iO study: majority of retail chains missing out on local SEO benefits
Find out how the retail sector is doing in terms of Local SEO
November 8, 2023
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The 2023 Local SEO Benchmark Report published by iO reveals that the majority of Dutch and Belgian retailers are missing opportunities in the field of local SEO. Although the optimisation scores have increased compared to previous research, there is still a lot to be gained for retail chains in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Supported by data partner Flipstream, iO researched around 100,000 business locations in 14 retail branches, in 36 cities in both the Netherlands and Belgium (Flanders). Each company in the dataset was assessed on 14 points, using public data from Google Maps. The overall conclusion is that the online visibility of most retailers in their specific geographic areas is poor.
Key takeaways from the 2023 Local SEO Benchmark Report:
- More than half of all the business locations surveyed are only lightly optimised, or not at all.
- 88% of the reviews with a mediocre score (less than 3 out of 5 stars) are not responded to.
- Only 26% of business locations have ever posted a Google Post.
Robin van der Sar, local SEO lead at iO:
"The last Local SEO Benchmark Report was published by iO in 2020. Generally, use of Local SEO has improved since 2020. The final conclusion, however, is that while retailers often invest sufficient budget in the physical decoration of their location, the digital decoration of their locations are overlooked. Of the business locations surveyed, more than 50% are only lightly optimised, or not optimised at all. It is evident that there are plenty of opportunities for further optimisation. Especially in the bank, supermarket and garage and car wash industries. The investment for the optimisation is negligible at branch level, while the impact of this can be significant if you look at the increase in physical store visits. So there's a lot of work to be done. And that is essential, because Local SEO is only gaining relevance – even with the rapid developments in the field of AI."
In addition to Robin van der Sar, the 2023 Local SEO Benchmark report was written by iO's Team lead SEO, CRO & MA Clarissa Filius and Flipstream founder Michel Kant.
About iO
iO is a blended agency. We bring together talent in marketing, technology, content, strategy, and creativity. With our belief that "experience is everything," we help our clients provide their target audience with rich and relevant brand experiences. Our track record includes helping strong brands such as Audi, Brussels Airport, Efteling, Eneco, Fiberklaar, and Worldline grow.
Established in 2005, iO operates locally and internationally, serving companies, organisations, and governments from our campuses in Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and Bulgaria. iodigital.com
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