We have alot of experience working with medium and large business on their online marketing initiatives. Whether there looking for Search Engine Optimization, Paid Search Management, or any of our other services it generally a smooth process as they have come to understand the value of online marketing and the increast in sales it can lead to.

We are a privately held company, a business that we treat more like a family,and know many people who have small business’s but have no knowledge of advertising online or why it even matters. We decided to reach out to them and test out a new product we had in the mix developed for these types of business’s and while they still don’t completely understand how it works, they understand the internets power as every single ePowerPackage we have set up has led to increased sales and walk in traffic.

Our local marketing package is an all in one solution for companies that dont have a marketing team and dont want to complicate things. They know they need to be online and they want someone to handle it. The truth is that its more important than ever to be found online. With more and more people turning to online search instead of opening up the Yellow Pages( I will get several emails now from Yellow Page Industry types ). In fact, over 55% of local searches are now conducted online with over 65% of those people purchasing local goods and services.

This numbers cant be ignored and with a package like this that not only provides a website, but provides Google, Yahoo!, & MSN local submissions, lead generation, and much much more a small business simply cant go wrong.

Normally, I take the opportunity on our blog to talk about general topics but we are so excited about this product, its performance and what it can mean for small business in this economic environment that I simply had to talk about it.

Find out more after the jump

At Softline we work with allot of small and medium size business’s so we are quite familiar with the fact that there audience may not be as geographically diverse as larger companies. In fact, a common question that comes up in our conversations with prospective clients is ” Why should I do SEO when my clients are local? “. Thats a pretty good question and opens the door into a short discussion about Local Search Engine Optimization trends and how its become much easier to optimize locally and really target an audience.

Local optimization of websites has picked up steam as of late. While the concept is nothing new the technology that allows marketers to more effectively target their audience has improved considerably. You may think that Google, Yahoo, & MSN are leading the way on this but you will be amazed at the number of specialized search engines that have popped up that while by them selves have very little market share in search, collectively have a lead on Google, Yahoo, or MSN. These smaller search engines are designed specifically for the local market and have been gaining surprising traction. The top tier search engines havent been standing still either and have started to improve their own local search abilities with Google leading the charge.

So why is it important for small business to look at SEO? Now more than ever all business’s small and large are looking online to drive more sales and traffic to their stores and websites. The fact is that more and more people are going online to search for local business versus using the big yellow book and at this point in the game its not a matter of not being able to afford SEO services its simply something you have to do to stay in line with competition.

At Softline we specialize in local optimization services for the Southern California area since this is where we are located but have clients nationwide that we will with targeted services. The hardest challenge is always showing a small or medium size business the value in this type of marketing and why they should consider it. We have found that a multi-tiered approach to optimizing locally has worked the best utilizing organinc SEO for long term results and Paid Search management for short term traffic and sales.

So with that said Local SEO services are kicking into high gear and many more companies are looking to this service to increase their company’s visibility. Online marketing makes sense and diverting some of the marketing dollar to online which provides a truly measurable way to see results is a smart move.

The trends they are changing. With more and more businesses of all shapes and sizes realizing how important it is to have visibility on the world wide web the case for more targeted way of web site optimization has gotten stronger. This year at one of the major industry expos all the buzz was on Local Optimization and what it can do for business. While this has been a goal of Search Engine Optimization for some time its only recently become a true possibility.

Local business can benefit in many ways from Local Optimization efforts and going with an online marketing firm that truly specializes in this type of service is to your benefit. Many SEO companies focus their efforts on national brands and gaining rankings for their clients on a very broad level. This leaves small business out in the cold trying to figure out how they can get in the game efficiently and effectively without incurring the costs of national online marketing campaign .

So you might be wondering what’s the difference and why should I consider going local?

Well these are valid questions that often come up with many of our clients.  The fact is that if your a business that relies on local clients and customers you dont need to spend your marketing dollar on attracting online searches from across the country. You want to be featured in relevant search engines that drive local traffic to your site. For example, your a local restaurant that wants to make sure that when people search for a great place to eat in your area you come up as a top listing. It would not be relevant to your business for someone in another state to find you when searching for a local eatery. While you may want to be listed in national directories for people traveling the bulk of your business will be local traffic.  Local Optimization targets is efforts on providing your business visibility on a local level first to drive traffic to your website and more business to your door.

Online statistics show that consumers are going local at a rapid pace. More and more searches are done looking for local business’s that are relevant to consumers as they look for goods and services online. Making sure your optimized locally is the key to growth for your business and if you haven’t considered a presence online until now then maybe its time you take a look.