Top 10 Ways to Advertise
Locally on the Internet
by Brad Simon
Everyone knows the Internet is your link to the whole world, but what if you don’t want to advertise your business to the whole world. Can you still use the Internet to advertise to just your geographical area?
The answer is a resounding YES! More than 17% of all searches done last year were local geographical searches and the number is rapidly rising. Every day, customers turn more and more to the Web for what they need, and that includes using the Internet to find local stores to shop at.
Is your store’s website “Local Search Friendly”? Can customers in your community find your store’s website when they look for a local jewelry store? The following 10 tips will help you reach out Locally on the World Wide Web.
1. Store’s Address
Make certain your address is typed in text on all the pages on your website. Many jewelry store websites have the address in the banner at the top of the page. Visitors can read the address but search engines can read graphics. They only read the text on the page. If your address, city, state, zip code, and phone number are not typed out on each page the search engines will not know to list you in a local search.
Also be sure to use your state 2 letter code as well as spelled out so that your website will be found regardless of how the customer types out their search. Make sure your zip code is on all your web pages as well, because more and more people are using zip codes in their searches. In addition do not use an 800 number. List your phone number with area code so your will be fond locally if some does a search by area code.
List your geographic area on your web pages as well, such as “upstate NY” or “South Florida”. If you are located in a smaller city or a suburb of a larger city, include the name of the nearest larger city on your pages.
2. Geographic Area
Include your city name or geographic area in the text of your web pages. For example instead of stating “We have the largest selection of diamonds in the area.” say “We have the largest selection of diamonds in the Chicago area.”
3. Domain Name
If possible use your city name or geographic area in your domain name. Many times the name of your store is already taken. Including your city name in your domain will increase your chances of getting the domain name, PLUS it will help you in local searches. For example if you have a common store name like “Jones Jewelry” JonesJewelry.com is probably already taken. However the domain name JonesJewelryAtlanta.com might still be available. Plus, having your city name in the domain name of your website will increase your chances of getting a high listing in a local search.
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