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How can I Attract More Local Customers to My Business?
Everyone asks, “How can I attract locals to my business?”. It’s an important question. Those customers are nearby, and you have a clear proximity advantage. So, you must stay front of mind.
How to Attract More Local Customers for Your Business?
There are a few key strategies that you can employ that will attract more local customers to your business. In this article, we will consider four areas that will build your local profile and which should attract more locals to your business.
Get local domains for your online brand
Let’s start with your domain name. Have you registered your .au domain yet? Learn about .au domain registration requirements here. The .au direct domain type asserts your Aussie credentials and will give your customers confidence in knowing that they are dealing with an Australian supplier. Read about other key benefits of the new .au direct domain name here.
With a local domain, you can instil a sense of satisfaction in your customers that they are investing in a local business. This satisfaction enhances your brand image and builds customer loyalty.
Many readers will already have a domain name registered, but there is much to be said for having more than one domain name. One significant advantage is that it often helps your business be found more easily.
If your business is in Sydney or Melbourne, you should do a Sydney domain name search or check Melbourne domain name availability. In the same way that the recently launched .au domain reinforces a domain’s strong affinity with Australia, a .sydney or .melbourne domain name defines your local presence even more narrowly, strengthening your brand.
Optimise your website for SEO
In a report published in January 2022, 99% of consumers have used the internet to find information about a local business in the last year. In addition, 78% of consumers use the internet to find information about local businesses more than once a week (up from 69% in 2020).
Search engine optimisation (SEO) can play an enormous role in brand awareness and local customer acquisition for businesses. So it is essential to brush up on your SEO skills if you want to attract more local customers. When customers are searching for specific services online through Google or other search engines, you want to ensure that your company is listed in the search engine results pages (SERPs) so that they can find you. Basically, you want to be found, and the earlier you appear on the results page, the better your ability to attract more customers to your business.
There is a myriad of variables that impact your SEO performance. The use of keywords, the inclusion of local addresses, backlinks to local online entities and even the experience you create for customers, whether on a desktop or mobile, all impact your ranking. If you need some additional advice here, we can provide plenty of support. Try our free SEO health check and audit.
Update your Google Business Profile
Google Business Profile (GBP) is a tool that lets you create a business profile to appear in Google search results and on maps. You can add details like your business name, phone number, opening hours, address, and photos.
Prospect searches that include suburb names or ‘near me’ are more likely to show your business. This means you can optimise your online website for search engine rankings just by updating your GBP.
Encourage online rating and reviews for your business
When you are trying to attract more local customers to your business, you must encourage them to learn about your business through feedback and reviews. Make it easy for your existing customers to rate your business. Ratings and reviews provided by the customers of local companies are often the keys to encouraging locals to trial a nearby business. Your Google Business Profile is a great place to start. It’s free and has a widely used customer review platform. Customers can quickly establish how other users review your business. These reviews also provide real-time business performance insights.
Businesses are increasingly focusing on local business opportunities. These businesses want to know how best to attract these locals to their business. The measures above will improve your ability to attract more customers to your business, but we have a team of world-class digital experts ready to assist if you do want some more help.