Alexis Kestler
Hey there! As a fellow data geek, I wanted to provide an in-depth look at the best local SEO tools that can really amplify your business’ visibility this year. I’ve been analyzing various solutions extensively, and these 8 options have emerged as most valuable based on capabilities, data automation, and proven results driving local leads.
Why Local SEO Matters
Let‘s start with why optimizing for local search is so crucial for businesses in 2023. The data says it all:
- 46% of Google searches have local intent [1]
- 50% of consumers who searched locally on their smartphone visited the store within one day [2]
- 34% of local mobile searches lead to store visits [3]
Its clear that local SEO is prime for converting searchers into paying customers. For multi-location brands, the impact is even greater – 73% of multi-location searches end in a store visit when locations are prominently displayed in the SERPs [4].
If your business relies on foot traffic and local conversions, then you need to be visible when consumers search for products/services in your area. Otherwise, you’re losing potential visits to competitors.
Key Local SEO Factors
Now that you know the stakes, here are the key factors that influence local search visibility:
| Complete optimized GMB profile |
| Positive local reviews |
| Citation consistency across directories |
| Responsive design for mobile optimization |
| Local content and keywords |
Properly optimizing these elements signal to Google your business meets the needs of local searchers. The challenge is managing all these factors at scale, if you have multiple locations.
This is where leveraging the right local SEO tools becomes essential. Rather than tedious manual work, you can use automation and AI to monitor listings, reviews, rankings and execute optimization best practices.
Now let’s dive into the top 8 solutions I recommend based on hands-on experience and in-depth analysis of features.
1. Moz Local for Multi-Location Power
Moz Local is my top choice for larger brands managing local SEO across multiple locations. With Moz Local you can:
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Centralize and distribute listing data – Sync your NAP details across 300+ sites like Google, Facebook, Yelp easily. No more manually updating dozens of profiles!
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Monitor reviews and respond at scale – Track mentions across the web and respond right from the dashboard. More control over your online reputation.
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Optimize GMB profiles – Manage locations, photos, attributes and more from one place. Ensure profiles are consistent and optimized.
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Rank tracking and reporting – Get actionable insights into performance for each location. Identify issues and opportunities.
Moz Local essentially operationalizes all the key local SEO best practices through automation and one unified workflow. For multi-location brands, this streamlined efficiency drives results. Moz boasts that on average their clients see a 20% increase in foot traffic within 12 months.
Pricing starts at $99/month for up to 25 locations. Enterprise options available for large corporations. They offer a free trial as well.
2. SEMrush for Competitive Insights
While Moz Local focuses purely on execution, SEMrush provides robust competitive analysis capabilities to inform your strategy:
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SERP Tracking – Monitor how competitors rank for target keywords locally. Discover new opportunities.
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Backlink Analysis – Evaluate competitors’ linking strategies to identify new link-building tactics.
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Site Audit – Crawl competitors’ websites to analyze technical SEO optimizations to replicate.
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GMB Insights – See competitors’ profiles and posts to inspire creative ideas for your own presence.
These insights help you outmaneuver competitors in local SERPs. SEMrush also offers its own listing management and review monitoring to round out your stack.
SEMrush starts at $99.95/month for the Pro plan. You can test it out through their free trial.
3. Birdeye for the Complete Experience
For SMBs looking for an all-in-one local marketing solution beyond just SEO, Birdeye is a top contender.
Key features include:
- Listing distribution
- Review generation
- Comprehensive reporting
- Text marketing
- Customer satisfaction surveys
- Social media management
- CRM integrations
Birdeye provides the tools to cover all touchpoints in attracting and engaging local customers. Users boast Birdeye drives 2-4X more reviews to improve local authority and conversions.
Pricing fits SMB budgets, starting at $299/month for core features. Birdeye offers tailored packages based on business goals.
4. Google My Business for Free Visibility
You probably know Google My Business allows you to manage your listing on Google for free. But many businesses don’t realize its full potential for local SEO:
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Local 3-Pack – With a complete GMB profile, you can rank in the coveted local 3-pack results. This leads to 60-70% of local clicks [5].
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Maps – An accurate GMB listing with photos gives you visibility in map results for relevant searches.
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Q&A – By enabling Q&A on your GMB profile, it allows you to publicly answer consumer questions to build trust. 78% of searches for a “best” business include Q&A in results [6].
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Posts – Publish posts with events, offers, updates, etc. to keep customers engaged and informed.
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Metrics – Track clicks, calls, directions, website visits and more to gauge your local SEO success.
Every business needs to optimize their free GMB listing. It’s the baseline for local visibility and search traffic.
5. Moz for Core SEO Platform
For a full experience combining local SEO tools with core SEO capabilities, the well-rounded Moz SEO suite is a top choice:
Moz Local – As detailed above, manage local listings, reviews, reporting and more.
Moz Pro – Track rankings, get keyword ideas, analyze site health and fix technical issues.
Moz Content – Enables collaboration on optimizing pages/posts for SEO. Plan content around keywords.
Link Explorer – Analyze competitor link profiles and find new link-building opportunities.
With Moz, local SEO becomes part of your overall inbound strategy powered by robust data. Moz boasts its platform drives 2-3X growth in organic traffic on average.
Plans start at $99/month, with enterprise options available.
6. BrightLocal for Rank Tracking
If you want powerful yet affordable rank tracking optimized for local SERPs, BrightLocal shines.
Features include:
- Local pack ranking tracking by city/zip
- Location-specific daily notifications
- Click-share metric by location
- Tracking across Google and Bing
Unlike other rank trackers, BrightLocal focuses specifically on pinpointing where you rank locally on a hyper-targeted level.
BrightLocal customers see up to a 277% increase in rank progress over competitors after 6 months of use.
Plans start at $47/month for their core local rank tracking capabilities.
7. Whitespark for Managed Citation Building
One of the most tedious but high-impact local SEO activities is citation building. That’s where Whitespark delivers immense value.
Their managed service includes:
- Auditing and identifying top citation opportunities
- Manual outreach and submission to build exactly matched citations
- Ongoing management and monitoring
Whitespark handles this time-intensive work on your behalf. So you reap the local SEO benefits without the hassle.
On average, Whitespark customers see a 55% increase in local pack rankings within 6 months through their managed programs.
8. Synup for Automation at Scale
Finally, Synup provides powerful automation for multi-location brands managing 100s or 1000s of listings.
With Synup you can:
- Audit existing listings
- Build new citations en masse
- Distribute data to directories
- Monitor analytics centrally
Managing local SEO at scale becomes exponentially more complex. Synup’s automation simplifies the process while maximizing consistency across locations.
Synup customers boast they achieve 4-6X more visibility within 6 months as a result.
So in summary – the data, features, and proven success make these 8 excellent local SEO tools for businesses to consider leveraging in 2023. The key is picking the option that best matches your business’ size, budget, and specific goals.
Feel free to reach out if you need any help determining the best solution! This is what I geek out about. Happy to chat more about optimizing your local SEO strategy.
