Local SEO for Franchises: A Step-by-Step Guide

Did you know according to Safari Digital that 97% of people use search engines to find local businesses? However many franchise owners still struggle to show up in those local search results.

If that’s you, I know how frustrating it can be. You want customers to find your business, but it’s just not happening.

Don’t worry; help is here!

Our guide to Local SEO for franchises is made just for you. It’s easy to follow and filled with helpful tips to get your business noticed. Say goodbye to the confusion and get ready to be seen by the customers in your area!

Steps For Local SEO For Franchises

Local SEO is essential for franchises that want to reach customers in their local area. By following the steps in this section, you can improve your franchise’s visibility in search results and attract more customers to your business.

1. Google My Business Optimization

Google My Business (GMB) is a free platform that allows businesses to create a listing that appears in Google Maps and search results. It is one of the most important tools for local SEO, as it can help businesses to reach more customers in their area.

There are a number of things that local franchises can do to optimize their GMB listings for local SEO. Here are a few tips:

1. Use keywords: When you are filling out your GMB profile, be sure to use keywords that people in your target area are likely to search for. This will help your listing show up in search results for those keywords. For example, if you own a pizza franchise, you might want to use keywords like “pizza near me,” “best pizza in [city name],” or “delivery pizza.”

2. Get reviews: Positive reviews are a great way to build trust with potential customers. Encourage your customers to leave reviews on your GMB listing. You can do this by asking them after they have made a purchase or by offering them a discount or other incentive.

3. Make sure your listings are up-to-date: It is important to make sure that your GMB listings are up-to-date. This includes updating your hours of operation, photos, and any other relevant information. If your listings are not up-to-date, customers may not be able to find your business or they may get the wrong information about your business.

4. Create a consistent brand identity: Franchises should create a consistent brand identity across all of their GMB listings. This includes using the same business name, address, phone number, and logo on all of their listings. This will help customers to recognize your business and remember it when they are searching for businesses in your area.

In the following image, you can clearly see the difference between an unoptimized listing and an optimized listing.

2. Stay Active On Social Media Platforms And Add Posts To Google My Business As Well

In addition to optimizing your Google My Business listing, it’s also important to stay active on social media platforms. This will help you to reach more potential customers in your area and build a stronger online presence.

Here are a few tips for staying active on social media for local SEO for franchises:

1. Post regularly: The more you post, the more likely you are to be seen by potential customers. Try to post at least once a day, and more often if possible.

2. Use relevant hashtags: Hashtags are a great way to get your posts seen by more people. When you use hashtags, your posts will show up in search results for those hashtags.

3. Share local content: Share news and updates about your business, as well as content that is relevant to your target audience in your area. This will help you to connect with potential customers and build relationships with them.

4. Respond to comments and questions: When people comment or ask questions on your social media posts, respond promptly and professionally. This shows that you are engaged with your customers and that you care about their feedback.

By following these tips, you can stay active on social media and improve your local SEO for franchises. This can lead to more customers in your area and increased sales.

The given below is my Instagram page. You can see that I stay active on social media. This helps in increasing brand awareness and building trust in the minds of the users.

BONUS TIPS 😀

You can also use social media to:

• Run contests and giveaways to generate excitement and buzz about your business.
• Use local images and videos to capture attention and engage potential customers.

3. Generate A Page For Various Locations On Your Site

In addition to your main website, it’s important to create a page for each of your franchise locations. This will help Google and other search engines to understand that you have multiple locations and to show your website in search results for local searches.

Your location pages should include the following information:

• The name of your franchise location
• The address of your franchise location
• The phone number of your franchise location
• The hours of operation of your franchise location
• A description of your franchise location
• Any other relevant information about your franchise location
• Use clear and concise language that is easy for potential customers to understand.
• Use images and videos to showcase your franchise location.
• Make sure your location pages are mobile-friendly.
• Update your location pages regularly with fresh content.

It’s also important to use local keywords on your location pages to boost local SEO for franchises. For example, if you have a franchise location in New York City, you might use keywords like “SEO service near,” or  “best SEO service in New York City“

In the image given below, you can see that Starbucks has generated pages for various locations on its site.

4. Perform An Audit Of Local SEO

It’s important to perform an audit of your current SEO performance. This is one of the local SEO tactics that will help you to identify any areas where you can improve.

There are a number of tools that you can use to perform a local SEO audit, such as:

Google Search Console: Google Search Console is a free tool that allows you to see how your website is performing in search results. You can use Google Search Console to track your rankings for specific keywords, see how many clicks your website is getting from search results, and identify any errors on your website that may be affecting your SEO performance.

SEMrush: SEMrush is a paid tool that offers a comprehensive suite of SEO tools, including a local SEO audit tool. The SEMrush local SEO audit tool will scan your website and provide you with a detailed report on your local SEO performance, including your rankings for specific keywords, the number of backlinks to your website, and the quality of your local content.

The following image demonstrates how SEMrush for site audits. I personally use this tool for my website audit.

Local Falcon: Local Falcon is another paid tool that offers a local SEO audit tool. The Local Falcon local SEO audit tool will scan your website and provide you with a detailed report on your local SEO performance, including your rankings for specific keywords, the number of reviews for your business, and the quality of your Google My Business listing.

Once you have performed a local SEO audit, you will be able to identify any areas where you can improve. You can then start to implement changes to your website and marketing strategy to improve your local SEO for franchises.

5. Enhance Your Internal Linking Structure

Internal linking is a powerful way to improve your website’s SEO performance. When you link to other pages on your website, you are telling Google that those pages are important and that they should be ranked higher in search results.

For local SEO, it’s important to focus on linking to pages that are relevant to your target audience and that include local keywords. For example, if you own a pizza franchise, you might want to link to pages about your pizza menu, your location, or your hours of operation.

You can also use internal linking to create a clear and logical navigation structure for your website. This will make it easier for visitors to find the information they are looking for, which can improve your website’s bounce rate and user experience.

Ways by which you can enhance your internal linking structure for local SEO:

1. Use a variety of link types: There are different types of links that you can use on your website, such as text links, image links, and anchor links. Use a variety of link types to make your internal linking structure more interesting and engaging.

2. Link to important pages: Not all pages on your website are created equal. Some pages are more important than others for SEO purposes. Make sure to link to the most important pages on your website, such as your homepage, your contact page, and your location pages.

3. Check for broken links: Broken links can damage your website’s SEO performance. Make sure to check your internal links regularly for broken links and fix them as soon as possible.

Here in the provided diagram, you can clearly learn the internal linking structure. You can see that topics are linked with supporting content and supporting content is linked with each other.

6. URL, Meta Description, Title Tags, Content, And Headers Optimization

This step involves the optimization of various aspects like URL, meta description, title tags, content, and headers. 

Let’s look at them one by one.

URL: Start with a clean and simple URL that tells people exactly what the page is about. If it’s about Local SEO for franchises in New York, then something like “yourwebsite.com/local-seo-for-franchises-new-york” works great.

Meta Description: This is a summary that shows up in search results. Make it catchy and include the keyword “local SEO for franchises.” For example, “Get the best local SEO for franchises and grow your business in New York.”

Title Tags: This is the headline that search engines see. Again, include “local SEO for franchises” in a way that makes sense, like “Local SEO for Franchises: A Step-by-Step Guide”

Content: Your content needs to be helpful and engaging. Write as if you’re talking to a friend who wants to understand local SEO for franchises. Use headings, bullet points, and images to make it easy to read.

Headers Optimization: Break your content into sections with headers that include “local SEO for franchises.” It makes your content user-friendly and helps search engines understand what it’s all about.

Check out how I optimize my website meta description in the image shown below.

7. Get Involved In The Local Community

Getting involved in your local community is a great way to improve your local SEO performance. When you get involved in your community, you are building relationships with potential customers and demonstrating that you are a valuable member of the community. This can lead to more people visiting your business and more positive reviews for your business.

There are many ways to get involved in your local community. You can volunteer your time to local charities, sponsor local events, or simply be a regular at your local coffee shop or bookstore. The more involved you are in your community, the more likely people are to remember you and your business when they need your services.

You can get involved in the local community by using social media to connect with your community. You can also become a regular at your local businesses as this shows that you are a part of the community and that you support local businesses.

As you can see below I have mentioned one of the invitations to the business day event. You can attend these kinds of events to build relationships with customers.

8. Generate Localized Content For Different Locations

If you have multiple franchise locations, it’s important to generate localized content for each location. This means creating content that is specifically tailored to the people who live and work in the area around each location.

Localized content can include things like blog posts, articles, and social media posts that focus on local events, businesses, and attractions. It can also include content that is specifically about the services that your franchise offers and how they can benefit people in the local area.

By creating localized content, you can show Google that your business is relevant to the people who are searching for businesses like yours in the local area. This can help you to improve your local SEO performance and attract more customers to your franchise locations.

Look at the stats below, you will have knowledge about the audience’s viewpoint. Most users preferred brands that localized their content.

BONUS TIP 😀

Here are some tips for generating localized content for different locations:

• Use local keywords: When you are creating localized content, be sure to use local keywords in your title tags, meta descriptions, and throughout the content itself. This will help Google to understand that your content is relevant to the local area.

• Promote your localized content: Once you have created localized content, be sure to promote content on your website, social media, and other channels. This will help to get your content in front of people in the local area.

9. Work On Reviews

Positive reviews are essential for local SEO. They can help to improve your website’s ranking in search results, attract new customers, and build trust with potential customers.

I have shown one of the reviews of the client in the image below.

There are a few things you can do to work on reviews for your franchise locations:

Ask for reviews: When people visit your franchise locations, be sure to ask them to leave a review online. You can ask them to leave a review on your website, Google My Business listing, or other review sites.

Respond to reviews: When people leave reviews for your franchise locations, be sure to respond to them promptly and professionally. Thank them for their feedback, and address any concerns they may have.

Promote positive reviews: Once you have some positive reviews, be sure to promote them on your website, social media, and other channels. This will help to attract new customers and build trust with potential customers.

Conclusion

Local SEO for franchises can seem hard, but it doesn’t have to be. With steps like making your business easy to find on Google and staying active on social media, you can get noticed in your local area. If this sounds tricky, Incrementors can help.

We know all about local SEO for franchises and can make it easy for you. Are you worried about your business? Book a 30-minute chat with us, and we’ll find a solution for you by providing franchise SEO services. We know what to do, and we’re here to help your business grow.

FAQS

1. What is Google My Business Optimization, and why is it important for local SEO for franchises?

Google My Business Optimization involves setting up and maintaining your franchise’s profile on Google My Business. It helps your franchise appear in local searches, maps, and Google’s local pack, making it easier for customers to find you.

2. How can I stay active on social media platforms to boost my local SEO?

Staying active on social media means regularly posting updates, engaging with followers, and adding posts to Google My Business. This can improve visibility and connection with local customers for your franchise.

3. What does it mean to generate a page for various locations on my site?

This involves creating specific pages for each of your franchise locations on your website. By doing so, you can target local keywords and provide localized content, boosting your local SEO efforts.

4. How do I perform an audit of local SEO?

Performing an audit of local SEO means analyzing and checking your website’s performance in local searches. This includes looking at aspects like your internal linking structure, meta descriptions, title tags, and content. It helps you identify areas for improvement.

6. What are the benefits of generating localized content for different locations?

Localized content is tailored to the specific needs and interests of a local audience. By providing content that resonates with each of your franchise locations, you increase relevance and engagement, supporting your local SEO efforts.

7. How can I improve reviews, and why are they important?

Encouraging satisfied customers to leave positive reviews and responding to all reviews helps build trust. Reviews play a vital role in local SEO as they influence how your franchise is perceived and can affect your ranking in local search results.