Does your business show up in a local online business directory? If you have a business with a physical location and target a customer base in that area, listing your business on local directories is one of the best things you can do for your business.
Despite the critical nature of this marketing strategy, many local business owners fail to create local directory listings because they’re yet to realize what listings offer their business and the reasons why they should get their business listed on local directories.
Should you list your local business in a directory? Is it necessary for your business’s success? How much difference does local directory listing make in your business?
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Business Listings – An Online Shop Storefront
Getting listed in a local online business directory is essential for businesses, especially small ones. A local directory listing is an online profile for your business that highlights your business details, including:
- Business name
- Business address
- Business hours and special holidays
- Contact information
- Website and Social media pages
- Product/Service details
- Images of product/service and storefront
- Special offers
- Customer reviews
- And every other detail about your business
These details used to be on the Yellow Pages, but with the internet and online marketing being the talk of today, we talk more about online business directories.
Reasons Why You Should List Your Business On Online Business Directories
There are several reasons why you should get your business listed on local directories:
- Local Listings Support Your SEO Efforts
- Increased Business Visibility, Traffic, CTR, and Leads
- Get Customer Feedback and Build Trust
- An Affordable Opportunity to Advertise and Strengthen Your Online Presence
- Boost Sales Revenue
Infographics on the Reasons Why You Should List Your Business on Online Business Directories
Local Listings Support Your SEO Efforts
If you’re a small business owner, there is a chance that you’ve heard of SEO and the many benefits it offers your business.
According to several sources, including Google, your business listed on local online business directories adds SEO value to your online presence by providing search engines with rich content and local signals.
These listings provide valuable information about your business to searchers on SERPs, especially when the searcher is in your location or searching with a local keyword.
With a well-optimized directory listing, your business will outrank competitors with an unoptimized business listing profile or don’t have a listing.
Let’s consider the first few results on the SERP when a customer searches for the keyword ‘bakers in New York.’
You’ll notice the SERP featuring results from Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business), which is Google’s local business directory. You’ll also see map results showing other bakers in the locality.
Another sample search for ‘supermarkets in Florida‘ returned results with local directories among the first two results.
These show that the more you list your local business on different local directories, the more your chances of showing up on search engines when a potential customer searches for a related product/service.
Increased Business Visibility, Traffic, CTR, and Leads via An Online Business Directory
The more you list your website on local directories, the more your chances of getting more website or store traffic.
Major local directories like Yelp, Google Business Profile, Foursquare, etc., or any other popular directory in your locality have built authority with search engines. This means search engines recognize them as directories in their respective localities and will bring up businesses listed on them whenever someone searches.
This gives your business more chances of being seen. Your website or social media pages are unlikely to have this search engine authority as a small business.
Increased visibility means increased traffic to your website or store, increased CTR, and higher chances of qualified lead generation.
Get Customer Feedback and Build Trust
Getting listed on local business directories also helps create an avenue for customers to leave feedback for your business. Online reviews are crucial for brands’ online reputation.
A Bright Local 2022 consumer review survey uncovered several customer online review statistics that support that online reviews are critical to business success.
According to the survey:
- More customers are reading online reviews than ever, with 77% of consumers always or regularly reading reviews when browsing for local businesses.
- Up to 84% of consumers said that reviews were critical in their purchasing decisions.
These statistics show how much modern-day consumer value online reviews from local business listings.
You increase customers’ trust in your brand when you list your business on platforms for business listing and keep delivering excellent customer service and receiving positive reviews.
Besides, posting these reviews from local directories on your website and social media pages increases your social proof marketing efforts.
Without a listing on local business directories, there won’t be an avenue for customers to leave feedback on your services.
An Online Business Directory Is An Affordable Opportunity To Advertise
Having a local business listing is one of the cheapest marketing strategies that generate higher ROI, especially for local businesses. Most online local directories allow you to list your business for free, while others might charge an extra fee to give you access to premium features.
Despite the directory’s terms and conditions, online directory listing is relatively affordable and strengthens your online presence for years (as long as you’re listed).
The majority of consumers conduct market research online before making any purchase. As long as your business is listed, you’ll enjoy a strengthened online presence (especially in your locality) and increased chances of generating and converting leads.
A pro tip: Many local online listing directory websites pull data from bigger directories. This means listing your local business on major business directories gives you access to several other local directories.
When you search for your business or any related product/service, you will likely see your business showing up on several different web directories.
Lisa, Small Biz Tipster
More listings mean more visibility, and this means more leads and customers. You can never go wrong with listing your business in a local online business directory.
Boost Sales Revenue With A Local Online Business Directory
Every business owner is in business to make money or to get some kind of reward. Listing your local business in a directory increases your sales by helping you generate leads and customers, who will, in turn, make purchases.
The more you become visible online and your reputation grows, the more money you’ll make from customers.
How Much Difference Does Local Online Business Directory Listings Make In Your Biz?
It makes all the difference. Listing your business on local directories can be the difference between achieving success and being among the 45% of businesses that fail during the first five years.
72% of consumers that did a local search visited a store within five miles, and 97% of people learned more about a local company online than anywhere else.
So, you have every reason to list your local business on business directories if you’re in business to grow and achieve profitability. Which listings are you on today? I’d love to hear about them in the comments below.
