The world of search engine optimization (SEO) is constantly changing, and staying on top of the latest updates can be a challenge. One of the most recent changes to the SEO landscape is the Local SEO Pigeon update, which was released in July 2014. This update has had a significant impact on local search results, and it’s important for businesses to understand how it works in order to maximize their visibility online. In this article, we’ll take a look at what the Local SEO Pigeon update is all about and how it affects local businesses.
What Is Local SEO Pigeon?
Local SEO Pigeon is an algorithm update that was released by Google in July 2014. It was designed to improve the accuracy and relevancy of local search results by taking into account more localized factors such as distance and location. The update also changed the way that Google ranks local businesses, giving more weight to certain factors such as reviews and citations from other websites.
How Does Local SEO Pigeon Affect Businesses?
The Local SEO Pigeon update has had a significant impact on local businesses, both positive and negative. On the positive side, businesses that have taken steps to optimize their websites for local searches have seen an increase in visibility and traffic from Google searches. This includes optimizing content for specific locations, creating localized content such as blog posts or videos about local events or attractions, and building citations from other websites that mention your business’s name or address.
On the negative side, some businesses have seen their rankings drop due to the new algorithm changes. This is especially true for businesses that rely heavily on reviews or citations from other websites but haven’t taken steps to optimize their own website content for local searches. Additionally, some businesses may have seen their rankings drop due to changes in how Google evaluates backlinks from other websites – if those backlinks are deemed low-quality or irrelevant by Google’s algorithms, they won’t help your website rank higher in search results anymore.
What Can Businesses Do To Optimize For Local SEO Pigeon?
Fortunately, there are several steps that businesses can take to ensure they are optimizing their website for the latest Local SEO Pigeon update:
• Optimize content for specific locations – Make sure your website content includes keywords related to your business’s location (e.g., city name) as well as relevant topics related to your industry (e.g., “plumbing services in Chicago”). Additionally, make sure you include your business’s address on every page of your website so that it can be easily found by search engines like Google.
• Create localized content – Create blog posts or videos about events or attractions happening near your business location so that you can attract more visitors who are interested in what you have to offer locally. Additionally, make sure you link back to your website whenever possible so that people can easily find out more information about your business when they click through from these posts or videos.
• Build citations – Citations are mentions of your business name or address on other websites (e.g., Yelp). These citations help build trust with potential customers and also help boost your rankings in local search results since they provide additional evidence of relevance for a given location query (e.g., “plumbers near me”). Make sure you build up a strong network of citations from reputable sources like Yelp or Yellow Pages so that you can benefit from this aspect of the Local SEO Pigeon update as well.
• Get reviews – Reviews are another important factor when it comes to ranking highly in local search results since they provide social proof of quality for potential customers who may be considering using your services or products. Encourage customers who have had positive experiences with your business to leave reviews on sites like Yelp or Google My Business so that you can benefit from this aspect of the algorithm change as well.
Conclusion
The Local SEO Pigeon update has had a significant impact on how businesses rank in local search results since its release in July 2014 – both positively and negatively depending on how well they have optimized their websites for this new algorithm change. Fortunately, there are several steps that businesses can take to ensure they are optimizing their website correctly so they can benefit from this latest update: optimizing content for specific locations; creating localized content; building citations; and getting reviews from customers who have had positive experiences with them.. By taking these steps now, businesses will be able set themselves up for success with future algorithm updates while also improving their visibility online today!