Local business SEO and global SEO basically differ from one another because their focus is very different. According to location, strategies targeted on audiences will differ. Some main differences are explained below:
1. Target Audience
Local SEO: It’s the strategy focused on getting local clients from a specific geographical location, say city or region. Here, its idea is to gain traffic through searches that take place within a localized environment and capture nearby customers to whom the business reaches.
Global SEO: More focused on international audience without local geographic boundaries. It aims at visitors from any region and countries.
2. Keywords and Content
Local SEO:Localized Keywords: Uses keywords that include local identifiers, such as city names, neighborhoods, and phrases like “near me” (e.g., “plumber in Los Angeles”).
Local Content: Creates content relevant to local events, news, and activities that appeal to the local audience.
Global SEO:
Broad Keywords: The use of broader keywords without geographic qualifiers- for example, “best smartphones.”
Global Content: Creation of relevant and appealing content to a very broad, international audience.
3. Google My Business (GMB)
Local SEO: Google My Business (GMB) setup and maintenance. This is basically setting up a GMB profile with correct business information such as address, phone number, hours, and customer reviews. It improves the local search visibility and shows up in local pack results.
Global SEO: GMB optimization is not really relevant unless it is a multi-location business, then the local listings for each location are managed.
4. Local Citations and Listings
Local SEO: NAP consistency in both local directories and citation sites and review platforms as well. Which includes:
- Yelp and Yellow Pages business directories.
- Local SEO is also less concerned about the local business directories but looks more for universal directories and appropriate industry-related networks.
5. Backlink strategy
Local SEO:
Local Link Building: Achieving backlink from local-based businesses, local news websites or blogs helps increasing local authority as well.
Community Engagement: Contributing to community events, sponsoring, and becoming a partner that can gain them local backlinks.
Global SEO:
Global Backlinks: Collecting backlinks from established websites, relevant blogs in specific industries, or news agencies that cover a more global scope.
Outreach to diverse geographics- Targetting more diversified backlink from a myriad of different geography
6. Schema Markup
Local SEO: Adding local business schema markup gives the search engines a much higher detail on its location, when it operates and what they actually do, enhancing local results.
Global SEO: Using various schema markups applicable to the business and content, including product, organization, and article schema, without the local focus.
7. Social Proof and Reviews
Local SEO: Encouraging and managing reviews on local review sites and GMB is critical. Positive local reviews enhance credibility and visibility in local searches.
Global SEO: Managing reviews on global platforms like Trustpilot, industry-specific review sites, and social media platforms.
8. Technical SEO
Local SEO: Making the website optimized for local search engines, including a mobile-friendly format, fast speeds, and accessible navigation for people in the specific region.
Global SEO: That includes more overall technical SEO requirements; for example, international targeting is done through hreflang tags; optimizations for different languages are done as per the requirement and fast loading for the whole planet.
9. Competition Analysis
Local SEO: Competitor analysis focuses on other local businesses and their local SEO strategies, including their local content, backlinks, and reviews.
Global SEO: Analyzes competitors on a global scale, focusing on their international keyword strategies, content marketing efforts, and global backlink profiles.
10. Performance Metrics
Local SEO: Metrics include local search rankings, traffic from local searches, click-through rates (CTR) on local search results, and GMB insights.
Global SEO: Metrics involved are overall rankings for search, global traffic, and global search visibility, and global conversion rates originating from various regions.