A Comprehensive Guide to Local SEO for Financial Advisors
Local search engine optimization (SEO) is essential for financial advisors looking to increase visibility and attract clients in their geographic area. With a targeted local SEO strategy, advisors can reach prospects who are actively searching for financial guidance in their city or region. In this post, we’ll walk through practical steps you can take. For any examples, we’ll use a fictitious financial firm named “ABC Wealth Partners” that is located in Woodbury, MN.
What is Local SEO?
Local SEO is the process of optimizing your website and online presence to rank higher in local search engine results. The goal of local SEO is to drive organic (unpaid) traffic and leads to your firm's website. Unlike other forms of SEO (e.g., e-commerce), it is critical for service-based businesses like financial advisors because most clients search for advisors in their local area.
Successful local SEO makes you easier to find and builds trust and credibility with potential clients searching online. It shows search engines like Google that you actively serve customers in a specific geographic region.
Why is Local SEO Important for Financial Advisors?
What sets SEO apart from other marketing channels is that it meets people where they are. When people are on Google, they are actively researching with the intent of making a purchase. The buyer journey is comprehensive, but the below stats show that search is typically a part of the buying process.
Consider the following statistics (source):
46% of Google searches have local intent
97% of search engine users look online to discover local business information
78% of those local searches drive offline conversions like calls or visits
Perhaps the best way to understand the value of local SEO is to consider your own usage of Google. How many times have you searched "coffee shop near me" or "tire repair Stillwater, MN"? We do it all the time!
We also use search to vet referrals. Say you are a 40-year-old who is looking for a financial advisor to help review your retirement plan. You ask around, and find out that ABC Wealth Partners has helped several of your trusted friends. Your next step is likely to Google their brand name or the name of one of their advisors to see what information they have on their website. You are also going to do a deep dive into their reviews to "get the real truth" about them. Once they check enough boxes, you’ll likely reach out for a free consultation.
This exact scenario happens all of the time, and we’ve built our business on optimizing for local-based search. In the following guide, we’ll walk you through a holistic approach to optimizing your website for local searches.
1. The Foundation of Local SEO: Keyword Research
Thorough keyword research lays the entire foundation that local SEO strategy is built upon. Without understanding exactly what keyphrases potential clients are using to search for financial advisors in your geographic region, optimization efforts will struggle to connect with searchers.
Yet many advisors focus keyword efforts too broadly. Generic industry terminology like "dollar cost averaging" or "401k rollover" may attract some search volume globally, but often lacks commercial intent. Few searching such broad terms are ready to engage with a specific local advisor.
By honing keyword research to uncover hyper-targeted, high-intent local keyphrases, advisors can focus content and optimization to attract viable prospects.
The most effective local SEO keywords structure contain:
Location mentions (Woodbury, MN)
Specific service terminology (retirement planning, tax guidance)
Commercial intent phrasing (find a financial planner near me)
Advanced keyword research tools like Answer the Public, Keyword Everywhere, and Google Search Console's related queries feature help uncover this rich, intent-filled, geographically-focused keyword data.
2. On-Page Local SEO Elements
Once you have your keyword lists in hand, it’s now time to start optimizing every page on your website. It’s essential that you have enough specificity in your on-page efforts. Optimizing a page for “tax and estate planning” is good, but you are missing the mark if you don’t include the location — “tax and estate planning services in Woodbury, MN”.
The exact process of optimizing your specific pages is not all that difficult. Below are the primary elements you should optimize.
Title Tags - Include your target location and services in your title tag and try to keep the overall length to less than 60 characters. (Tax and Estate Planning Services in Woodbury, MN)
Meta Descriptions - Summarize the page and include the targeted keywords. Try to conclude with a call to action. (Are you looking for estate planning services in Woodbury? Contact ABS Wealth Partners for a free 30-minute consultation.)
URLs - Use your keywords in the URL. (abcwealth.com/tax-estate-planning-woodbury)
Image Alt Text - Describe photos including geo-references (Estate Planning Team in Woodbury)
Content - Provide sufficient content on your page and include a few reference to your targeted keyword phrases. Include content that answers common questions related to that service.
Internal Links - When other pages mention a service, link the first mention on that page using good, keyword-rich anchor texts (e.g. estate planning services are our bread and butter)
If you have a large website, optimizing every page can be a daunting tasks. We love using the tool Screaming Frog to pull every single link from the website along with the key metadata. We export this data file to a Google Sheet and then prioritize service level pages, and start working down the spreadsheet.
3. Content Optimization
As you work through your keyword research and start optimizing each page, you may notice that you have major gaps. Recently, we were doing this for a financial firm, and we quickly discovered that it didn’t have separate pages for its individual services. This was a big problem because they were self-limiting their ability to rank for each of those keyword phrases.
Here are a few key content considerations that you need to wrestle with:
Build a Clear Navigational Structure - Structure your website so key pages are easily reachable within 3 clicks from the home page. The navigation should be logical and easy for users to follow.
Create Individual Service Pages - Make sure you have a unique page that is geo targeted for each of your key services (Estate Planning Services in Woodbury, MN).
Include Important Details and Questions - Your pages should be helpful and include enough details to satisfy the searcher’s intent. Oftentimes, it’s a good idea to incorporate FAQs for key services.
Write for Your Audience - It is essential to write for your audience. There are a lot of good writing frameworks (AIDA - Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) available. They all have one thing in common. Write for your ideal customer. Use their vernacular. Understand their problems. Position your financial firm as a skilled partner who can assist them in their goals.
4. Content Creation & Distribution
Creating good, educational content is one of the best forms of marketing. It’s built to provide helpful education that is not tied to a paycheck. In doing that, however, you are able to showcase your expertise to help prospective clients make an informed buying decision.
We also believe that there have never been more opportunities for financial advisors to reach clients due to the rise of audio and video platforms. Furthermore, with a little bit of savviness, you can triple your output by using quality AI tools. (Check out this tutorial on how to use Claude 2.)
Here are a few ideas that we’ve worked on with our clients to implement:
Create Videos for YouTube - YouTube is the second largest search engine and should be a part of every business’s marketing plan. As a financial advisor, you have constant catalysts for new content. Create videos to explain the implications of fed rate hikes. Talk through tax law changes. Provide content on considerations when selling your business. Talk Bitcoin! The opportunities abound.
Podcasts - While a bit harder to build an audience, podcasts provide a great mouthpiece to potential customers. Repurpose videos into podcast episodes examining market and planning updates. Add color with personal finance stories and local perspectives.
Blogging - Build a blog on your website. If you do create videos, consider our guide to help you leverage your transcripts and quickly produce quality posts that can rank in Google.
Social Media - Finally, consider using social media to connect and engage with your local community. As with any marketing, keep it “social”. Don’t try using corporate messaging on your LinkedIn and Facebook feeds. It will not work. Instead, consider sharing event recaps, market explanations, and financial planning tips through an active, value-focused stream. Resist over self-promotion.
There is one more angle to consider when thinking through content. A lot of financial advisors are good at building a presentation for a specific niche. This can be a great way to reach potential clients. Here are a few ideas for presentations:
How to minimize capital gains tax when selling your business
Tax efficient exit planning strategies
Managing personal vs. business taxes during a transition
Promote these localized events through your social channels, outreach to local publications' event listing sections, and partnerships with organizations your target groups are involved in.
5. Technical SEO
Now that you’ve nailed the content and on-page SEO, you must also consider the technical infrastructure of your website. We highly recommend that you use a good content management system (CMS), which will help make sure a lot of these boxes are checked. We like WordPress and Squarespace.
Make Your Website Mobile Friendly - It is essential that your website is mobile friendly. If you are in the process of developing a new website, think “mobile-first”. Forget about looking at your website on a nice 4K display. Instead, view it on your phone to see how the majority of your users will see it. This aligns well with Google's mobile-first index.
Implement Schema Markup - Add structured data and schema markup highlighting key business info like location, hours, and services.
Focus on Performance - You want to make sure your website loads quickly. To do this, reduce image file sizes, enable browser caching, and compress resources to improve site speed.
Fix 404s and Errors - Eliminate broken links, 404 errors, and other site glitches detected in Google Search Console.
Create SEO Sitemaps - Create XML sitemaps outlining all website pages, update dynamically, and include in Search Console.
Though less visible, foundational website health elements like mobile responsiveness, structured data, and technical optimizations give local SEO an edge. Review technical site audit reports regularly to catch and correct issues early.
6. Build Quality Backlinks
Building good backlinks are the jetfuel behind your website’s performance in search. Earning quality backlinks from trusted sites is like getting great references on your resume. You want connections that demonstrate genuine expertise and trustworthiness. The ideal local SEO backlink profile combines the following categories.
Editorial Links - Get your advisors quoted or published in widely-read industry trade journals and magazines. This showcases your thought leadership to a niche audience.
General Citations - Consistently list your advisors on well-known national directories like Google My Business, Yelp, YellowPages, and others search engines use. Precision with something as basic as your NAP (name, address and phone number) across citations builds integrity.
Local Citations - Getting mentioned on trusted local sites carries tremendous weight - even more than general industry publications sometimes. Local newspaper write-ups, chamber site profiles, event listings, and relevant local blogs act like personal references vouching for your community involvement and service.
Sponsorships and Local Events - Sponsoring your local little league or building out a “Shred-it Woodbury” is a great way to add quality links to your website. Invite any local bloggers and news reporters to maximize your efforts and build links.
By actively building this blended backlink profile through contributions versus self-promotion, search engines take notice of your localized relevance, industry expertise, and citation accuracy. That sparks higher rankings for critical local SEO terms.
7. Optimizing Your Google Business Profile
Your Google Business Profile (GBP) listing deserves special attention given its prominence across Google search and maps. Since it drives direct calls, views, and visits, fine tune your profile:
Fill Out Your Full Profile - Audit competitor GBPs with tools like BrightLocal for inspiration. Maximize primary/secondary categories, photos, descriptions and more.
Add High-Quality Photos - Feature eye-catching interior office shots, headshots of your financial advisors, event and local community photos.
Prompt Reviews - Satisfied client reviews build major trust and social proof. Check state regulations, but proactively enable feedback opportunities legitimately.
Claiming and fully optimizing your Google Business Profile enhances visibility across critical Google touchpoints. The profile also aids local SEO consistency by linking your website to prominent Google listings where prospects discover you.
8. Track Your Performance
As Peter Drucker said, “What gets measured gets managed.” This is a good rule for investing and for your marketing efforts. Here’s how you can apply that to your local SEO and overall sales funnel.
Monitor Website Analytics - Connect Google Search Console and Google Analytics to track searches, clicks, and site conversions like contact form fills and phone calls. Set up goals to quantify lead results.
Track Rankings - Use rank checking software like BrightLocal to monitor monthly progress for target keywords and placements in local pack listings.
Review Social Media - Assess social posts and content formats driving the highest engagement levels. Survey clients for feedback to guide optimizations.
Consistently tracking performance across SEO and content projects reveals what works best. Refine top-performing initiatives while culling less effective ones. Measure local SEO holistically through keywords, citations, leads created, and client perceptions.
Consider partnering with us:
If you understand the value of local SEO and digital marketing, but don’t have the time or bandwidth to optimize your business’s online presence, we’d love to chat.
Our team has experience working in the financial services industry and would love to learn more about your firm. We provide custom-tailored plans that are centered around your objectives.