As a small business in Singapore, you rely on customers finding you through Google Maps. Local SEO is one of the most important ways to ensure your shop appears in search results for potential customers in your area. This blog post will discuss Local SEO and how you can do Local SEO and get results!
In this blog post, we will cover the following:
- What is Local SEO, and why do you need it?
- How to do Local SEO in Singapore like a pro!
- Local SEO checklist – customized for Singapore
- Local SEO audit – where are you standing now?
- Learning from competitors.
- Always on SEO for constant growth.
- How to outsource that so you can focus on other things?
What is Local SEO, and why do you need it?
Local SEO is a set of techniques that can help your business rank higher when people search for related terms in their geographical area.
It involves optimizing on-page elements, like titles and meta descriptions, as well as off-page elements, such as link building.
The goal is to ensure that your business shows up prominently in local searches, helping you to gain more customers in the local area.
Why local SEO is important?
Local SEO is becoming increasingly important for businesses operating in Singapore that rely on Google Maps and reviews.
Not only does this help customers find you, but it also allows them to assign useful reviews and ratings to your business.
Without a strong local SEO presence, your shop could miss out on potential customers and on valuable insights into what people think of your services.
Additionally, if done correctly, local SEO can help increase your visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs) – driving more traffic to your site, boosting sales, and improving customer satisfaction.
Here is an example:
Let’s say that you are looking for barber shops in Singapore near Orchard Road. Your first stop would be a Google search using keywords like “barber shops orchard road”, “barber shop near me”, “barber shop Singapore”, “best barber shop Singapore” — all those are common inquiries that are used every day by potential buyers who are actively looking for that service.
Google will give you a variety of options from Google Maps, search results, and reviews. That is what Local SEO does to business — it puts you on the map!
If you are doing SEO the right way and treating it as an investment, you will claim the king spot (top 3 positions) and gain visibility from Google Maps (which sends real traffic to your store).
Some people search directly on Google Maps and read reviews.
SEO is a combination of signals sent to Google’s complex algorithm. Everything counts. Visit duration, site engagement, inquiry success rate after the first visit, social signals, and mentions — these are all signals. So, let’s dive into each.
How to do Local SEO in Singapore like a pro!
Now you know how important it is to have a presence on Google Maps and rank first for local inquiries, let’s look into quick and easy ways of setting it up.
Setting up local SEO for small businesses is a great way to get more visibility and reach your target audiences. Here are some steps that you can follow to get started:
1) Claim and optimize your Google My Business account
This is your first step in local SEO, as it gives you the opportunity to showcase your business on the SERPs (search engine results pages). Make sure all of your information is up-to-date and accurate and fill out any categories or fields that may be relevant to people searching for what you offer.
Make sure to verify your business listing (https://support.google.com/business/answer/7107242?hl=en).
2) Create location-specific content
Write content around topics that are related to where you’re located and provide local resources when appropriate. Links from other local sites help boost your site’s ranking as well.
Tip: create location-specific linkable assets, and link to other local non-compete businesses.
Example:
Let’s say you own a wedding photography business, and your service is all across Singapore. Your location-specific topics can be:
- Get Ready to be Amazed – Here are the Top 20 Most Incredible Wedding Venues in Singapore!
- Planning your dream wedding in Singapore? Here are our top 20 picks for some of the best wedding florists in Singapore.
Then mention where your business is located and what you are offering.
This method provides a win/win situation and opens a door for outreach conversation. Or a link exchange campaign.
3) Build citations
Citations consist of mentions of your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) on third-party websites. The more citations you have, the better off you’ll be in the eyes of search engines like Google.
Following up on what we said at point 2, the best way for local shops to win links is by building quality content and doing outreach. There are many businesses that are not competing with you but are relevant, and all can use a little help as well, so if you mention them in an article, they will mention you; this is called Reciprocal Links.
Another way to get links is to look for articles that recommend businesses similar to yours, top + service keywords, and reach out to the editor for a mention.
4) Use Schema markup
Schema provides an additional layer of information about your business, making it easier for search engines to understand what you do. This helps improve visibility in local SERPS.
To put it in simple words, it’s markups of your site and services that help Google better understand your content.
Tip 1: If your site is not WordPress, use ChatGPT and ask the AI to write a schema map for you and then embed the code with Google tag manager!
It will write for you something like this:
{
“@context”: “http://schema.org/”,
“@type”: “LocalBusiness”,
“name”: “[BUSINESS NAME HERE]”,
“url”: “[WEBSITE URL HERE]”,
“address”: {
“@type”: “PostalAddress”,
“streetAddress”: “[STREET ADDRESS HERE]”,
“addressLocality”: “[LOCALITY HERE]”,
“postalCode”: “[POSTAL CODE HERE]”,
“addressCountry”: “SG”
},
“geo”: {
“@type”: “GeoCoordinates”,
“latitude”: [LATITUDE],
“longitude”: [LONGITUDE]
},
}
Tip 2: If your site is built on WordPress, use RankMath, which comes with a schema map feature that is so easy to use.
5) Utilize reviews and ratings
Encourage customers to leave reviews on third-party sites such as Yelp or Google My Business — this will boost trust and reputation with potential customers who may be researching your business online before making a purchase decision.
Ever since early 2019, Google has officially announced that by responding to online reviews you can profoundly enhance your SEO, brand image, and credibility as well as significantly strengthening your connection with current customers.
“Interact with customers by responding to reviews that they leave about your business. Responding to reviews shows that you value your customers and the feedback that they leave about your business.”
Google and other search engines highly favor websites that take the time to build trust with their customers.
And it can be a simple process that you set and forget with automation. Every time a customer buys from you, email them a link to review your services.
Local SEO checklist – customized for Singapore
To make your life easy, here is the checklist that we go through when doing local SEO:
- – Get country top-level domains (.com.sg) or (.sg); if you operate internationally and want to target Singapore, have a dedicated sub-folder.
- – Make sure your website is mobile-friendly and passes core web vitals.
- – Create a localized content strategy (mention non-compete businesses and recommend their services) and reference Singapore naturally, not enforced.
- – Develop a local link-building strategy (link exchange, partnerships)
- – Generate local citations with accurate NAP info.
- – Monitor and respond to reviews on local sites like Yelp, Google My Business, and TripAdvisor and add them to your site.
- – Implement structured data markup on your site pages, such as schema/local business code/etc.
- – Utilize local keyword research in your content creation and meta tags (title, description, H1s etc.).
- – Utilize Google’s free tools, such as My Business, Google Search Console, and Analytics, to better understand user behavior online and optimize the user experience accordingly
If this seems overwhelming, let us lend a hand. We have helped many small businesses get better visibility on Google searches.
Local SEO audit – where are you standing now?
Okay, now you know the what, why, and how. But where do you stand right now? Maybe you already did most of the checklist.
An SEO audit is a deep analysis of your site, comparing it to your competitors to identify unique opportunities and quick wins.
It covers on-page, technical, and off-page and provides a clear idea of the current state of your SEO and provides a detailed strategy of where you should be.
We offer a free assessment for any business from Singapore, no matter how small, no strings attached. Ask for it here.
Learning from the competitors
Have you ever wondered why your competitors show on page 1, and you do not? There is a wealth of knowledge to unlock from looking at what they are doing and why it’s working.
To begin a competitor analysis, start by researching their sites, content, and link profiles.
Analyze how they use keywords relevant to your industry and note any page titles, meta tags, and descriptions that seem successful. Also, compare URL structure, header tags, internal links, and other on-page SEO elements to see if there are opportunities for optimization.
Lastly, review their off-page efforts, such as link-building campaigns and social media presence, to get an idea of what’s helping them gain traction online.
Competitive analysis is one of the features of our SEO audits, and it’s offered for free!
Activating always-on SEO for constant growth
This is not something to overlook. SEO requires ongoing effort and continuous optimization in order to remain competitive. It’s a long-term strategy that must be maintained if you want your business to succeed. You can be sure your competitors are doing the same.
What part of SEO is always on?
- Content
- Technical maintenance
- Link building
The good news is that local businesses based in Singapore are much easier to rank than local businesses based in the US. Why? The level of competition is not as high as in the US, but with some effort and consistency, you can outreach your competitors.
How to outsource so that you can focus on other things?
Trying to do SEO on your own can be an exhausting and costly process. Instead of spending all that time trying different approaches, why not let the professionals handle it? They know how to optimize for local keywords, so you don’t have to, freeing up more valuable time for other aspects of your business!
Are you at a loss as to where to begin? Connect with us today, and we’ll provide expert consultancy and tailored local SEO solutions, SEO inspection, and an extensive strategy absolutely free of charge, no strings attached! This plan will cover the next six months.
