“Near me” searches are one of the most popular types of queries on Google. According to a study, “near me” searches increased by 40% in 2022. Here Local SEO Agency Canberra says these queries show the growing trend of local search and provide an opportunity for businesses to improve their local SEO rankings by focusing on “near me” searches.
What are “near me” searches?
Near-me searches are a type of search query that includes an explicit location, like “pizza near me” or “dentist near me.” Near-me searches are also called local searches or local intent searches. Local SEO Agency Canberra suggest that commonly used to find businesses or services in your immediate vicinity.
A query like this may not sound like it’s related to SEO (search engine optimization), but when you look at the different types of keywords people search for, they often make up a significant portion of your traffic—and they’re easier than ever to rank for on Google!
How Google responds to a “near me” search query
An important element that you should keep in mind is that Google uses location to provide results. The company wants to give users the most relevant information, and it does this by using location-based signals (such as IP address) to determine what’s nearby. For example, if a user searches for “restaurants near me”, Google will show results with restaurants that are in close proximity to the search engine’s server location.
Google also uses location as part of its algorithm for ranking local searches. By focusing on how local businesses advertise their locations and what keywords they use, Google can better identify which businesses are offering the most relevant products or services for a given area.
Google uses location as part of its algorithm for ranking local searches. By focusing on how local businesses advertise their locations and what keywords they use, Google can better identify which businesses are offering the most relevant products or services for a given area.
This means that your business can have a significant impact on how it appears in the local search results. If you want to be found by searchers in your area, then you need to focus on getting more reviews and creating more content about what makes your business unique.
Increase in “near me” searches
The use of “near me” searches has increased dramatically over the past few years. According to Google, “near me” searches have more than doubled in the last five years and are now up to 16 percent of all local-intent searches. In order to increase your local search rankings, you’ll need to take advantage of these queries by making sure that you’re meeting people’s needs with relevant content.
In order to do this, you’ll need to understand the difference between local intent and general intent. When people search for a specific business or service in their area, they have local intent. This means that they’re looking for something nearby and are more likely to take action on your results than if they were just looking for ideas.
Benefits of “near me” searches for local SEO
There Local SEO Agency Canberra says about numerous ways that local businesses can benefit from the increase in “near me” searches. The first of these is increased traffic: if you’re lucky enough to rank on the top of Google’s results for “dog groomers near me,” you’ll likely see an increase in foot traffic from people looking for a nearby salon. This, in turn, means an increase in conversions and revenue for your business.
Another benefit of this trend is an improvement to your local search rankings: if someone searches for “dog groomers near me” and sees several results including yours ahead of everyone else’s (because they live relatively close by), they’ll be more likely to click on yours rather than one further down the list that doesn’t seem as relevant or convenient because there’s no location information attached to it.
This can also improve your ranking for related searches like “dog grooming near me” and “local dog groomers.” The more you’re able to improve your local search ranking, the more people will see your business when searching for things nearby.
This can be particularly important if you’re a new business, because it helps build your reputation and lets people know you exist. It also makes it easier for customers to find you when they’re ready to buy: rather than having to search through the entire list of businesses in their city (and sort through all their competitors), they’ll already see yours at the top when searching for what they need.
Tips to improve your local rankings with “near me” searches
To improve your local rankings with “near me” searches, optimising your website for local search is important. This means using schema markup on your business listing, using location extensions, creating an accurate Google My Business page and ensuring that it has all the relevant information listed on it (including phone number), as well as making sure that you have a strong presence on Google Maps.
You should also make sure that you have the right NAP information on your website and social media accounts. If you don’t know what NAP is, it’s a combination of your business name, address and phone number.
In addition to these things, it’s important that your website is mobile-friendly and has a fast loading speed. This will ensure that when people search for businesses near them on their smartphone, they’ll find yours right away. And finally, you should make sure that your website is optimized for search engines.
This means having proper titles and descriptions for each page, as well as using relevant keywords throughout your site. If you’re unsure of how to do this, it’s best to hire an SEO expert who can help guide you through the process.
Optimize your Google My Business Listing
Make sure your business name and address are correct. The first thing people will see when they view your Google My Business listing is the name of your business, followed by the address. This means you need to make sure these two areas are correct before you get started with any other optimizations.
Make sure your hours are accurate and up-to-date. The second most important information that people will see is whether or not you’re open or closed at a given time (and if so, what those times are).
Add high quality photos of your products/services being used in real life situations where possible! Nothing says “I care about my customers” like showing them how awesome something looks when it’s actually being used in real life scenarios!
Optimize descriptions based on keywords – while having great content is nice, remember that Google relies heavily on keywords when ranking pages in their search results so make sure there’s enough variety within descriptions without going overboard by writing paragraphs upon paragraphs of text just yet – sometimes less really is more!
Conclusion
The “near me” search query is a powerful tool for local SEO. With over 10 million searches per month and rising, this keyword has the potential to boost your rankings in Google and grow your business. If you’re looking for an SEO strategy that will keep your company on top of its game then consider taking advantage of this search query now!
