SEO For Restaurants
What is SEO? SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and is an important part of building your website presence online. How restaurants can improve their “search engine optimization” and show up more on Google is a question that we get asked all the time. Luckily for restaurants one of the quickest ways to boost your presences is with online ordering and backlinks. Online ordering involves accepting orders on your website and this help SEO because a successful online ordering website drives a lot of visitors to your site from new and repeat customers. This is turn sends signals to Google that the website is widely used and therefore “valuable” making it show up higher in the search results for keywords related to your business. What about backlinks? Backlinks are another key ingredient to SEO for restaurants and is covered briefly in the next sections.
Backlink SEO for Restaurants?
Backlinks ( aka link building) is a popular method for getting websites to link back to your website. Links, especially from high ranking websites are one of the most important factors for search engine ranking. Building links and building relationships with your business go hand-in-hand. Getting backlinks through food publications (such as magazines) or local food bloggers can help boost your website authority. An easy and cost effective way to start your backlinking journey is to list your website on relevant directories and aggregators. Below are some top local citations for restaurants in Canada. You might also try to list your restaurant in local directories too such as Edmonton Business Chamber or bestinedmonton.com
Table List of Top Local Citations For Restaurants in Canada
listings subject to change along with DR scores
| Rank | Citation | Domain Authority |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | maps.apple.com | 100 |
| 2 | facebook.com | 96 |
| 3 | bing.com | 93 |
| 4 | google.ca | 93 |
| 5 | foursquare.com | 92 |
| 6 | bbb.org | 100 |
| 7 | mapquest.com | 89 |
| 8 | here.com | 86 |
| 9 | tomtom.com | 78 |
| 10 | websites.ca | 78 |
Local Citation SEO For Restaurants
Local citations for restaurants involve listing your restaurant details such as your restaurant’s name, address and phone number (NAP) along with a link back to your website. Local citations are a type of backlink that can be done manually and usually for free through a signup process on a high authority website or niche-specific aggregator. It is a type of local SEO strategy that is used to drive authority and traffic to your restaurant website Building links is a manual and time-consuming task but it can boost your website rankings. Consider working with your local website designer to help bring your business to the top of Google.
Why is it important to build citations?
It is important to build citations to drive traffic to your own website and increase your website presence online. Increasing the authority of your website is important because it allows customers to click on your website before other third-party apps intercept your customers. This is especially true if your website accepts online orders. Most people will click on the very first link of the search results. If people are “Googling” your restaurant name and your website is not at the very top of Google then you could be losing out on website visits and customers.
These days more and more people are starting online ordering by going to Google and typing in the restaurant name. The majority of users often click on the first link they see and will prefer to order online. If that link is a third-party website you will have to give a large piece of your profits to Skip The Dishes, Uber Eats, Door Dash or any other third-party agency you have partnered with.
How else can I get backlinks to build my website authority?
When you are starting out, it might be hard to get backlinks to your website from high authority websites. Your website should include unique and engaging content that other websites or bloggers may want to link to or reference. As a restaurant that includes
- Amazing pictures of your own food
- Your full menu
- Any promotions or exciting events you might be hosting
- Recipes, blogs or featured food dishes
Once you have got some exciting and unique content on your site, you can start to reach out your network of suppliers, news media or events sites like Explore Edmonton, Visit Calgary or Eventbrite if you are taking part in a festival or hosting an event at your restaurant. See list of our curated local popular press release sites.
SEO For Restaurants Summary
No matter the restaurant location, what type of food you serve or how long you’ve been around, the internet is full of exciting opportunities to bring you more brand awareness. When customers are searching your restaurant brand name, it is critically important that your own website shows up first on Google. Citations, link building and unique content creation in the form of pictures or blogs will increase your website authority and drive more traffic to your site. We have summarized a few different ways and ideas to start with. If you need any questions or are looking for help to get started please feel free to reach out.