Link building is one of the most integral elements of search engine optimization. The same also applies to local SEO. Do you want your website to appear in relevant local searches? If the answer is yes, local link building is a necessity.
What is local link building?
Link building is a process where you get external sources to post links which point back to your website. Local link building falls into line with this same methodology. There is one major difference, however: it is all about acquiring links from local businesses and listing sites.
When putting together your local link building plan, there are two targets:
- Acquire local links that point towards your website.
- Create valuable content which resonates with search engines and local customers.
As for the latter of the two, you likely understand how to produce valuable content already. If not, we have a comprehensive guide about putting together on-page content full of quality and optimized for local SEO. For your backlinks strategy, these pages act as your landing pages.
For this particular guide, we are going to focus on the tactics that you need to employ to obtain those all-important local links.
Building a link building directory list
The first step is to build a list that contains websites to target. If you are not sure where to start in that regard, Whitespark has created a directory with the best citation sources per country. In the United States, the top ten platforms are:
- Google My Business
- Apple Maps
- Foursquare
- Bing Places
- Yelp
- TomTom
- Yellow pages
- Infogroup
- LocalEze
If this list does not appease your need for websites to use, there is always the opportunity to conduct Google searches to find sites manually. If you operate a business in Chicago, for example, you could do searches like these:
- Chicago directory
- Chicago business directory
- Chicago business listings
Additional keywords can help to narrow down results further. Say you run an Indian restaurant in Chicago. These are some of the searches you may conduct:
- Indian restaurant directory Chicago
- Restaurant directory Chicago
- Chicago restaurant business listings
As previously mentioned, listing sites should only be one part of your link building strategy. You also want to target local platforms – like local bloggers and local news sites – to enhance your link building efforts.
Tips for gaining local links
You understand what local link building is about. You have a comprehensive list of sites to target. The next step is putting a plan together to get local links. Below are a few tips:
Claim your Google My Business listing
Google My Business is firmly established as the #1 local citation website in the USA. As a result, it makes sense to claim your GMB listing as soon as possible.
GMB provides numerous benefits for local businesses. In this case, the most important one is that you gain a Google-affiliated backlink. Considering Google is the most significant entity on the internet – and one you have to impress – this local link is one that falls in the ‘essential’ category.
Talk to the press
For any type of managed SEO campaign, going down the press road is recommended. Not only can you gain significant positive visibility for your company, but you may also receive valuable backlinks from significant local news outlets. With that in mind, look out for local sites which are a subsidiary of a large news platform.
There is one problem when talking to the press: giving them a hook and something worthwhile to cover your business. The good news is there are various tactics to supply them with a juicy bit of content to report on. Take into account these pointers:
- Interview a celebrated local figure.
- Organize or be a major participant in a community event.
- Be a speaker at a trade show or local conference.
- Start a mentoring program.
- Release a new, pioneering product or service.
Note: a local news outlet agreeing to publish your story is only half the battle. Make sure they also include a backlink to your website!
Partner with a charity
Helping out a charity has various obvious benefits. As well as being able to feel good due to supporting a worthwhile cause, the philanthropy involved also reflects well on your business. Most importantly, in this case, you can also use the partnership to leverage backlinks. These backlinks are not difficult to acquire, either. Your business could be represented by an advert on the charity’s website, or you could be listed on their “Our Partners” page.
Aside from charities, you could also support a local business through sponsorship. The process is essentially the same, with the end result being you gain valuable backlinks pointing to your site. However, do not just select any business to sponsor. First, inspect their web authority. If their Google page rank is non-existent, for example, any local business link from them is effectively worthless.
Network with businesses and bloggers
If you are happy to help each other out, it can seriously pay off to network with local businesses and bloggers.
As an example, you come to an agreement with a popular blogger to create guest posts for their site. They gain free content to share to their audience, while you receive a valuable backlink in return – everyone is a winner. However, there is one issue: the content has to be high-quality from your side. A blogger, especially one with a strong following, is not going to publish any old content on their site. If you’re not confident in crafting guest posts with value, our professional content writing team can take care of the work for you.
The team at Click Intelligence is also ready to assist with any other aspect of local SEO link building. Our marketing experts can help optimize your Google My Business profile, organize local link SEO promotions, find the right partnership opportunities, and so much more.
