Online sales of products and services keeps going up. But if you're an interior designer, your business is local. That means that even if you’ve established a strong web presence through blogging for keywords like interior design, decorating and residential design professional on a national basis, local search is more important than ever at making your firm profitable. More consumers use mobile to find restaurants, service providers and stores than ever before. It is estimated that 51% of Google searches are from mobile and of all online shopping 48% of people start with a search engine. In a nutshell, you need to optimize your website for local search.

Why Local SEO Is Important

Think about your last local search. What were you looking for? What were the sites that came up high on your SERP ( search engine results pages)? Third party review sites are an important source for information on the go. If for example, you’re customers are looking for an interior design firm for their next project, a site like Google+ or Houzz offers real world reviews to help them make the best choice to fit their personal style and budget. Using these sites can help them narrow down their search and make the best decision.

Google realizes the importance of local search for business, that’s why Pigeon, their local search algorithm, updates privileges of third-party review sites and ranks them highly on SERPs. So if you want your business to rank well, you’ll need to have a strong presence on those third-party sites. In fact, a recent study published in the Harvard Business Review found that a one star increase in your business’s Yelp rating can directly result in a 5% to 9% increase in revenue.

Think " Social Engagement"

Most of these sites give you the ability to respond to reviews and engage with readers. This is true not only of sites like Facebook, but also third party review sites like Houzz, Yelp, and Google+. Engagement is a factor in search engine results placement. It also shows that you care about your customers and allows you to directly address issues, positive or negative, which may arise. When engaging:

• Always thank the reviewer. Especially when it comes to negative reviews!
• Keep reviews public, unless there is a personal issue involved
• Never offer rewards for a positive review. It’s seen as bribery.
• Don’t take a negative review personally, think before you respond! Remember most of your customers do not leave reviews and they are your audience. Show them you care and always take the high road.

Winning At Local Search

Search parameters are constantly evolving, but the basics still hold true. Consistently create new, optimized content. Write about other local businesses when possible. This can build good will and possibly result in reciprocation.

Make sure you optimize the five crucial on-page elements:

• Page titles - Use a name of a place in your page titles
• URLs - Make certain your page urls include the name of a place you want to do business in
• Page headers - Include the name of a place in your H1 headers
• Internal links - Link from a local name on your web page to another page that features place
• Content - Write about projects you have worked on by mentioning the location

Use relevant keywords and target your location when using long-tail keywords like “Interior Design Firm, Boston, MA” or “Interior Design Firm, Chicago, IL. “ Make sure your business name, address, and phone number appear consistently across all channels including your website, social media accounts and local business directories.

Bonus Local Search Engine Optimization Suggestion

Consider using the third party SEO provider MOZ Local. Moz Local creates and maintains business listings on the sites, apps and directories that factor most in local search. You simply upload your information to Moz Local and they will push your info to the major data aggregators. Moz can create and update your listings, manage location information, re-verify your listings and find and eliminate duplicate listings. Moz Local is cheap ($84), effective and will ensure that your online presence is accurate and seen by others. If you need help setting it up, give us a call. 

Take your local search optimization up a notch. Concentrate on written content with place based keywords and use MOZ local to improve your search engine optimization. All business is local, take the time to optimize your website and keep your business in front of your audience!