Localize SEO for Your Long Island City Small Business

Finding the right SEO for your small business in a neighborhood like Long Island City can be a crucial way to get your company noticed online.

When it comes to SEO, localization is crucial. If you have a business you want people to find, you’ll likely want to build your web presence around where your company is located. If you small business is in Long Island City, for example, then you’ll want to make the most of what SEO can offer.

SEO for a Small Business in Long Island City

Building an SEO profile for any small business involves knowing how Google works. We’ve discussed localizations and small business SEO already, but for New York City and Long Island City in particular, there are a few other details to keep in mind.

Like everything else, NYC is competitive. There a simply a lot more businesses competing for attention. For example, SEO agency NYC is much harder to rank for than SEO agency for Dallas, even though they have roughly equivalent search volumes. This is why a mix of on-page and off-page SEO can help.

On page SEO, as the name implies, is content and keyword driven. Off-page focuses on building the credibility of the page through links, referrals, etc. For more on both, please download our free e-Book.

Therefore, to have an impact in a place like NYC, you will need a stronger off-page strategy that what we share below. Here are a few ideas to consider:

1. NYC is full of lists, best restaurants, bars, gyms, and the like. Inquire how you might get a link from them.
2. Local news – Internet news sources are great way for local businesses to be seen, for example, in NYC, there is the Gothamist or the City both have a large following of local readers
3. Awards – NYC is full of them. Research the ones that pertain to your industry and inquire about entry requirements
4. Local business development groups. NYC is more of patchwork of neighborhood, each with their own group. While this might not be as effective for the city as a whole, it would be more relevant for each neighborhood or borough.

Optimizing Your Small Business Local SEO in General

Optimizing your business's content and site for a localized SEO campaign in Long Island City can be time-consuming. But, it is worth the effort for a small business if your customer base is predominately local. Brainchild Studios shares their thoughts, but I wanted to highlight some of the most important tips:

1. Make sure you've claimed your Google My Business page.
2. Check that your metadata reflects your location in Long Island City on localized web pages
3. Get to know your Long Island City community over social media
4. Appear on directories that are local to Long Island City.

In other words, build your SEO around the places where your local community is active. It seems like common sense, but you would be surprised at how many businesses fail to capitalize on this opportunity.

An Example of the SEO for a Long Island City Small Business

With your Long Island City-based business in Queens, you'll want to prepare for the borough's changing landscape. Neighborhoods like Long Island City are gentrifying and skewing younger, so you might want to look for places that younger people check. Try to get noticed in online periodicals that are built for Queens. Or, look into local colleges to see if they accept postings from small businesses. Not only will it help your SEO to have these links up and running, it will also let you speak to the people that you're targeting in your audience. It's a win-win!