SEO in 2022: Show Up Better in Local Searches

Presented at the National Auto Dealers Association Convention

Transcript

1. SEO in 2022: Show Up Better in Local Searches Greg Gifford Vice President of Search | SearchLab Digital | Chicago & Dallas 312-584-4757 | greg@searchlabdigital.com @greggifford
3. Between COVID restrictions and the chip shortage, the last few years have been crazy… 3
4. Customer behavior has changed at a fundamental level, but most dealers are still marketing with old tactics 4
5. Every sale starts with a search 5
6. If your dealership isn’t showing, you’re not selling 6
7. Winning isn’t only about showing in search results, it’s about providing an amazing customer experience 7
8. We know that customers will shop around before buying 8
9. Recent Google data shows that a customer will visit a website(s) 27 times before submitting a lead 9
10. SEO should be your dealership’s number one priority 10
11. Organic visits from Google are your biggest source of traffic 11
12. Organic visits from Google are your biggest source of leads 12
13. The OEM-approved vendor system is not in your best interest 13
14. OEM-approved SEO vendors are locked into the same packages 14
15. OEM-approved SEO vendors have to work with any dealer who wants to sign up 15
16. OEM-approved SEO vendors provide the exact same service to every dealership 16
17. (That means a Ford dealer in Dallas receives exactly the same strategy and tactics as a Ford dealer in BFE, Wyoming) 17
18. Team members at the OEM-approved SEO vendors are incredibly overloaded 18
19. So how is that supposed to help your dealership? 19
20. You need a customized SEO strategy if you want to win in today’s competitive landscape 20
21. Stop choosing your SEO provider based on the cheapest option 21
22. Stop choosing your SEO provider based on who you can co-op 22
23. SEO is an investment in the future success of your dealership 23
24. You actually need Local SEO 24
25. Google’s local algorithm is different. It’s more complex and includes additional signals. 25
26. Most SEO providers only do traditional SEO 26
27. Automotive searches are automatically localized 27
28. Automotive searches are automatically localized 28
29. Need help explaining how Local SEO works? Do a few “pizza delivery” searches 29 Watch this: bit.ly/pizza-local-seo
30. Need help explaining why you need Local SEO? Do some simple math 30 Watch this: bit.ly/seo-math-proof
31. Pay attention to the annual Local Search Ranking Factors study 31
32. Pay attention to the annual Local Search Ranking Factors study 32
33. Pay attention to the annual Local Search Ranking Factors study 33
34. The most important factors that influence local visibility are on-site signals, inbound links, customer reviews, and GMB 34
35. Let’s talk about on-site signals 35
36. Quality is what’s important… Not quantity 36
37. Customers are shopping around, so give them a reason to go to (and come back to) your site 37
38. If you’ve got the same generic content as every other dealer in town, why would they care? 38
39. If you want to show up as a search result when someone searches for a particular search phrase, you need a page of content about that concept on your website 39
40. That page should be the best answer in the local area to the question that the searcher is asking 40
41. It should also answer all the subsequent questions the searcher will have after he/she gets the initial answer 41
42. Your content should be actually ABOUT your dealership and about the local area 42
43. Test your content: If you change your dealership name and your city, would the content work on another dealer’s site? If so, it’s bad content 43 Watch this: bit.ly/content-switch-test
44. Test your content: Read it out loud (it should sound conversational) 44 Watch this: bit.ly/content-out-loud
45. That comma-separated list of cities won’t help you rank in those cities 45
46. Once you’ve written awesome content, you’ve got to optimize the content for Google 46
47. Page elements to optimize: Keyword and city, ST in the title tag 47
48. Page elements to optimize: Keyword and city, ST in the H1 heading 48
49. Page elements to optimize: Keyword and city, ST in the page content 49
50. Page elements to optimize: Keyword and city, ST in the URL 50
51. Page elements to optimize: Keyword and city, ST in the image alt text 51
52. Page elements to optimize: Keyword and city, ST in the meta description 52
53. Optimize for how people search (don’t use jargon) 53 Watch this: bit.ly/seo-avoid-jargon
54. My favorite example: “used cars” vs. “pre-owned vehicles” 54
55. My favorite example: “used cars” vs. “pre-owned vehicles” 55
56. You need a blog, and you need to post regularly 56
57. There’s a huge difference between website content and blog content 57
58. Your blog shouldn’t be all about you (who cares?) 58
59. Make your blog a local destination to gain more visibility with potential customers 59
60. For the dealers we work with, 50% of blog content is about the dealership and 50% is about the local area 60
61. Need some ideas for local blog posts? Check out my video: 61 Watch this: bit.ly/local-blog-ideas
62. Let’s talk about inbound links 62
63. Inbound links are one of the most weighted factors in Google’s local algorithm 63
64. Building relevant inbound links is hard work (and time consuming) 64
65. Most SEO providers don’t do any link building 65
66. You need local links to win 66
67. The easiest way to get local links is to get involved in the local community 67
68. Ideas for local links: Local sponsorships 68
69. Ideas for local links: Local meetups 69
70. Ideas for local links: Local blogs 70
71. Ideas for local links: Local clubs/organizations 71
72. Ideas for local links: Local business associations 72
73. Ideas for local links: Neighborhood watch sites 73
74. Ideas for local links: Child seat installation 74
75. Ideas for local links: Use our link questionnaire 75 Download here: bit.ly/questions-for-local-links
76. Let’s talk about customer reviews 76
77. Reviews are important for attracting more local customers, but they’re also weighted in Google’s algorithm 77
78. Your dealership needs a solid, proactive review process 78 Watch this: bit.ly/review-process
79. You need to make it easy to leave a review and you need to ask every customer 79
80. Set up a /reviews page on your site with a simple thank you message and links to your review profiles 80
81. If a customer leaves a review that contains a keyword phrase you’re trying to rank for, you’ll rank better for searches for that phrase 81 Watch this: bit.ly/keywords-in-reviews
82. Answer every review you receive 82 Watch this: bit.ly/respond-to-reviews
83. Responses to negative reviews are not for the reviewer, they’re for every potential customer who reads the review 83
84. Let’s finish up with your Google Business Profile 84
85. Your Google Business Profile is your new home page. It’s the first impression you make with potential customers. 85
86. Make sure you add UTM tracking to your website link (and all other links) 86 Watch this: bit.ly/utm-in-gmb
87. 87 Add this code to the end of your link: ?utm_source=gmb&utm_medium=organic
88. It’s better not to use Google as the source so you’re able to see where clicks came from without using secondary dimensions 88
89. Make sure you list a local phone number 89
90. It’s OK to use a tracking number. Use one with a local area code and list it as your primary number, then list your local number as an alternate 90
91. Category choices have massive influence on how you show in local search results 91 Watch this: bit.ly/car-dealer-categories
92. Your primary category carries more weight, so be strategic 92 Watch this: bit.lygmb-primary-category
93. You should have your inventory displayed in your GBP (it shows on desktop now) 93
94. You should have separate GBPs for Service and Parts, and they should be nested as departments on your primary GBP 94 Watch this: bit.ly/gmb-departments
95. You should be using Google Posts 95
96. Google Posts are basically free ads that show in Google search results 96
97. Optimizing the Post thumbnail is the key to success 97
98. Image cropping is super wonky and inconsistent. Use our Photoshop guide for better control over the final thumbnail 98 Download the PSD: bit.ly/posts-image-guide
99. Image cropping is super wonky and inconsistent. Use our Photoshop guide for better control over the final thumbnail 99 Download the PSD: bit.ly/posts-image-guide
100. Check out my Whiteboard Friday video for more info on Google Posts 100 Watch: moz.com/blog/google-posts
101. You should be paying attention to GBP Questions and Answers 101
102. Anyone can ask you a question… And anyone can answer for you 102
103. Customers think it’s chat or instant messaging, but it’s really a community discussion feature 103
104. Questions can receive multiple answers, and the answer with the most upvotes is displayed as the primary answer 104
105. Load your own common questions and answer them (set up a pre-site FAQ page) 105
106. Google will auto-complete and auto-answer questions based on past similar questions and answers 106
107. Want to see some fun examples? 107
108. Want to see some fun examples? 108
109. Want to see some fun examples? 109
110. Want to see some fun examples? 110
111. Want to see some fun examples? 111
112. Want to see some fun examples? 112
113. Want to see some fun examples? 113
114. Want to see some fun examples? 114
115. I use an SEO scoring matrix when I speak at 20 Group meetings 115
116. I use an SEO scoring matrix when I speak at 20 Group meetings 116
117. The maximum possible score is 100. The average score we see is 45.3 117
118. Want your dealership scored? Let me know, I’m happy to score you 118
119. Handle your own SEO? Use the matrix to check your work Use a vendor for SEO? Use it to hold them accountable 119
120. Put in the work and cover the basics. A customized SEO strategy will get results every time. 120
121. Put in the work and cover the basics. A customized SEO strategy will get results every time. 121
122. Put in the work and cover the basics. A customized SEO strategy will get results every time. 122
123. Put in the work and cover the basics. A customized SEO strategy will get results every time. 123
125. SEO in 2022: Show Up Better in Local Searches Greg Gifford Vice President of Search | SearchLab Digital | Chicago & Dallas 312-584-4757 | greg@searchlabdigital.com @greggifford