A localized marketing approach can unlock significant growth potential for your business—but it can also be very competitive.

So what does it take to raise the bar and outperform your competition? How can you avoid missed sales opportunities and maximize your brand’s visibility?

On May 31, I hosted a webinar with Monica Ho, CMO, and Damian Rollinson, SOCi’s Director of Market Insights.

Presenting the results of the Local Visibility Index (LVI), Ho & Rollinson highlighted the cost of not meeting the high standards of localized marketing.

Here is a summary of the webinar. To access the entire presentation, fill out the form.

The Local Visibility Index: Results and Trends for 2023

Let’s dive into the 2023 results and examine the significant results and observed patterns.

Screenshot of SOCi, May 2023

Local Visibility Index results and trends

The average US company:

• Is practically invisible in 2 out of 3 local searches.
• Ignores 92% of customer questions posted on their Google profiles.
• Doesn’t respond to 54% of consumer reviews, doesn’t address complaints, and worse, doesn’t thank consumers for their feedback.

This invisibility is costing your business $2.4 billion in US retail alone.

[Explore the data] Access the on-demand webinar immediately →

Screenshot of SOCi, May 2023

What the trends show

Brands will be the strongest performers in search and the greatest opportunities in reputation in 2023.

• LVI executives grow their sales twice as fast as their competitors.
• Social is the largest area of ​​growth.

[See how Kohl, a high performer in LVI, showed the value of local visibility] Access the on-demand webinar immediately →

Search and reputation highlights

Businesses do well when they claim and complete their profiles on both Google and Yelp.

Screenshot of SOCi, May 2023

Additionally, brands are still struggling to leverage local business schemes on their landing pages.

Social Highlights

Encourage your customers to follow your local store pages on Facebook.

Building local audiences on social media encourages loyalty and repeat business.

Screenshot of SOCi, May 2023

[Discover the most improved brand in 2023 & see what a well-optimized Google profile looks like] Access the on-demand webinar immediately →

Increase search visibility, local reputation and social reach

You need to follow clear steps to increase search visibility, local reputation, and social reach.

How to increase visibility in search

• Increase 3-pack presence with Google profile optimization.
• Claim and optimize all other important profiles on sites like Yelp and Facebook.
• Create informative, properly coded local landing pages.

This is how you increase your local reputation

• Respond to as many reviews as possible across all platforms.
• Respond to all reviews promptly, ideally within 24 to 48 hours.
• Use ratings as a source of customer feedback to improve operations.

How to grow localized social networks

• Encourage Page followers to build a local audience for each business or office location.
• Post at least the benchmark frequency each month to engage local audiences with photos and videos.
• Create engaging, informative, and helpful content to keep audiences engaged.

[Unlock significant growth potential for your business] Access the on-demand webinar immediately →

[Slides] Why US brands are losing $2.4 billion a year to local invisibility

Here is the presentation:

Photo credit:

Featured image: Paulo Bobita/Search Engine Journal