If you’re a small business looking to expand your online reach, you might wonder why you should care about backlinks from local search engines and directories. You might even think that directories are totally old school and they don’t matter anymore. However, getting links from local search engines in the same vicinity as where your business is located is not only important, but could be argued that it’s more important than ever.
Local search engines are a thing
Google isn’t the only game in town, even though it’s a behemoth that can’t be ignored. Local search engines do exist, and they help users find what they’re looking for in their area. Sure, these search engines might not have all the bells and whistles that Google has, but that doesn’t make them any less important. People who use search engines for products or services in their area are more highly targeted and they’re also more likely to buy what you’re selling.
Directories aren’t old school
Directories, especially those geared towards local businesses, are important because they pass on what is called “link juice” to your website. Even though the term link juice sounds bizarre, it’s actually quite simple. A site that links to yours passes it’s domain authority to your site.
Do people use these directories, or are they only to benefit your site on Google and Bing? Well, the answer is yes, people do use them. You’re not going to get massive amounts of traffic from link directories but you will get some traffic and the amount of traffic you get will depend on what business you’re in. As you can imagine, more people search for pizza than they do for diamond earrings.
The links you get from directories not only pass authority to your site, but in the eyes of the search engine, they help solidify your site as a local business. You’re getting listed in a directory for a local business; hence, you must be a local business.
Getting seen starts with a local approach
Big search companies pay attention to the smaller sites that focus on local businesses. Bing and Google want to hyper-personalize their services to people no matter where they live, and the best way for them to do that is by paying attention to local sites. Directories that are moderated give search engines plenty of information they can use to help direct their users toward the local businesses they’re searching for.
If you type in “near me” and wonder how the search engines know what businesses are near you, one reason is that they’re listed in local search engines and directories. Those links help verify your business’s location, and in turn, the search engines will list your site when people look for products and services in your area.
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