How to choose the right local SEO package for small business owners?

Before anything else, let’s face it – nearly 80% of potential clients/buyers running an online search for a local business nearby will visit its brick-and-mortar location (or at least make a call) within 24 hours. Looks impressive, right? And did you know that arguably 35% of all searches on Google search engine are local requests for nearby business? It means that if you’re running a targeted venture at the level of locales, choosing the right SEO package specifically designed for small business owners becomes a dire necessity. Why? Simply because if you’re still getting by without the Search Engine Optimization, your opponents may be already stepping ahead backed with a solid local SEO package, or at least running DIY SEO at the level of locales. That’s why now it’s time to finally stand up-to-date and see in what way local SEO package can change the way you run the business. 

How to Choose the Right Local SEO Package

Of course, selecting the best-fitting local SEO package for a given small business operating within a limited area may prove to be a really daunting task. As there are too many related offers available on the Internet, and literally myriads of different packages widely advertised by different SEO companies and full-stack Digital Marketing agencies. But how to make the right choice? Taken in general, when choosing a reliable local SEO package, I recommend you to keep looking for the following. Here are four simple tips to identifying a good SEO company that will have the best chances to meet the needs and requirements of your small business in full: first of all, make sure the team is qualified in the Search Engine Optimization at the local level, avoid measuring your potential candidacies based on their rankings in Google’s SERPs solely, request the basic way of handling their local citation strategy, and don’t forget to make everything clear regarding their basic link building efforts for local online promotion. That being said, below let’s quickly run through each stage of choosing the your “ideal” local SEO package to make everything clear in greater detail.

Make Sure The Team Is Qualified in Local SEO

The thing is that the standard (otherwise, nationwide or local) Search Engine Optimization and local SEO are far not all the same. Nevertheless, too often search optimization providers are offering their localized services believing that good SEO is still SEO, disregarding its precisely targeted regional component. But they are terribly mistaken – simply because local SEO has a completely different focus, when compared with the concept of traditional optimization for search. Make sure the company you’re going to hire understands all ins-and-outs of local SEO, and are always aimed at building strong signals of relevance around a specific target location. That’s it.

Avoid Hiring Company Based on SERPs Rankings Solely

Why? Just because when a given SEO company or Digital Marketing agency is seen on the top of the organic search, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they will be your best-match after all. So, arguably the only way to measure their actual qualification is via running your own independent survey. Don’t hesitate to make a double-check to see their rates and package services will fit both your current business needs, and global targets you want to achieve over time. Next, make sure to request their qualified portfolio – consider their real case studies, and the actual projects. All related information must be transparent and fully trackable – otherwise, how would you know that they’ve got real expertise in the industry, right?

Local Citations and Link Building Strategy

And here we’re finally entering the most important junction. The thing is that the way of getting everything in place with local citations, and high-quality link building does matter, particularly for small business owners. So, make sure to have a clear picture of their citation strategy planning, and get a clear understanding of what tools they are going to use for that purpose. After all, set a clear emphasis on your personal scheme of link building and make everything clear about the way they are running it for your own small business. 

The Rest of Basic Stuff to Check

Once all above-mentioned points are made fully clear, here is the rest of miscellaneous stuff for you to know when choosing the right local SEO package that would be best-fitting to your business needs and global goals. Make sure to touch the following aspects and think about these most crucial criteria when taking the final decision:

• Ask yourself whether you necessarily need a team of in-house local SEO experts, or your search optimization plan can be OK with a remote team of local SEOs who know the stuff.
• Think about your general budget total, to be estimated throughout the whole planned period of implementing your customized local SEO package.
• Specify your own desired duration of the potential contract, correlated with the actual recommendations provided by the experts you’re considering for hire.
• Make everything clear about the general reporting procedure you’re going to have with them. Consider the basic things like all potential ways of running website audits and tracking modes needed for that, as well as their planned reporting frequency. 

• Understand what kind of basic metrics they are planning to cover under their common reporting procedure (i.e., information on conversions, local ranking positions themselves, outreach updates, link building progress, etc.). 
• Don’t forget to have a clear picture of your ongoing ranking progress in Google’s local SERPs for the main core keywords you’re targeting over time. How soon will you start observing the first measurable results for your website in local search? 
• And what about your future cooperation in case the other local business served by their company as well – proves to be a direct competitor to your own company? Should this bad thing happen, you may find yourself in really big trouble, particularly when your competitor has a much bigger SEO/online marketing budget. That’s why this issue must be made clear as soon as possible.