In the past few years, I’ve read many articles about localization, as tech companies and entrepreneurs try to figure out how to do more with local search. There seems to be demand, as people in specific areas desire to know the best restaurants to visit, local tailors or handy people to hire. But it’s an area that also seems to struggle for great solutions. Google My Business works but only if the owner has claimed the business. Yelp.com is fine but reviews can be subjective and not everything is equally covered, especially if the area is not urban or trendy. Funny, when the connection with the places where we live and work can be so important to us. I think this is a great opportunity for content marketing for organizations looking for topics that will really interest readers. Here are some ways you could generate a few blog posts from your local area:
Help your audiences get to know your physical location
If your organization is situated in a particular area, your people may well want to get more familiar with the place. I’m thinking about some of my clients that are schools, where a great focal point for content can be the neighbourhood where they’re located, including useful businesses nearby such as restaurants or those providing services relevant to their readers.
Local cross-promotion
Many organizations already buy from their neighbours anyway: businesses order catering from local restaurants, use local builders for repair work, and buy supplies nearby. What if you connect more formally with these businesses to cross-promote? Some often approach each other for sponsorships and support, so including information about these organizations in a content post can help to formalize this relationship. You can even formalize a focus on local and make it a part of your organization’s mandate to buy local first and support organizations in the area.
Celebrate the history of your area and your place within it
A post about the history of the area can be interesting for readers who spend a lot of time there. For organizations that keep archives, poke through and see if any local content might be interesting to scan and share. A history of the neighbourhood or city can help your reader feel even closer to it. You can also include the history of your organization’s rise within your neighbourhood and how you may have expanded or changed there.
