Garden centres increase footfall via Local SEO marketing
It’s not surprising Local SEO is getting more and more popular to drive traffic to garden centres since almost half of the searches on Google are targeting something local. While big brands used to have a monopoly on the top search results on Google, the last updates Google did on its algorithm were beneficial to smaller businesses.
Sjors Hemmen, business developer at Garden Connect, explains how Local SEO works: “Nowadays, 46% of the search queries are related to do, see, visit or buy something locally. We help garden centres ranking well on keywords customers in their area use which helps to increase footfall”.
Search intent
An important metric Garden Connect uses is the search intent: does a user want to do something online or does he want to do something nearby? “If you’re in the market to buy garden furniture online, you’re using slightly different keywords Google compared to someone who’s looking for a store selling garden furniture nearby. We identify keywords and the intent users have while using them”.
Case study
Local SEO proves to work well for garden centres and retail nurseries. “We applied Local SEO to a mid-size retail nursery which is heavily plant focussed. And even for them, the results were really positive. Garden centres who are more focussed on leisure, with restaurants and playgrounds, can tap into a wider audience by applying Local SEO marketing.” explains Sjors Hemmen.
“The number of views of their local listings on Google went up 252% compared to 2020 which was really good. However, a view is not an action. But we can also measure the number of people checking the direction from their place to the store or who are making a phone call. That number went up by 215%.”
The impact was mentioned by the store owner: “Figures are just figures. But if you do get more phone calls and do see new people visiting your garden centre, it becomes obvious Local SEO helps to drive footfall.”
76% visits after searching
Surveys show that 76% of the consumers who were searching for a local business decided to visit one of the places they found on Google. “We often hear it’s complicated to link online marketing to in-store visits. But Local SEO proves the clear link between a Google query and in-store traffic. 76% of the consumers searching for a local business pays a visit to one of the businesses they found online within 24 hours.”
If you want to reach out to your local customers, please contact us at +44 203 475 5541 or email info@gardenconnect.com to learn more.
