Locally Sourced: Search Engine Land’s Top 10 Local Search Columns Of 2015

Search engine optimization (SEO) is important for any business with an online presence — but for those that serve a specific geographical area, it’s crucial. While the basic tenets of traditional SEO do indeed apply to local businesses, the fact is that local search is its own beast, and it requires a particular set of skills.

Optimizing a local business website for search engines requires some additional work that goes beyond traditional SEO, and our readers took a particular interest in tactical pieces this year, from how to do local content marketing to how to structure local landing pages. Matthew Barby’s comprehensive guide to local SEO was by far the most widely read local search column on Search Engine Land in 2015, serving as both an excellent starting point for newbies and a handy refresher for veterans in the space.

Google threw local search marketers for a loop earlier this year when it made some changes to how local results are displayed, getting rid of the 7-pack in favor of a more condensed, more mobile-friendly 3-pack. While this change may have created a better user experience for searchers, many local businesses were left with questions — and Jason Decker’s piece provided some much-needed insight into the implications of this new display format for searchers and businesses alike.

Finally, in addition to learning about what to do for local SEO, readers were just as concerned about what not to do. Four of the top 10 columns this year were focused on mistakes to avoid when performing local search engine optimization.

Following are the top 10 Local Search columns published on Search Engine Land in 2015.

1. Local SEO: How To Rank Your Local Business by Matthew Barby, published on 4/22/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 710, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 43
2. This Small Business Redesigned Its Website & You Won’t Believe What Horrible SEO Thing Happened Next by Andrew Shotland, published on 1/19/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 539, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 9
3. 10 Common Mistakes To Avoid On Local Websites by Greg Gifford, published on 2/2/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 903, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 22
4. The New Google Local Search Display by Jason Decker, published on 9/21/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 748, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 15
5. Local SEO Landing Pages 2.0 by Marcus Miller, published on 6/12/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 619, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 25
6. Local Content Silos: The Secret To Local Search Success by Greg Gifford, published on 6/22/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 319, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 9
7. The 16 Secrets Of Guerrilla Local SEO by Marcus Miller, published on 8/7/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 790, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 19
8. 6 Local SEO Stats Every Online Marketer Needs To Know by Jayson DeMers, published on 8/13/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 818, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 10
9. Top 5 Issues Wrecking Local SEO For Multi-Location Businesses by Marcus Miller, published on 7/10/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 636, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 27
10. How Not To Do Local SEO In A Post-Pigeon Era by Neil Patel, published on 5/1/15.
    Social activity: Facebook 720, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 10

Methodology: Columns published in 2015 are ranked in order of page views measured by Google Analytics. Data includes all columns published through November 30, 2015. Social data provided by SharedCount.