New Jersey Local SEO – A Comprehensive Guide

Internet users make 46% of all Google searches to seek local information. Learning about local New Jersey SEO will make your website rank higher on Google than ever.

At least 86% of consumers use the internet to search for local businesses. Local SEO NJ makes it easier for New Jersey businesses to attract leads and sales.

New Jersey needs to know about your business for it to succeed. The more effort you invest in local SEO, the more visible your business will be to New Jersey. That’s it. It is a simple concept, but it’s so powerful. Local SEO is vital if your business has a physical location in New Jersey or operates in the New Jersey area.

This local SEO guide will give you more insight into the subject.

The Importance of New Jersey Local SEO

According to SearchEngineLand, more than 80% percent of smartphone users have used their phone to perform a “near me” search. Of those searches, more than 90% said they were likely to click on the first results. While the concept of local SEO is straightforward, it is nonetheless important. Don’t be mislead by the simplicity of the idea. You need to stay on top of it or make sure that you have someone who can do it for you.

How SEO Helps You Connect With Local Customers

Google My Business is an outstanding tool for putting your business on the Internet. Google My Business is the first step to performing well in terms of local SEO. By signing up and updating your information with Google My Business, you make sure that your information is correct. With your location registered in this way, when people perform a search for a business near them or in a specified location, such as New Jersey, Google can connect them to you.

Local New Jersey SEO Keyword Strategy

Use a keyword tool to research New Jersey keywords. Make sure you research keywords that are popular in your business’s specific town and county. The higher a keyword’s search volume is, the more often people search for it. A strong keyword strategy includes keywords with search volumes both high and low.

It also helps to research things like the content marketing trends of 2021 in New Jersey. Looking at your competition’s websites/keywords will give you a better idea about local content trends. That way, you’ll find a way to improve upon their strategies with better, more informed ideas.

Optimize Your Google My Business Presence

People can and often do call businesses directly from Google. If you can get your business to show up at the top of their results page, in their snippets, so much the better. Note that desktop searches list seven businesses in the snippets, but smartphone search has exploded and you want to be in the top three to appear prominently on a smartphone search. An additional benefit of local traffic to your business will be reviews, which are posted on Google My Business. Good reviews will direct more leads to you.

According to Moz, almost half of the people who performed a local search, clicked on one of the top three. Fewer than one in ten clicked on “load more results” to get more options. If you’re not in the top three, you are missing out.

Local SEO can help you reach those top positions for your area and drive more customers your way. But getting in bed with Google isn’t the only job to perform if you want to master New Jersey local SEO. You should also optimize your website, your blog posts, and social media.

Make Your Website Mobile-Friendly

Local SEO solutions often focus on making websites mobile-friendly. It’s because people often conduct local searches on their phones. This is especially the case while they’re out and about, and New Jersey is no exception.

Always check your website on multiple mobile devices to see how it looks. If your website isn’t formatted right on a particular phone, you’re missing out on business.

Local SEO For Blog Posts And Social Media Posts

When you consider SEO as part of your strategy, you must be consistently using keywords that will help local searchers find you. That means adding in the text ‘New Jersey,’ telling people about where you are based, and making sure they know you serve the local area. Not only this, but it’s also good to demonstrate that you understand your local customers. You may need to do some research if you don’t already know your New Jersey customers intimately. You also want to keep potential customers up to date and make sure they know what your business does and what it offers. Mention new products, services, or markets. You want users to understand that your business is growing and that it is remaining relevant.

Get Smart About Social Media

Being good at social media means coming up with new and creative ideas to stand out. Your social media strategy must reflect your business’s connection to your business’s target area in New Jersey. Using local NJ hashtags will make this connection clear.

You could also make local memes about your business’s part of New Jersey. Try making a funny meme about a local landmark, urban legend, historical figure, etc. Whenever people share it, they’ll be promoting your business’s account to their local followers.

If all of this sounds overwhelming to learn, hire a local SEO company. We’d be more than happy to do all of the heavy lifting for you.

Building Your Brand

It’s usually a good idea to start with your customers when determining a business strategy for a modern business. Offer relevant discounts, incentives, or reassurances to help them trust and believe in your brand. This is much better than simply dropping the words New Jersey into your text now and then. Pop-up ads or opt-in forms can help you improve your business. You want people to sign up with your company by giving contact information. Get that by giving them something first, such as a useful video or an e-book. Once you have their contact information, offer an additional enticement to return, such as a 10% discount on a product or service. The idea is to get the visitor back as a customer.

It will also pay to understand your competition as well as your customers. That is part of New Jersey local SEO. You’re competing with other businesses like yours, but you’d better know your area and what other products and services are available there. If you can’t beat them, it becomes all the more important to differentiate yourself.

If you are involved with social media, like Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram, you have a head start. Facebook has a huge readership. With thoughtful management and responsiveness, you can help your business significantly here.

Finally, when you craft your blog posts, social media posts, and any other communications online, make sure your location details are complete and accurate. Consistency is important. Your NAP (Name, Address, Phone number) should not only be the same across the web, but they ought to be written consistently, too. Abbreviations, dashes, and the order in which elements appear are all important. Consistent contact details will help customers find and trust you.

Increasing Brand Awareness Locally

Business Area Optimization

When using Google My Business, make sure the local nature of your “turf” is emphasized. Besides mentioning the city your business is in several times, describe the area you serve. That can include mentioning neighborhood names or even prominent landmarks. Use as many area references as you can without looking artificial.

While we recommend making Google My Business a priority, note that there are other local or city directories and you can benefit from using them. You can also check to see if the chamber of commerce for your city has a business directory; if so, get your business in it.

Website Content Optimization For Your City

Writing content specific to your city or your locality is based on a time-honored technique: research. You can do a thorough search of the information about your city, study its history, its industrial-base, types of businesses, neighborhoods, ethnic distribution, and educational systems, among other things, to write authentic content that resonates with your readers.

It’s also worth considering whether your product or brand fits with something already being marketed. It’s a good idea to be well aware of the similarities and differences between your business and others locally. If you serve an area the others are failing to reach, this can be a great advantage. Study how your business fits in with where you are so your website and your business can make the most impact.

Next Steps

53% of all website traffic comes from organic searches. Organic traffic is easier to convert into sales, so start making the most out of local New Jersey SEO. On average, Google shows 8.5 organic search results on the first page per mobile search. Your business deserves to be included in those results with the help of local SEO NJ.

Get hip to Google—check out our SEO and SEM services. Feel free to contact us with any questions you may have about local SEO for your business. And if you’re ready to optimize your business for potential NJ leads, give us a call today at 973-317-8765!