By Chad Hively, Partner at Golf Cart Resource
Okay, so maybe it’s TECHNICALLY 4 words – Local Search Engine Optimization. If your Golf Car Dealership has a website, then you’ve probably heard the abbreviation SEO (Search Engine Optimization) thrown around quite a few times over the last 5 – 7 years. There is also a good chance you have received dozens of emails from “gurus” and people overseas stating they can get you on the front page of Google in less than 30 days (Side note: these are normally scams that will lose you money, and can hurt your website in the long run).
There are three major types of SEO:
- Nationwide SEO
- Image SEO
- Local SEO
Their names are pretty self explanatory – Nationwide SEO focuses on showing up in Google’s Search Results nationwide for standard informational searches (i.e. “How to replace sliding glass doors in a house”). Image SEO focuses on making sure your images are showing up in Google’s Image Search. Then, there is the one we are going to be talking about today – Local SEO (i.e. “Golf car dealers near me”).
According to Google, 46% of searches have “local intent”. This means that 46% of the people who are using Google are searching for services and places near them. Considering Google receives 63,000 searches PER SECOND – this is a huge amount of potential customers searching for YOUR Dealership’s services. So, my question and reason for writing to you is this:
Are you taking advantage of the power that Local SEO has to offer?
If so, great! You may want to continue reading however, as you might discover some informative “nuggets” you weren’t aware of prior. If you are not utilizing Local SEO, then DEFINITELY keep reading as this is something that could easily double or triple (if not more) your sales and profits.
Google Reviews: A Major Key to Local SEO Success
There are a number of factors that influence Local Search Results, however in my professional opinion, one of (if not THE MOST) influential factor is having a Google MyBusiness profile and gathering as many Google Reviews as possible – in an ethical manner (i.e. don’t bribe the customer for positive reviews). Once you start doing this, you will notice a dramatic increase in Local Search Rankings.
Quick tip: Create Postcards that offer $50 Off your Customer’s next service appointment if they leave a Review of your Dealership on Google. I did this with a Client on the West Coast and you would be AMAZED at how well this works and in reality it’s only costing you around $12-$15 in labor (and that’s IF they even use the offer).
The Local SEO 3 Pack
I want you to try something. Open up your internet browser, go to Google.com and type in “Golf Carts for Sale”. You’ll notice a Map at the top with 3 Golf Car Dealerships listed underneath with (most likely) Star Rating, City/State, and Hours of Operation. This is known as a “3 Pack”. This is the “Cream of the Crop” in Local SEO. Notice how they have reviews – and most likely, quite a few reviews. Dealerships that show up in the “3 Pack” are showing up before any other search result and are focused on local intent. This is exactly where you want to be as a Golf Car Dealer and one of the best ways for you to get there is through gathering Google Reviews in your Google MyBusiness Profile.
The Other Factors that Affect Local SEO
As I stated earlier, I believe that a huge factor for Local SEO is having Google Reviews – and a lot of them. There are, however, a number of other factors that contribute to your Local SEO rankings such as:
1) Having an Optimized Website
2) Backlinks (other websites linking to the url of your site)
3) Continuity between online directories (i.e. making sure that your Dealership’s information is the same across all known online directories)
4) Social Media Accounts and Branding
5) and more
Quick tip: When you donate to a charity or are involved in a function/event for promoting your dealership, ask the person in charge about getting a backlink to your site.
The above is just to name a few and if you can take care of them, you will notice a dramatic increase in traffic to your site leading to more phone calls and leads for your dealership.
Conclusion
I truly hope this article has helped you get a quick and easy understanding of Local SEO and how it can benefit your Golf Car Dealership. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at (760) 209-6333 ext 1 or info@golfcartresource.com. We’d love to help you and your dealership.
About Chad Hively
Chad Hively is a partner at Golf Cart Resource and has been providing online marketing services to various Golf Car Dealers and OEMs for over 6 years. Visit GolfCartResource.com for more information.
