The digital landscape is dominated by Google, but dismissing Bing as a search engine is a strategic oversight for local businesses. While Google holds a significant market share, Bing commands a substantial portion of desktop searches and powers prominent platforms like Siri and Alexa, representing a valuable audience often overlooked. Optimizing for Bing Local SEO isn't about duplicating Google strategies; it's about understanding Bing’s unique algorithms and leveraging its tools to connect with potential customers. This guide provides a deep dive into Bing Local SEO, outlining the benefits, strategies, and tools necessary to enhance your local online presence and capture a wider customer base.
The Growing Importance of Bing in Local Search
For a long time, Google has been the undisputed king of search, currently holding approximately 83.84% of the market share. However, Microsoft’s Bing has been steadily expanding its reach, currently accounting for roughly 4.6% of all searches across computers, tablets, and mobile devices (as of August 2022). This percentage jumps to 8.59% when focusing solely on desktop searches, making Bing a particularly relevant platform for businesses targeting desktop users.
Beyond direct searches, Bing’s influence extends to popular platforms. It serves as the default search engine for Microsoft products and, crucially, powers searches on Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa. This means hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of local searches are conducted through Bing-powered voice assistants. Ignoring this significant segment of potential customers can negatively impact your overall local SEO performance. Microsoft has actively focused on bolstering its local SEO capabilities, embedding local search functionality deeply within the Bing ecosystem. Bing Local is a dedicated business listing search engine designed to deliver relevant business information and reviews based on geographic location and search keywords.
Bing Places for Business: Your Foundation for Local Visibility
The cornerstone of Bing Local SEO is Bing Places for Business, a free listing service similar to Google Business Profile. Creating and optimizing your Bing Places listing is the first, and arguably most important, step in improving your local search ranking. This listing provides essential information about your business, including your name, address, phone number (NAP), business hours, website, and a detailed description of your services.
Optimizing your Bing Places listing involves several key elements:
- Keywords: Incorporate relevant keywords into your business description, ensuring it reads naturally and is user-friendly. Avoid keyword stuffing, which can negatively impact your ranking.
- Categories and Attributes: Select the most accurate and specific categories and attributes that describe your business. This helps Bing understand what you offer and match your listing to relevant searches.
- High-Quality Visuals: Upload high-resolution images and videos showcasing your business, products, and services. Visual content makes your listing more appealing and engaging.
- Regular Updates: Keep your business hours, services, and special offers up-to-date. Accurate information builds trust with potential customers.
- Encourage Reviews: Actively encourage satisfied customers to leave positive reviews on your Bing Places listing. Bing aggregates reviews from various sources, including Yelp, Facebook, and TripAdvisor.
NAP Consistency: The Bedrock of Local SEO
NAP (Name, Address, and Phone Number) consistency is paramount for both Google and Bing Local SEO. Inconsistent NAP information across online platforms can confuse search engines and harm your local rankings. Search engines use NAP data to verify the legitimacy of your business and determine its relevance to local searches.
Maintaining NAP consistency requires diligent effort:
- Audit Existing Citations: Identify all online mentions of your business and verify the accuracy of your NAP information.
- Correct Inconsistencies: Update any inaccurate NAP information on existing citations.
- Ensure Consistency on New Citations: When creating new citations, always use the same NAP information.
Here's a comparison of platforms where consistent NAP information is crucial:
| Platform | Importance | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Bing Places | High | Your primary listing; accuracy is critical. |
| Yelp | High | A popular review platform with significant search visibility. |
| High | A major social media platform with local business pages. | |
| Foursquare | Medium | A location-based platform popular with mobile users. |
| TripAdvisor | Medium | Relevant for businesses in the hospitality and tourism industries. |
| Chamber of Commerce | Medium | Often a trusted source of local business information. |
Leveraging Local Citations and Backlinks
Beyond NAP consistency, building a strong network of local citations and backlinks is essential for improving your Bing Local SEO.
Local Citations: These are online mentions of your business that include your NAP information. While quantity matters, quality is even more important. Focus on listing your business on reputable and relevant online directories.
Local Backlinks: These are links from other websites to your website. Backlinks from local websites, such as local news sites, blogs, and business associations, are particularly valuable.
Strategies for building local backlinks include:
- Guest Posting: Contribute articles to local blogs and websites.
- Sponsorships: Sponsor local events and request a mention on their website.
- Partnerships: Collaborate with other local businesses and exchange links.
Bing Webmaster Tools: Your Analytics Hub
Bing Webmaster Tools is a free suite of tools designed to help you monitor and improve your website’s performance in Bing search results. Key features include:
- Keyword Research: Identify the keywords that are driving traffic to your website.
- Crawl Errors: Identify and fix any crawl errors that may be preventing Bing from indexing your website.
- Backlink Analysis: Analyze the backlinks pointing to your website.
- Structured Data Testing: Validate your structured data markup.
- Site Submission: Submit your sitemap to Bing for faster indexing.
Regularly monitoring your Bing Webmaster Tools data allows you to identify areas for improvement and track the effectiveness of your Bing Local SEO efforts.
Structured Data Markup: Helping Bing Understand Your Content
Structured data markup, also known as schema markup, is code that you add to your website to help search engines understand the content on your pages. Using structured data markup can enhance your search listings with rich snippets, such as star ratings, business hours, and pricing information. This can attract more clicks and improve your visibility in local search results.
For local SEO, the LocalBusiness schema is particularly important. This schema provides information about your business, including your name, address, phone number, business hours, and services. Bing’s Structured Data Testing Tool can help you validate your markup and ensure it is implemented correctly.
Monitoring and Adapting Your Strategy
Local SEO is not a one-time effort; it requires continuous monitoring and adaptation. Regularly track your Bing Local SEO performance using Bing Webmaster Tools and adjust your strategies based on the data.
- Track Keyword Rankings: Monitor your rankings for relevant local keywords.
- Analyze Website Traffic: Track the amount of traffic coming from Bing search results.
- Monitor Review Activity: Respond to reviews and encourage customers to leave feedback.
- Stay Updated on Algorithm Changes: Bing’s algorithm is constantly evolving, so stay informed about any changes that may impact your rankings.
The Bottom Line: Don't Overlook Bing
While Google remains the dominant force in search, Bing represents a significant opportunity for local businesses to expand their reach and attract new customers. By claiming and optimizing your Bing Places listing, maintaining NAP consistency, building local citations and backlinks, leveraging Bing Webmaster Tools, and implementing structured data markup, you can significantly improve your Bing Local SEO performance. Don’t make the mistake of overlooking this valuable search engine – a strategic investment in Bing Local SEO can yield substantial returns.