A business directory such as Dubai Local is nothing but a data list including name, address, phone number, email address, etc. Basically, it consists of as many informative attributes of a business as possible. It is used to provide a database of accessible businesses pertaining to the category of service a client has requested. For example, when a Delhiite will search for momos, the search engine will automatically show a list of fast-food restaurants serving momos.
A recent feature added to such google searches has been the ‘near me’ attribute. Searching ‘medical shops near me’ while you are in Roop Nagar, will give you a location-specific list of medical shops. This trait of the search engine has helped it optimize its utility for the user. Nonetheless, it has also fuelled the competition in businesses as they also need to target search engine optimization in order to sustain themselves in the race. Dominating business listings becomes an even more important task for local small to medium-sized businesses because they need an edge over already established businesses, operating through chains in this way.
Hence, we bring to you some tips on how one can dominate results in business listings.
Most local search engine optimization (SEO) techniques fall under three broad categories:
● Optimizing local listings and citations.
● Optimizing your website and its content.
● Optimizing and working on incoming links.
The NAP
Most important of all the date is your business’s name, address, and phone number. To get listed on google maps, a business should be legitimate. Sometimes, at some places and with respect to a certain category of business, you might need to obtain a business license. Consistency is the priority for a NAP. These three primary details need to be consistent everywhere they are fed, lest you encounter problems later.
Curate a Website
Once your NAP is ready according to the standards, you then need to have a website URL. For that, you need a website of course. The home page should have a list of all, the other sites if any so that it is easier for the client to navigate and reach what they want. Keep updating the website from time to time. Include recent graphics, having a dedicated team working on the work is a great option too.
Descriptions should be ready beforehand
Both long and short description of the business and the company is required for listing in Dubai Local. A short description shall be only up to 50 characters and include characteristics like type of business, city name, etc. It is required to cut short the time spent by a customer on hunting the right place to avail of the service. A longer description that comprises some 250 characters should explain who you are and what you do. Information in the short description would automatically find a place in this one.
What do you look like
Pictures of all possible products of your company/ business should be available online. Not just the products, but people might also want to see your place. For example, an eating outlet should have pictures of its food, its menu, and its dining area for listing on Dubai Local. While a sports manufacturer might not need to put up pictures of his warehouse, his finished products should have their glimpse available. The better the presentation, the more attractive a product becomes.
Having local citations
A local citation is any mention of your business’s name, address, and phone number online. Many SEOs understand that they’re a key ranking factor for local SEO. Citations appear in lots of different places: business directories, social networks—anywhere someone might be looking for information about local businesses. Citations are useful for two main things: ranking higher for local search queries (maybe) and helping people discover your business online in Dubai Local. According to a survey by Moz, citations are the 5th most important ranking signal for local queries.
One can either get the local listings themselves or hire someone else to get them for you. The former can however take a lot of time before it is done and is not advisable for industries that are too competitive. For non-competitive markets, listings could be done on sites and social media pages like Google Business Profile, Facebook, Yahoo! Local (currently requires a payment to Yext), Apple Maps, Bing Places for Business, MapQuest, Yelp, BBB.org, FourSquare, TripAdvisor etc.
Get listed with Data Aggregators
Once done with the local listing, secured and verified, the next task has to be to get listed with data aggregators. There are three main data aggregators: Data Axle, Acxiom, and Localeze. These aggregators will put your data in their database and make it available to thousands of websites. Be cautious with the data you give in. once submitted, getting any information corrected is nearly impossible.
Involving a third party
Outsourcing NAP to a third party is also an option. One can outsource local citations and listings. Such agents usually have tie-ups with several other sites, who in turn disseminate data further. This will help you grow through a secure channel. But make sure to choose a trustworthy third party or your data may be used unlawfully. BrightLocal, MozLocal, and Yext are three such agents.
Reviews
Reviews are the key to success. As by the saying, the more the merrier, it is better to have more and more people speak about your products and services. Reviews of the general public would be trusted better. Reviews are much sought after by individuals, especially when they avail of online services. If not your customers, you can hire a team who does the job, venture out and produce sponsorships, encourage review, outsource review monitoring, etc.
Work on your links
Links should be curated not just for the website but also for other social media pages too. Make sure you are present everywhere. With every post or mention of yours, make sure links to reach you are provided. The more your business is surfed, the higher the chances are it would get noticed and would then rank higher.
These were some of the tips that we had to offer in order to help you optimize your search engine presence and in business listings such as Dubai Local. Besides these, keeping an eye on your rival and adopting what he has better will also help you improve. Keep yourself updated with developments in the sector and be open to changes and advancements.
