Local SEO for Hotels 2024 – The Ultimate Guide for Success

It’s difficult to overstate the importance of local SEO for hotels, especially with the success of modern hospitality businesses tied directly to online visibility.

With more than 75% of consumers never scrolling past the first page of Google, it’s clear that a bulletproof local SEO strategy can help.

But why focus on a local strategy compared to a traditional one?

With local SEO for hotels, you focus on improving your website’s ranking in the SERP for location-specific keywords, rather than improving a site’s visibility on a global scale. By optimizing your local SEO, your hotel has a greater opportunity to outrank third-party travel agencies and drive more direct bookings, ultimately boosting your revenue and reducing reliance on intermediaries.

In this local SEO guide for hotels, we’ll explore all the ways you can build a successful search engine optimization strategy.

1. The Role of Google Business Profile (GBP) In Local SEO

A Google Business Profile (GBP) is the cornerstone of a successful local SEO strategy for hotels.

This free platform serves as your hotel’s digital storefront, providing crucial information to potential guests and significantly influencing your local search rankings.

By optimizing your GBP, you can enhance your hotel’s visibility in Google Search and Maps, driving increased foot traffic and online bookings.

Do you want to delve deeper into specific optimization strategies for hotel GBPs?

Keep reading to learn more!

2. Optimizing Your Hotel’s Google Business Profile Listing

Creating and Claiming Your GBP Profile

One of the first and most crucial steps in all local SEO strategies for hotels is creating a Google Business Profile.

This no-cost SEO tool is one of the first, and in some cases, the last places that searchers stop on their booking journey.

Best of all, making a Google Business Profile is completely free.

However, if your hotel already has a profile up and running, make sure to claim it.

Importance of Accurate and Complete Business Information

The more accurate and up-to-date your GBP is, the more effective it’ll be for SEO.

Start by making sure your basic information is correct, including your URL, business name, address, and phone number.

This should be the same information on your site’s contact page or footer. Any discrepancies between the two can negatively affect your website’s visibility.

3. Managing Your GBP Profile: Photos, Reviews, and Posts

Keep track of all the photos, reviews, and posts that guests leave regarding your hotel, whether they are good or bad.

More than 81% of consumers are likely to check Google reviews prior to visiting a business, and proving that you value your guests and their experiences can show potential customers that you hold your hotel to a higher standard.

Be personal with each response to your hotel’s reviews, as it can help build trust and encourage potential customers to visit your website.

4. Utilizing GBP Insight for Optimization

Your Google Business Profile has exceptional back-end analytics that you can use to gauge your performance, whether weekly, monthly, or annually. Some of the data you can pull from these reports includes:

• Search terms your listing appeared for
• Number of profile interactions
• Bookings made through your GBP
• How many people discovered your business
• Website clicks made from your GBP

We’ve helped several luxury resorts and hotels realize the power of an effective local hotel SEO strategy, and if you’re looking for a team of experts to bolster your business, get in touch with us at Mediaboom today.

5. On-Page Local SEO for Your Hotel Website

Next up is on-page local SEO, which is the process of optimizing your website’s pages to help them rank higher in organic searches.

There are a few main components to focus on here:

Keyword Research for the Hotel Industry

Keyword research is the process of identifying and analyzing popular search terms consumers use to search for certains goods and services.

In this case, it’s how consumers search for hotels in a specific area. When you understand what keywords your potential customers are using to search, you can integrate them into your site content to attract qualified traffic and improve your rankings.

There are several popular tools you can use to generate keywords, including:

• SEMrush
• Ahrefs
• Google Keyword Planner

When it comes to local SEO for hotels, long-tail keywords should be the main focus, as they are less competitive.

For example, rather than targeting the keyword “hotels in Los Angeles,” you might target “boutique hotels in Santa Monica.” That keyword can then be incorporated into your site content, including headers, meta descriptions, and page titles.

6. Content Marketing Strategies for Local SEO

Content marketing can also help hotels stand out in a competitive market.

With unique blog content, photos, videos, 3D tours, and more, you can showcase your hotel’s unique offerings and significantly increase your visibility.

Explore our in-depth guide on content marketing for hotels to learn more.

Optimizing Website Content for Local Search

With content optimization, the goal is to create content that aligns with the needs and desires of your target audience so you can rank better in the search engine.

Some of the best ways to optimize your current content include:

• Strategically incorporating keywords found during your research
• Optimizing your header tags for scannability
• Creating a concise and descriptive URL structure
• Implementing a strong internal linking strategy
• Backing up any factual claims with data and citations

7. Importance of Schema Markup

Schema markups are structural data that search engines use to crawl websites and determine what’s on them.

There are over 30 types of schema that Google can recognize, including articles, FAQs, Q&As, videos, how-tos, and more.

Arguably, one of the most important things for hotels is the local business markup, which should match the information found in your GBP.

Creating Location-Specific Landing Pages

Statistics show that over 80% of consumers conduct local searches before visiting a store, so location-specific landing pages are often a visitor’s initial touchpoint with your business.

By crafting informative and engaging pages optimized with relevant keywords, you can:

• Improve local search rankings: Optimize pages with location-specific keywords to rank higher in search results for relevant queries.
• Enhance user experience: Provide visitors with location-specific information, such as hours, contact details, and directions, making it easier for them to find and engage with your business.
• Increase conversions: Tailor your messaging and calls to action to the specific needs and interests of your local audience.
• Build local authority: Demonstrate your commitment to the community and establish your business as a trusted local resource.

This is especially crucial for multi-location businesses like hotels.

8.  Mobile Optimization

Google’s main mission is to create a top-notch search experience for consumers. When around 58% of people surf the web on mobile, it’s clear why having an optimized mobile site is key.

If your site isn’t intuitive or easy to navigate via mobile devices, it’ll likely drop in search rankings.

We recommend finding ways to embed mobile-friendly multi-media content on each local page to increase your site’s emphasis on multi-source results and visual engagement, as it increases your chances of showing up on Google’s ever-changing result displays.

Building a local on-page SEO strategy can be a complex process with a lot of moving pieces.

Rather than leaving your efforts up to chance, let our team here at Mediaboom pave the way for success with our years of local SEO experience in the hospitality industry. Get in touch today.

9. Local Link Building

Local SEO for hotels isn’t limited to optimizing your own website.

In many cases, having a local link-building strategy can be your ticket to credibility and relevancy.

While internal linking can be helpful for creating a relevant, navigational spiderweb for your website, for local SEO, it’s important to focus on backlinks.

Backlinks are made to take your site’s visitors to other external sites. The key here is obtaining backlinks from trusted sites to increase your hotel’s credibility and referral traffic.

More importantly, local backlinks from prominent local businesses can be used as an endorsement for your hotel.

There are many ways to generate high-quality backlinks, including:

• Link-building campaigns
• Social media campaigns
• Guest blogging
• Directory listings
• Content syndication

Let our team here at Mediaboom help you develop a custom backlink strategy and increase your leads. Get in touch with us today to learn more.

10. Building Local Citations

Local citations are the online mentions of your hotel’s name, address, and phone number (NAP) across the web.

They are a fundamental component of local SEO, acting as digital breadcrumbs that guide search engines to your business.

• Consistency is key. Ensuring your NAP information is identical across all online platforms is crucial. Inconsistent NAP data can confuse search engines and negatively impact your local rankings.
• High-quality citations on authoritative websites can significantly boost your hotel’s credibility and local search visibility. Aim to build citations on platforms relevant to your industry, such as travel directories, review sites, and local business listings.
• Regular monitoring is essential to identify and correct any citation errors. Tools and services can help streamline this process, ensuring your NAP information remains accurate and consistent.

By investing time and effort in building a robust local citation profile, you can enhance your hotel’s online reputation, improve search engine rankings, and attract more local guests.

11. Earning Local Reviews

Over 70% of consumers read reviews before making a purchase decision. However, even beyond having a positive influence on guest decisions, they can also greatly influence your search rankings.

Encourage your guests to leave reviews by requesting feedback after their stay.

Regardless of the reviews they leave, both positive and negative, respond to each one personally to show others who are browsing your reviews that you value feedback and are committed to improvement.

If you don’t have the bandwidth or resources to manage your local reviews, consider using some of the many excellent hotel review management tools to stay on track.

12. Tracking and Measuring Local SEO Performance

To gauge the success of your local hotel SEO strategy, it’s crucial to track and measure your efforts to see what’s working and what needs improvement.

Key Metrics to Track

There are several key metrics you can track, though some of the most important are:

• Local search rankings
• Organic traffic
• Click-through rates (CTR)
• Bounce rate
• Conversion rates

Knowing how these change as you work with your new SEO strategy will give you a better idea of whether or not your website is getting the visitors you’re aiming for.

Using Google Analytics and Google Search Console

Google Analytics and Google Search Console are two additional tools you should be tracking for better local SEO performance.

While Google Analytics provides insights into consumer behavior, helping you see where your traffic is coming from and what percentage of that traffic is converting, Google Search Console provides more microscopic data on components like impressions, search queries, and click-through rates.

Analyze Local Search Rankings

Knowing where your hotel currently stands in the search results can help you develop a goal and see who you’re competing against.

Some of the most popular tools for SERP analytics include SEMrus, Ahrefs, and Moz.

Making Data-Driven Optimization Decisions

Once you have data from the above resources in hand, you can use it to make informed decisions for further optimization.

For example, you might notice that a competing hotel is generating traffic from a high-performing keyword that may be worth incorporating into your content or that your site’s visitors are landing on certain pages more than others.

Here at Mediaboom, we work tirelessly to refine our approach to local SEO for hotels using high-performance tracking strategies that evolve alongside the SERP. Contact us today to see how we can help your hotel with a competitive SEO strategy.

Our Success Stories

Marina Inn at Grandes Dunes

Mediaboom partnered with Marina Inn at Grande Dunes to enhance their local SEO strategy and strengthen their presence in the competitive Myrtle Beach market.

• The Problem: Marina Inn needed to improve their local online visibility to attract more potential guests, as they were struggling to stand out in a crowded market.
• Our Solution: We implemented a comprehensive strategy by targeting specific local keywords, optimizing on-page content, and leveraging Google Business Profile effectively.

This approach led to increased organic traffic, improved search rankings, and a surge in direct bookings, firmly establishing Marina Inn as a prominent resort in Myrtle Beach

FAQs

I. Is local SEO profitable?

Yes, local SEO is highly profitable for businesses targeting a specific geographic area. By improving your local search visibility, you attract more relevant traffic, increase foot traffic to physical locations, and boost sales, resulting in a higher return on investment.

II. How can I do local SEO effectively?

To do local SEO effectively, start by optimizing your Google Business Profile, ensuring your NAP (Name, Address, Phone number) is consistent across all platforms. Use local keywords, gather and manage customer reviews, create localized content, and build local backlinks. Ensure your website is mobile-friendly and has fast loading times. For comprehensive local SEO strategies and execution, consider partnering with a marketing agency like Mediaboom. We can provide expert guidance, implement effective tactics, and help you achieve your local business goals.

III. Is doing a local SEO worth it?

Absolutely. Local SEO is worth the investment as it helps businesses appear in local search results, making it easier for potential customers to find you. It leads to increased brand visibility, higher website traffic, and more in-store visits, ultimately driving sales and growth.

Do you have more questions?

Feel free to reach out to us if you have any more questions or need further assistance with your local SEO strategy. We’re here to help you optimize your online presence and achieve your business goals.

Hire a Luxury Hotel Marketing Agency Now!

As you can see, local SEO is one of the important strategies for hotels to focus on, especially as more and more hospitality establishments compete to stay visible.

Once you’re up and running, keeping up with ongoing maintenance will help ensure you’re consistently relevant and up-to-date.Of course, you’ll never see the benefits of local SEO for hotels without a good strategy, which is where an experienced digital marketing agency like Mediaboom comes into play.

Contact us to learn more about how we can implement the above strategies into your current marketing plan.