. In many cases, some of my best-performing clients like lawyers and treatment centers get a majority of their calls from their Google My Business listing that is showing on top of their competitors."

<a id="Optimize_your_Google_My_Business_Page"></a>
<br>
## Optimize your Google My Business Page
![Optimize your Google My Business Page](//images.contentful.com/z8uwv83tofbw/4l9FbGAqHnkqRceok8lnxF/ba4c92461fb211650b0de283071e8d7a/Optimize_your_Google_My_Business_Page.png)
__Ela Iliesi, Digital Marketing & SEO Trainer at <a href="https://londonmarketingacademy.com/" target="blank">London Marketing Academy</a> comments about creating a well optimised GMB page:__

Adding a keyword or key phrase in your business name besides the brand. This can offer huge visibility for free, something not even purchasing Google Ads publicity can offer, as you can appear in the searches for that key phrase and have your GMP posts seen and clicked by thousands of people each month, for free.

__Lauren Amor, Organic Search Specialist for <a href="https://tandem.buzz/" target="blank">Tandem Buzz</a> states:__

Another tactic that's more up and coming than anything is short snippets for Google and Alexa Echo products. This refers to the short snippets that people often say to Alexa when they're trying to find something quickly, such as, "Flower shop Miami". If you're a flower shop in Miami, it's important to have keywords that can double as short snippets on your GMB, site, and other online tools to increase your chances of coming up for these short searches.

### In conclusion

Optimizing your Local SEO is an important, even if it's an underutilized SEO strategy.

<br>
__Other Categories in this Series:__
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/1-underutilized-keyword-research-strategies" target="blank">#1- Underutilized Keyword Research Strategies</a>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/2-underutilized-onsite-optimization-strategies" target="blank">#2- Underutilized Onsite Optimization Strategies</a>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/3-underutilized-content-strategies" target="blank">#3- Underutilized Content Strategies</a>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/4-underutilized-link-building-strategies" target="blank">#4- Underutilized Link Building Strategies</a>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/5-underutilized-technical-seo-strategies" target="blank">#5- Underutilized Technical SEO Strategies</a>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/7-underutilized-video-seo-strategies" target="blank">#7- Underutilized Video SEO Strategies</a>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/8-miscellaneous-underutilized-seo-strategies" target="blank">#8- Miscellaneous Underutilized SEO Strategies</a>


local seo

This is what the experts say are the most underutilized SEO strategies regarding Local SEO.

#6- Underutilized Local SEO strategies

Local SEO Strategy - Local Search Strategy - Local SEO Strategist


![44 Underutilized SEO Strategies and Tactics](//images.contentful.com/z8uwv83tofbw/3Fl6DS4NzmZwOc5OJECq2X/fb00d3f59ce36fc2efb316c467b304e2/44_Underutilized_SEO_Strategies_and_Tactics.jpg)
Recently I asked marketing and SEO professionals what they felt the most underutilized SEO strategy or tactic was. With over 100 responses I was able to compile them into these calegories:

<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/1-underutilized-keyword-research-strategies" target="blank">#1- Underutilized Keyword Research Strategies</a>
<br>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/2-underutilized-onsite-optimization-strategies" target="blank">#2- Underutilized Onsite Optimization Strategies</a>
<br>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/3-underutilized-content-strategies" target="blank">#3- Underutilized Content Strategies</a>
<br>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/4-underutilized-link-building-strategies" target="blank">#4- Underutilized Link Building Strategies</a>
<br>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/5-underutilized-technical-seo-strategies" target="blank">#5- Underutilized Technical SEO Strategies</a>
<br>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/6-underutilized-local-seo-strategies" target="blank">#6- Underutilized Local SEO strategies</a>
<br>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/7-underutilized-video-seo-strategies" target="blank">#7- Underutilized Video SEO Strategies</a>
<br>
<a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/8-miscellaneous-underutilized-seo-strategies" target="blank">#8- Miscellaneous Underutilized SEO Strategies</a>

My intent is to shed some light on a strategy or two that you haven't focused on yet, or perhaps remind you of some SEO basics that you haven't thought about in a while. Who knows? Implementing one of these underutilized strategies may be all that you need to push your rankings to the next level.


44 Underutilized SEO Strategies and Tactics

In response to the query, "What is the most underutilized SEO strategy?" I received over 100 responses, and here they are organized into 8 categories.

If your business has a physical location, local packs are a great place to rank. Top local listings usually fall within the top 3 positions on the SERP, making those who own them magnets for both online and offline traffic in their area.

But how do you track whether you’re ranking in the local listings for your keywords? That’s where Nozzle comes in.

Nozzle is ideal for local SEO. Using our tool, you can track keywords in any location from as broad as a country to as narrow as a neighborhood. Plus, you’ll be able to keep track of all the local packs and local listings that your keywords serve up.

Here’s how to do it. First let’s look at your competition in the local listings.

## Discover Who Owns the Local Listings

To find out who’s successfully vying for the top local listings, navigate to your Competitive Share of Voice dashboard. Select Domain in the Rollup dropdown, then begin typing “local” into the segment search bar; you’ll see several options. If you want to see who’s paying for local or map ads, pick the Local/Map Ads segment. For now, we’re going to use the Local segment.

![Local search rank checker - Local segment](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/ZLS0JmmDNQhNBc6J8cL7B/391c7359672c2e3a85ba41b57a4332bc/Local_Segment.png)

Next, sort by keywords and make sure you’re viewing the Keywords tab. You’ll find useful charts and a table below showing the domains that hold local listings in order of who has the most.

![Local SERP tracker - local pack charts and table](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3WjGoJ7XL2cpMnt121eQjq/3367ce22e5197a8751ab8d5500cefdc4/Local_Tracking_Charts_and_Table.png)

## Learn More

Click on one of the domains in the table (I prefer to right click and open in a new tab) to visit the performance overview page for that domain. Scroll down to find a new table that lists what keywords that domain has local listings for, along with the URL of each listing.

I clicked on enterprise.com, and you can see the keywords they hold local listings for. Because this domain has so many, I sorted them by search volume and limited the table to 10. You can also see the ranks of their local listings (all within the top 3 positions), along with other useful data like <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/pixels-from-top-a-nozzle-feature" target="blank">Pixels from Top</a> and <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/nozzles-crackerjack-calculation-of-clickthrough-rate" target="blank">CTR</a>.

![Local rank tracker - domain performance overview local pack keyword table](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/18QyWPj0riOQVigQ7r9iv1/8c4d16a3d50d755439a3bba74db286ed/Domain_Performance_Overview_Keyword_Table_Local_Listing.png)

Clicking on a top URL will open that URL in a new tab. Clicking on a keyword will take you to its performance overview page, where you can analyze its SERP results and SERP HTML with <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/introducing-nozzle-vision" target="blank">Nozzle Vision</a>. I clicked on the first keyword, “car rental sarasota.”

![Local SERP tracker - single keyword local pack SERP HTML](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1V5daCbQN2PddkrNX13SoG/a27f0f2368c6cd83986a8cc857da6c26/Local_Pack_Keyword_SERP_HTML.png)

## Analyze by URL

With Nozzle, you can also directly pull up a list of URLs that rank in local packs. These URLs would be the ones linked to in the “Website” button of each listing. 

To pull up such a list, visit the Competitive Share of Voice dashboard and apply the Local segment once again. Select URL in the Rollup dropdown. If you scroll down, you’ll see a table of URLs that rank in local packs, along with the number of keywords they have local rankings for.

![Local SEO ranking - local listing analysis by URL table](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2hxKlY263ZeWRKqFtM2mFV/3c2ae92e056916f750d12cbcf28c5110/Analyze_Local_Listings_by_URL.png)

Notice that enterprise.com has separate URLs for separate locations, but many of the other domains don’t. Pay attention to details like this when you analyze your local SERP landscape. If the higher-ranking domains seem to be doing something different from other domains, their strategy may be worth a try. This table doesn’t give you any information about the effectiveness of enterprise.com’s practice, but it’s still important to keep an eye on the details.

Clicking on one of the URLs in the table will send you to its performance overview page, where you can look at all the keywords it holds top local listings for.

![Local search rank tracker - URL performance overview local pack keyword table](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2lkP6DLeTcn77GPK06JK2J/d1125ca16b7bfe85b6449cbdbc19ad8c/URL_Performance_Overview_Keyword_Table_Local_Listing.png)

Keep in mind that, if you see a URL that is ranked far lower than the top 3 after you’ve applied the Local segment, this is because side panels are treated as a continuation from the bottom of the first column of search results. This is why <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/pixels-from-top-a-nozzle-feature" target="blank">Pixels from Top</a> can be such a useful metric and give you a better idea of where your listings are actually sitting on the SERPs.

![Google local rank tracking - side panel local listing](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5zocYloSHtrIrUrh9k0nm3/d9ee20a45230275959209c692433aefb/Side_Panel_Local_Listing.png)

## Local Pack Keyword List

You can also try pulling up a list of the keywords that serve up local packs, since not all keywords do. Such a list will illuminate the keywords where you have the opportunity to rank within an existing local pack and outshine your competitors. 

To supply yourself with a local pack keyword list, you’ll use the Explore by Keyword dashboard, which will be available in a future update.

As you can see Nozzle allows you to see Google's local packs from several angles and is super helpful to keep track of where you and your competitors are ranking in the local packs.

<a href="https://nozzle.io/trial" target="blank">Try tracking local packs on Nozzle for free!</a>


Local SERP tracker - single keyword local pack SERP HTML

Use Nozzle to track your competitors in Google's local packs for any location.

Blog - Local SEO