Are You Taking Advantage Of Local SEO?

[hipcat]

My question developed out of all the spam I deal with on a constant, daily, basis. The amount of spam posts I delete from spammers using the same, boring, ineffective early 2000's setup of "Some service IN Somewhere" is mind numbing, and is made worse by adding more modern AI to the content.

So, a typical spam post will be AI generated about some kind of service, like dentistry, with a link to "Dentists in Melbourne", for example. It seems obvious that it's either a bot program, or perhaps some misguided SEO "expert" manually spamming for backlinks for a client who has no clue the negative impact it will have on their ranking.

It serves no purpose at all. We all know by now, or should, that only a FEW highly quality RELEVANT backlinks are needed for effective SEO....not spam links, not 1000's of backlinks....just GOOD links. Especially on a forum, unless the members live IN Melbourne and need dental work, you're just wasting your time. People posting those kind of links are hoping it will have some positive effect, but it doesn't.

If you REALLY want to find customers looking for your service in wherever, then you should be focusing on local SEO in that area. The benefits are clear and obvious. First, because that is where your customers are, but perhaps more importantly, and something many people may not know, is that it's FASTER to rank locally. Lots of people complain that SEO is so slow to show any meaningful results, but I've seen many examples where local SEO efforts pay off faster and with more immediate results.

Two examples just in my own area even surprised me. One was a guy around the corner who threw up a crappy website offering outdoor camping spots at a whopping $235 per night that got ranked and on the map within 30 days to the point where he ended up booked solid 6 months in advance and was turning away bookings. He even had someone show up at his doorstep looking to rent a spot before he was even ready! The 2nd was a doggy daycare I suggested that a woman down the road should start because she was already looking after my dog, and pet services are always in demand, so why not? She threw up a quick page offering her service and was showing on Google the following week, before she was even fully prepared to take on clients!

Anyway, food for thought. If you have a service specific for a certain area, then your efforts are better spent concentrating on that area, than posting irrelevant links to your site all over the internet.

What is your opinion? What has been your own results with local SEO? Sound off here!

 

[silentwolf]

You're absolutely right—these spammy links aren't high quality. They only hold value if they’re relevant to your niche. However, in some less competitive industries, low-quality links like those from general forums, Web 2.0s, and similar sources can still help improve rankings, at least in the short term. In my experience, especially in toolbases and informational niches, these kinds of links can have some effect (though not sustainable in the long run).

That said, links from low-quality, spammy sites—such as pages linking to adult content, casinos, gambling, or escort sites—are a different story. If your site is linked from such a page, especially one with hundreds of outbound links, it’s not useful at all and could even cause harm. These types of links come from a bad neighborhood and could get your site into trouble.

On the other hand, links from sites with fewer outbound links but with a good neighborhood, decent traffic, and authority (whether they’re forums, Web 2.0s, or even comments) can still be beneficial. It’s all about context and relevance—links from these sources, even if not top-tier, can help move the needle when they come from reputable, well-maintained pages.


It's my experience; maybe I can be wrong.

 

[suwaidionline]

suwaidionline

Local SEO is crucial for businesses aiming to attract nearby customers and improve online visibility in their community. By optimizing for location-based searches, businesses can drive more relevant traffic and boost their chances of appearing in local search results, ultimately increasing foot traffic and sales.

 

[Sawyer Graham]

My question developed out of all the spam I deal with on a constant, daily, basis. The amount of spam posts I delete from spammers using the same, boring, ineffective early 2000's setup of "Some service IN Somewhere" is mind numbing, and is made worse by adding more modern AI to the content.

So, a typical spam post will be AI generated about some kind of service, like dentistry, with a link to "Dentists in Melbourne", for example. It seems obvious that it's either a bot program, or perhaps some misguided SEO "expert" manually spamming for backlinks for a client who has no clue the negative impact it will have on their ranking.

It serves no purpose at all. We all know by now, or should, that only a FEW highly quality RELEVANT backlinks are needed for effective SEO....not spam links, not 1000's of backlinks....just GOOD links. Especially on a forum, unless the members live IN Melbourne and need dental work, you're just wasting your time. People posting those kind of links are hoping it will have some positive effect, but it doesn't.

If you REALLY want to find customers looking for your service in wherever, then you should be focusing on local SEO in that area. The benefits are clear and obvious. First, because that is where your customers are, but perhaps more importantly, and something many people may not know, is that it's FASTER to rank locally. Lots of people complain that SEO is so slow to show any meaningful results, but I've seen many examples where local SEO efforts pay off faster and with more immediate results.

Two examples just in my own area even surprised me. One was a guy around the corner who threw up a crappy website offering outdoor camping spots at a whopping $235 per night that got ranked and on the map within 30 days to the point where he ended up booked solid 6 months in advance and was turning away bookings. He even had someone show up at his doorstep looking to rent a spot before he was even ready! The 2nd was a doggy daycare I suggested that a woman down the road should start because she was already looking after my dog, and pet services are always in demand, so why not? She threw up a quick page offering her service and was showing on Google the following week, before she was even fully prepared to take on clients!

Anyway, food for thought. If you have a service specific for a certain area, then your efforts are better spent concentrating on that area, than posting irrelevant links to your site all over the internet.

What is your opinion? What has been your own results with local SEO? Sound off here!

I completely agree with you—spammy backlinks and AI-generated posts are outdated and ineffective. Quality is far more important than quantity when it comes to SEO. Focusing on local SEO is definitely the smarter approach, especially for service-based businesses. Local SEO is often quicker and more effective because it targets the right audience in your area, making it easier to rank and attract customers. I’ve seen it work firsthand, like the local camping spot and dog daycare examples you mentioned. So, instead of wasting time with irrelevant links, businesses should focus on local SEO to see faster, more meaningful results.

 

[Jack_Smithh]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts! I completely agree with your perspective on the inefficacy of spam posts and the value of focusing on quality over quantity when it comes to backlinks. It’s frustrating to see so many outdated SEO tactics still in use, especially when they’re not only ineffective but can also harm a business’s reputation and search rankings.

Your point about local SEO being faster and more impactful is spot on. In my experience, targeting a specific area with well-optimized local content—like Google My Business listings, local keywords, and reviews—yields far better results than broad, scattergun approaches. I’ve seen similar examples to the ones you mentioned, where businesses quickly gained traction by focusing locally. It’s a reminder that aligning SEO strategies with actual customer behavior and needs is far more effective than spamming forums or using generic AI-generated content.

I’d love to hear more about your approach to local SEO—do you have any specific tools or strategies you recommend for optimizing local campaigns? Also, how do you deal with the constant battle against spam? It’s a challenge so many of us face, and sharing best practices could really help the community.

Looking forward to your thoughts!

 

[hipcat]

hipcat

As another example of just how effective quality is over quantity, I launched a new site exactly one week ago and only put up TWO backlinks to it and it's already in Google and getting traffic. Getting "blasts" of 1000's of backlinks are a thing of the past.

As far as spam, here we get hit hard...hourly. There are measures in place, but it's still not enough. I'm surprised whoever programs the spambots doesn't just remove us from the not list because their crap never gets posted.

On another forum I own I simply replaced the signup captcha with a series of specific questions that only a real human can answer. The bot sigups dropped from dozens per day to ZERO. There are ways around captchas, but the questions are more effective.

Spam is a daily headache, but I like to find creative ways to deal with it

 

[ashleydent4u]

Local SEO is definitely the way to go for businesses targeting specific areas. Spammy backlinks and irrelevant posts do more harm than good and just waste time. Focusing on local SEO not only speeds up the ranking process, but it also gets your business in front of the right people, those who are actually searching for your services in your area. I've seen similar success stories where small, local businesses can rank quickly by just optimizing for local search terms and claiming their Google My Business profile. It’s all about quality and relevance—local SEO is much more effective than trying to game the system with spammy tactics!

 

[CyberAlchemist]

I can totally relate to your frustration with those spam posts—it feels like every other post these days is some AI-generated link drop that adds zero value. I’ve seen the same pattern: random services in random locations, completely irrelevant to the actual forum topic. It’s annoying for the community and, honestly, a bad look for whoever is behind it.

From my own experience, focusing on local SEO really does yield better (and faster) results than trying to blast links everywhere. I’ve helped a few small businesses in my area with basic local optimizations things like claiming their Google Business Profile, using local keywords in their site content, and encouraging genuine customer reviews and it’s amazing how quickly they start seeing tangible leads.

One mechanic I worked with went from having zero online visibility to showing up on the first page in under a month, simply because there weren’t many other mechanics in his neighborhood with a decent online presence. Local SEO can work wonders if you put effort into the right channels (like actual local listings, relevant Facebook groups for your area, or local business forums), instead of spamming random internet forums.

It really comes down to relevance and quality. If your audience is in a specific city, why waste time posting on sites that cater to a totally different demographic? It’s basically like shouting into a void, hoping to find someone who cares. Plus, as you said, it can actually hurt your credibility if Google sees all these sketchy backlinks.

So, yeah, I’m 100% with you. It’s much smarter to invest time in real local strategies than to fling spam across the web. I’d love to hear more success stories from others who have focused on local SEO, but judging from your examples, it’s definitely a powerful approach.