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Facing difficulties trying to improve your local search engine optimization? After reading this blog, you will be confident performing Local SEO for your hotel.
Even if you are just learning about SEO, this blog will simplify the process quite nicely and help you gain local search visibility.
Let's dive right in.
SEO is optimizing your hotel's online presence to attract more visitors from relevant local searches.
For instance, if I type 'best hotel in Monterey,' you can see that the search results are dominated by Snack Pack, i.e., a box of local listings on Google Maps.
You must gain a position in Snack Pack because they generate 33% of clicks on SERP. It is equally important to rank in the below search results to attract 40% of clicks.
According to StatCounter GS, Google has an estimated 87.74% of the USA market share, meaning most people use Google to search for local businesses.
The bottom line is that you must try to rank on both spots; this is where Local SEO for your Hotels comes in.
Make sure your hotel website is mobile-friendly.
As per Bright Local's study, 61% of mobile users contact only local businesses if they have a mobile-optimized website.
You can use Google's Mobile-Friendly Test tool. Enter your URL, and Google will disclose whether your page is mobile-friendly or not.
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This is arguably the most vital part of local SEO for hotels, and it’s relatively easy to do.
Go to Google Business Profile, sign in to your Google account, and enter your NAP, which stands for name, address, and phone number.
It is essential to know that 'Business Name is not meant for keyword stuffing. So, writing something like "Best Hotel in Monterey - Stage Coach Lodge isn’t going to help you rank on Google.
Next, pin your hotel marker on the map. Google is pretty good with this, but you should check the map and ensure it correlates with your property's location.
To finish the process, you will need to verify the website. This can be done by phone or mail.
Next, follow the instructions from Google, and your Google Business Profile (GBP) listing will be active in no time.
Now that you have set the foundation for local SEO for hotels let's move further.
There are some obvious terms you would want to rank for, such as:
'Best hotel near me.'
"Best hotel in monterey.'
'Top hotel in monterey.'
With these local search queries, Google pulls the information from the GBP listing.
For instance, if I specify a query like 'what is the address of stage coach lodge,' you see something like the below image in Google, pulled directly from the GBP listing.
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So, we will discuss keyword research for organic search results rather than going deeper into the "Snack Pack" and Google Maps listings.
First, consider the services you provide in your hotel and make a list of seed keywords.
There are a few ways you can generate seed keyword ideas. The first tool you can use is Google's autocomplete.
Just type in the main query you want to rank for, and you will see a few good suggestions like these:
This is a great place to find the keywords your competitors are already ranking in and those you can also rank for.
Use Ubersuggest and enter the domain of one of your search competitors.
Here, you will get a nice list of keywords to target.
You should have a solid list of keyword ideas by now, so it's time to move on to some on-page SEO.
If you are familiar with SEO, you will find that many typical SEO best practices apply here.
For example, it can be helpful to include your target keyword in the:
And yes, don't forget to use short URLs.
But there are a few other things you should do for SEO for hotels.
You can optimize your hotel homepage around your primary location and show NAP information as a footer on your website.
Your NAP must match exactly or as close as possible to what you have submitted to the GBP listing.
You can add your guests' reviews and use Schema markup, which we will discuss now.
Schema markup is code you add to your website to improve search engines' reading and represent your page in the SERP.
You can use Google's structured data markup helper to eliminate a whole mess of complicated coding.
Moving forward, building local citations.
Citations are the online mentions of your business. Building local sources is extremely important. There are only two main types of citations: structured and unstructured.
Structured citations include your NAP information, and it's usually presented in a visually structured manner. So this will consist of business directories and social profiles.
Unstructured citations don't follow the structure of your business. This citation type will be embedded in blog posts or other websites.
Having consistent NAP results worldwide verifies the data that Google has in their My Business Listing, which is accurate.
On the other hand, inconsistent NAP information can confuse or mislead both Google and potential customers.
So your job is two-fold.
1. Make sure your existing citations are correct and consistent
2. Build more relevant citations
To handle the first part, you need to perform a citation audit. Some of your citations might be incorrect or incomplete.
You can run a quick search using Moz's local search tool.
After you are completed your audit, you have to build more citations. Start with a list of core structured citations.
Whitespark has a great resource on places to build structured citations. You can also look at relevant local directories like your local chamber of commerce and local hotel associations and expand to niche-specific websites.
You can't stop here because you still need to build backlinks.
Since you are done with the on-page section, it's time for the off-page optimization. It is best practice to focus on building quality editorial links.
If you put effort into increasing the number of quality backlinks, Google will open doors to generate more organic traffic to your site.
According to Whitespark's survey, link signals have a 15% weightage and are the 3rd most crucial factor in the Local SEO game.
These main strategies can be used to build quality links for your hotels that work:
A local resource related to your area will be ideal. People are more likely to link unique and helpful content over scammy and sales-related articles.
Here are a couple of ideas to implement this strategy:
In your case, create blogs or articles related to the area to help the guests and visitors.
E.g., How to enjoy every second on your trip to Monterey (A Complete Guide)
To create content in this area, you should know your target audience's likes, dislikes, wants, and desires.
E.g., List of best coffee shops in the Monterey area for couples.
Guest blogs usually come with a backlink to your site.
Guest blogging allows you to build yourself as an industry expert in your niche. This is particularly important for hoteliers.
Look for local blogs that accept guest posts. To find such blogs, Google the below queries:
[location] intitle:" write for us"
[location] intitle:" write for me"
[location]" write for us."
[location]" guest post"
After using the above queries, you will undoubtedly find relevant local websites seeking writers.
Now that you have set up your Google Business Profile account and built many citations ensure you keep well-documented notes on all of your work.
Things like a new number, location, or hotel name in the hotel business may change. In this case, you will need to update all of your citations.
You will also need to ensure that you keep your GBP account active by doing the following items:
We have covered a lot here, and I hope you now understand how to use these local SEO tips for hotels. These practices will drive traffic to your website and increase your hotel's revenue.
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