Paperwork, billing, quotations, equipment repairs, tax forms.. The list could go on and on. Owning a landscaping business involves a lot more than cutting lawns. Now in order to rank higher in search engines and remain competitive, you’re supposed to spend time on SEO (search engine optimization) too?
Luckily, there are a plethora of resources on the web to help you – this one included. We’ve broken local SEO into 3 steps so that maybe, just maybe, you’ll get a full 8 hours of shut eye tonight.
Step 1: Ensure you’ve included local keywords in the right places.
DIY (do-it-yourself) style
Use Google suggest and Google’s Keyword Planner Tool to come up with a list of local keywords your potential customers are searching for. Enter each keyword into search engines to get an idea of how stiff the competition is.
After you’ve compiled a list of keywords you’d like to target, begin sorting through the following places in your website to be sure they include keywords.
- Title tags
- Meta descriptions
- Header tags
- Blog categories
- URL slugs
- Image alt tags
- Main body content
If keywords are absent in these places, be sure to rewrite them and include keywords fluidly. To write custom meta descriptions and title tags in WordPress, you will need to install a plugin.
⭐Tip: Don’t forget to consider the intent of users searching each keyword. For example, when users search the keyword ‘lawn mower’, are they looking for someone to mow their lawn or to purchase a lawn mower? Search results will show their intent is to purchase a lawn mower.
Hiring a professional
If instead of finding and inserting keywords yourself you’d like to rely on a professional, the service you want is called keyword research. We can only speak for ourselves since services may vary by firm, but the following is how the process will likely unfold.
They will begin by assessing your website’s current ranking and SEO efforts. After this they will use diversified resources to find the right keywords for your landscaping company with high search volumes. At this point they will rewrite where needed for you and provide you with your report and optimal keyword list.
Step 2: Update and publish local listings online.
DIY style
Have you created accounts for your landscaping business on local listing websites yet? If you have already, it’s important to check them now and again and make updates on changed phone numbers, services, addresses, etc. Consistency will help search engines rank you appropriately.
If you have not created accounts, consider doing so on the following websites.
- Facebook Pages
- Google (Google Maps, Search, and more)
- Yellow Pages
- Superpages
- Bing
- Yelp
⭐Tip: To speed this process up, enter your business and zip code into Moz Local for their assessment of your local listing.
Hiring a professional
If you’d prefer this to be taken care of for you, request that your SEO firm update local listings as part of their SEO efforts.
Step 3: Consistently create content to target local keywords.
Creating content (like blogs) is crucial for any SEO strategy, local or otherwise. There are a number of ways content helps you rank higher in search engines over time:
- Gives your landscaping business something to promote on other platforms. When you share posts from your own website via social media and other websites, it will lead traffic there. More traffic generally sends a signal to search engines that you have something worth ranking.
- Increases your inbound links. When you write content of value, other people will find it useful to share and refer to in their content. Trustworthy inbound links help your rank.
- Helps convert users. If your content answers questions of potential customers, they will begin considering you a reliable field expert. After you’ve answered their pre-purchase questions through content, they’ll be ready to purchase- with you. That translates to happy referrals to friends and repeat website traffic.
⭐Tip: The key is that this content needs to be helpful for your audience and of quality. If you write poor quality content or duplicate content, it may be marked as “thin content” by Google and penalized.
Hiring a professional
A blog writing and content creation service is probably right for you if you’re short on time, literarily challenged, or just plain don’t feel like writing. You can count on an experienced content writing service to craft content that targets specific keywords and your unique audience.
Your day is chock-full as it is. By mapping out your SEO efforts, you’ll be able to make the most of the time you do have. That means more time for sleep, family, and maybe even a vacation from all the new business that finds you.
