Partner with Melbourne’s
award-winning local
SEO agency

Local SEO is a vital digital marketing strategy that helps businesses become more visible in localised search results on Google and other search engines. When someone searches for a service or product near them, they're looking for a local solution. That's where local SEO comes into play. It's important for businesses for several reasons:

• Enhanced visibility: People frequently use search engines to look for local information. By utilising Local SEO strategies, we can enhance your business's visibility in these searches, bringing more potential customers to your door.
• Increased traffic and sales: With Local SEO, you're targeting potential customers in your area who are more likely to take action. They're searching because they have a need, and if your business appears prominently in their search results, they're more likely to choose you.
• Edge over competitors: Many businesses haven't yet realised the importance of local SEO, which gives you a competitive advantage. Being an early adopter could allow you to take a substantial lead in your local market.
• Building trust and authority: Having a strong local online presence helps to build trust with potential customers. It gives your business more credibility and makes people more likely to use your services or products.
• Cost-effective: Compared to traditional advertising methods like newspapers or direct mail, local SEO is much more cost-effective. You're reaching people who are actively looking for your products or services, leading to higher conversion rates.

In short, local SEO is a highly effective way to market your local business online. It helps businesses promote their products and services to local customers at the exact time they're looking for them online. This makes it a crucial part of any digital marketing strategy.

As a leading local SEO agency in Melbourne, our strategy follows a comprehensive, multi-step process that is designed to improve your visibility and rankings in local search results:

• Understanding your business and audience: Before starting, we spend time understanding your business, your competitors, your potential customers, and your existing online presence.
• Keyword research: We'll conduct thorough keyword research specific to your industry and locality. We'll identify keywords that your target audience is using to find products or services like yours, as well as long-tail keywords and voice search phrases, which are becoming more popular.
• Google My Business optimisation: A key part of local SEO is optimising your Google My Business listing. We'll ensure your business information is accurate and complete, select the right business categories, include high-quality photos, and encourage customer reviews.
• On-site SEO: We optimise your website for local search by including your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) on your website. We'll also incorporate localised keywords into your site content, meta titles, and meta descriptions.
• Local content strategy: We'll create locally-focused content that not only appeals to your audience but also signals to search engines that you're a local authority. This could include blog posts about local news, events, industry developments, case studies or portfolio work.
• Local link building: We'll work on obtaining local backlinks to boost your website's authority and local relevance. This could involve partnerships with local businesses, sponsorships, or local event participation.
• Citation building: We'll ensure your business is listed in important online directories and that the NAP information is consistent across these listings, which is vital for local SEO.
• Review management: We'll help you generate and manage reviews on key platforms like Google My Business and Yelp. Reviews are a critical local ranking factor and can help you stand out in local search results.
• Analytics and reporting: We'll track your local SEO performance and provide you with regular reports. We'll track rankings, website traffic, conversions, and more to demonstrate the ROI of our services.

The combination of these tactics, tailored to your specific needs and constantly adjusted based on results and changes in search engine algorithms, will help ensure your business stands out in local searches and brings in more customers from your community.

Managing local SEO citations effectively is an essential component of our SEO strategy, particularly when it comes to local search visibility.

• Citation audit: The first step we take is to conduct a comprehensive citation audit. We want to know where your business is currently listed, if the information is accurate, and where there may be opportunities to create new listings. We use advanced software tools to scour the web and find each and every mention of your business, ensuring no stone is left unturned.
• Citation consistency: A key element in local SEO citation management is maintaining the consistency of NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) information across all platforms. Any discrepancies can cause confusion and hurt your search engine rankings. We ensure that the NAP information across all platforms is uniform, and we’ll update it regularly.
• Citation clean up: If our citation audit uncovers any incorrect listings, we'll rectify these as soon as possible. This could include incorrect NAP details, outdated information, or even duplicate listings that are diluting your online presence.
• Building citations: We don't stop at just auditing and correcting existing citations. We also look for opportunities to expand your digital footprint. Our team identifies high-quality, relevant directories and platforms where your business is not currently listed but should be, then we take care of the submission process.
• Localised content creation: Finally, we understand that to rank well in local search, having content that is optimised and can rank for your local customer base is key.

We understand that customer reviews are an integral part of a business's online reputation, and we take a comprehensive, structured approach to managing them.

We ensure the reviews your business receives are visible across multiple platforms. This can include Google, your business's own website, social media platforms, and industry-specific review sites. The goal is to ensure potential customers see the positive experiences of others.

Our approach is all about increasing the volume of positive reviews, reducing negative ones, and leveraging feedback for continuous business improvement. And throughout, we never forget that each review represents a real person with a genuine customer experience.

We understand that the ultimate goal of any digital marketing effort, including Local SEO, is to help your business grow. Our team focuses on a mix of qualitative and quantitative measurements that not only assess the performance of our efforts but also align closely with your specific business goals.

• Local search rankings: First and foremost, we measure where your business is ranking on search engines for localised keywords. We use sophisticated rank tracking tools to monitor these rankings over time, including tracking local map pack listings in Google.
• Google My Business insights: We heavily utilise Google My Business Insights to measure how your listings are performing. These insights give us valuable data about how your customers interact with your online presence, including search queries, clicks, call actions, direction requests, and more.
• Website traffic: We'll keep track of your overall website traffic as well as the traffic specifically coming from local searches where possible, using advanced analytics tools like Google Analytics.
• Online reviews & ratings: We'll monitor the number and quality of online reviews on your Google My Business profile and other local directories. This helps us understand your online reputation and customer satisfaction levels.
• Conversions: Our team will set up conversion tracking to measure tangible outcomes like form submissions, calls, online purchases, or any specific actions that align with your business goals.
• Citations and backlinks: For a complete picture, we'll monitor your brand's citations and backlinks, as they play a significant role in local search ranking factors.
• Competitor analysis: We will always keep an eye on what your competitors are doing in local SEO. This is essential for us to spot new opportunities and keep up to date with industry trends.

In our regular reporting, we’ll provide a comprehensive, easy-to-understand report on these metrics. Not only that, but we’ll continually adjust and optimise the strategy based on the data and any changes in your business strategy or goals.

Our agency approaches Local SEO for multi-location businesses with a systematic, scalable, and data-driven methodology. Here's an outline of our approach:

• Localised content creation: We develop unique, location-specific content for each of your business locations. This includes landing pages, blog posts, case studies, and more that is specific to each location. The aim is to ensure that each location is seen as an individual entity by search engines, hence improving your local search rankings.
• Google My Business optimisation: We manage and optimise Google My Business listings for each of your locations. This includes updating all details to be accurate and consistent, posting regular updates, and encouraging and managing customer reviews.
• Citation building and management: We ensure your business information is accurate, consistent, and up-to-date across all online directories. This not only helps search engines understand your business better but also improves your trustworthiness and authority.
• Local keyword optimisation: We conduct thorough keyword research to determine the most effective local search terms for each of your locations. These terms are then strategically incorporated into your site's content and metadata.
• Schema Markup implementation: We implement Local Business Schema markup on your website. This helps search engines better understand your business and its locations, improving the likelihood of appearing in local search results.
• Hyperlocal advertising: We use targeted, location-based PPC campaigns to draw in local traffic. This includes optimising your campaigns for local keywords and using geographic targeting to reach the right audiences.
• Review and reputation management: We help you collect and manage reviews for each location, both on Google and on important review sites for your industry. Positive reviews can significantly improve your local SEO rankings.
• Monitoring and reporting: We constantly monitor your local SEO performance, using tools to track keyword rankings, organic traffic, and other important metrics for each location. Regular reports are provided to keep you in the loop on our progress.

By combining these strategies, we can create a powerful local SEO plan that gives each of your locations the best chance of ranking highly in their specific areas. Each of these steps can be tailored to your business's specific needs and objectives, making SIXGUN’s approach both flexible and effective.

Definitely! Integrating local SEO with wider marketing strategies is crucial for businesses looking to establish a strong local presence in Melboune, or nationally. This integration ensures that your online and offline marketing efforts work in harmony, maximising your reach and impact within your local community. Here are some routes we might take or recommend for integrating your local SEO into your wider marketing. 

Local SEO and social media integration

Social media platforms offer a unique opportunity to enhance local SEO efforts. By using local hashtags, geotagging posts, and engaging with local events and communities, businesses can increase their local visibility. For instance, participating in local conversations on social media or highlighting local events can draw attention to your business and drive local traffic to your website.

Email marketing

Email marketing can be a powerful tool for promoting local offers or events. Segmenting email lists based on geographical locations allows businesses to send tailored content to specific local audiences. This personalised approach can increase engagement and drive local customers to both online and physical store locations.

Integrating with PPC advertising 

Pay-per-click advertising such as Google Ads can be aligned with local SEO for effective geo-targeted advertising. Using local keywords and customised ad copy for different locations enhances the relevance and effectiveness of PPC campaigns.

Content strategy for local SEO integration 

Content marketing tailored for local SEO involves creating content that resonates with the local audience. This includes focusing on local news, events, and community activities. Creating blogs, videos, or social media posts about local interests or issues not only engages the local audience but also boosts local search rankings.

We view local SEO as part of a holistic strategy, not as a single approach. By creating a unified plan of attack across various channels, we ensure you effectively reach and engage your local audience, driving both online and offline traffic. 

No way! This is an SEO myth that is just as persistent and outdated as the idea that quality outbound links might cause you to lose traffic. Let’s debunk this myth, along with a few of the other common myths about local SEO. 

Myth 1: Local SEO is only for small businesses

There's a common misconception that local SEO benefits only small or locally-focused businesses. However, local SEO is equally crucial for larger companies or those targeting multiple locations. For businesses of any size, local SEO helps increase visibility in targeted geographic areas, enhancing local presence and driving region-specific traffic. It's particularly beneficial for multi-location businesses to target customers in each of their operational areas, ensuring they appear prominently in local searches across various regions.

Myth 2: Local SEO results are immediate

Some will assure you that local SEO yields immediate results, but this isn't the case. Local SEO is a gradual process, influenced by factors like industry competitiveness, the existing online presence of the business, and the efficacy of the implemented strategy. As with many aspects of SEO, patience and continuous effort are key, as it takes time to build a strong local online presence and achieve higher rankings in local search results. Regular updates and adaptations to the strategy based on performance data are essential for long-term success.

Myth 3: Just Google My Business is enough for local SEO

While a Google My Business listing is indeed vital, it's only one part of a comprehensive local SEO strategy. In addition to maintaining an up-to-date Google My Business profile, local SEO involves optimising your website with local keywords, building local backlinks, and effectively managing online reviews. These elements work together to boost your local search visibility, with each playing a crucial role in how your business ranks in local search queries.

Myth 4: More reviews always mean better rankings

It's a common belief that simply having a higher quantity of reviews will improve local SEO rankings. However, the quality of reviews, the frequency of new reviews, and how a business responds to these reviews are also significant. High-quality, genuine reviews can positively influence potential customers, and a regular influx of new reviews signals to search engines that your business remains relevant. Responding to reviews, both positive and negative, shows engagement and commitment to customer service, further enhancing your local SEO. 

The bottom line is that businesses large and small can benefit from local SEO. We think it’s best to avoid leaving potentially valuable gains on the table when it comes to SEO—especially if a given claim about strategy turns out to be untrue.