- About
- Agenda
- Speakers
- Partners
- Tickets
- Scholarships
Attend LocalU Advanced Virtual
April 7, 2021
As always, we promise completely new content, never presented before at ANY conference!
Just $99/person for access to the full day of information!
A full-day Local SEO Conference for Internet Marketing Professionals
Join us from anywhere in the world on April 7, 2021, from 9 am to 5:30 pm Eastern time for Local U Advanced – See the top experts in Local Search with one goal… sharing everything.
If you’ve attended one of our other virtual events in the past 12-months – rest assured – this is going to be completely new content. New research & case studies, new topics, features & opportunities will be discussed.
Our planning team works hard to ensure our speakers do not regurgitate the things you’ve heard at our conferences, or any others dedicated to local search. We pay our speakers, and as a result, we have some of the best minds and information available – for an incredibly reasonable cost to you.
Whether you run an agency that serves brick-and-mortar businesses, work in-house for a large brand, or manages multiple locations & enterprise accounts. Or if you’re looking to expand into local marketing from traditional SEO, you won’t want to miss Local U Advanced Training. All new content is presented by thought leaders in the industry.
These sessions will be action-packed, presented at an advanced level, and feature ALL of the most up-to-date information about what’s working and what’s not in Local Search Engine Optimization. Join us for a great day.
Can’t make the event? Get your ticket and watch the videos on demand – available to all ticket holders about a week after the event concludes!
Scholarships Available
As with our past virtual events, we’re in the unique position to be able to offer scholarships to those that are struggling to make a go of it, have been furloughed or laid off due to COVID-19, or are looking to break into and learn more about local search, but don’t have support from your employer. Please apply for a scholarship by clicking the button below:If you’re interested in sponsoring scholarships or have any questions, please email Carrie at online (at) localu.org
Here’s what LocalU
attendees have to say:
We’re bringing in some of the leading online marketing experts.





April 7, 2021
Intro & Housekeeping
Host: Erin Jones, SterlingSky.ca
Everything you need to know to get the most out of your day!
Shades Of Grey: Controversial Local SEO Tactics that Drive Results
Colan Nielsen, SterlingSky.ca
When it comes to local SEO, it's critical to understand that there is often a difference between what Google says vs what Google does (or enforces!) In this session, Colan will share some findings based on tactics that are controversial in nature, from adding descriptors to your GMB name, to setting your hours to 24/7. Along with the tactics, Colan will share the potential consequences, as well as real world examples so you can make informed decisions about your own marketing strategies.
Successful Local SEO for Hotels - A Model for Success when Google Restricts your Access.
Tim Capper, OnlineOwnership.com
Unless you work within the travel industry, most Local SEO practitioners have no idea how heavily restricted this industry is in local search. This session looks at how hotels are restricted in their marketing efforts both in GMB and Organic verticals and how their tactics can be applied to winning in your own Local SEO vertical.
Break
Stretch & Grab Some Coffee
GMB/Spamfighting Q&A Panel
Joy Hawkins, Greg Gifford, Tim Capper, Colan Nielsen
Bring us your tough questions/problems. Let's solve them!
How to Factor E-A-T into Your Local SEO Strategy
Lily Ray, PathInteractive.com
E-A-T (expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness) has become increasingly important across all areas of organic search, but local SEO is often not one of the primary areas of focus in discussions about E-A-T. However, that doesn’t mean that E-A-T is not important for local SEO success. Learn the factors that contribute to a business’ E-A-T in local search, and how you can optimize to increase the perceived credibility and trust of your business.
Lunch!
An In-Depth Look at Local Services Ads and Upgraded GMB Profiles
Tom Waddington, Wachae.com
Table Stakes - Automation Storytelling for Local SEO
Noah Learner, TwoOctobers.com
There is hidden power within the Google Search Console API to deliver deep levels of optimization at a level that has been previously invisible and largely unattainable using the Native Google Search Console UI. The power is within the technology that Noah Learner will share. Noah has used these technologies, tools, and hacks to compete effectively against much larger firms.
Emphasis will be on GSC/UI native connectors to Google Data Studio using local business data. Focusing on optimization of retail store pages, collection pages, articles and guides as it relates to featured topics such as: optimizing the bottom of funnel terms through purchase intent and content expansion through question searches.
Prepare for a real-world tour of visibility comparisons between GSC/UI vs Native Connector vs. API. This talk will set you up for how to begin within your own business data and give you the competitive edge you are looking for.
Break Time
Stretch it out, grab a glass of water, sharpen your pencils!
Local SEO - The Proof is In The Pudding
Greg Gifford, SearchLabDigital.com
Using a series of case studies, Greg will walk through the Local SEO tactics his agency used with clients to bring big wins in 2020, when COVID caused one of the biggest disruptions to business in recent history. See how targeted content, link building, and Google My Business optimization can result in massive gains in organic traffic and leads, from small single-point businesses to multi-location entities. He'll also show how proper reporting helps keep you accountable and give clients a better view of ROI, so they stick around for a longer period of time.
Offline to Online - Strategies to Make the Transition
It's a challange to move offline retail businesses to online ecommerce. Our panel can help you brainstorm ideas, source tools and answer questions to make the process easier and less painful.
Google Posts Quiz Time - Ranking, Tactics & Strategy for Local Businesses
Joy Hawkins, SterlingSky.ca
April 7, 2021
Intro & Housekeeping
Host: Erin Jones, SterlingSky.ca
Everything you need to know to get the most out of your day!
Shades Of Grey: Controversial Local SEO Tactics that Drive Results
Colan Nielsen, SterlingSky.ca
When it comes to local SEO, it's critical to understand that there is often a difference between what Google says vs what Google does (or enforces!) In this session, Colan will share some findings based on tactics that are controversial in nature, from adding descriptors to your GMB name, to setting your hours to 24/7. Along with the tactics, Colan will share the potential consequences, as well as real world examples so you can make informed decisions about your own marketing strategies.
Successful Local SEO for Hotels - A Model for Success when Google Restricts your Access.
Tim Capper, OnlineOwnership.com
Unless you work within the travel industry, most Local SEO practitioners have no idea how heavily restricted this industry is in local search. This session looks at how hotels are restricted in their marketing efforts both in GMB and Organic verticals and how their tactics can be applied to winning in your own Local SEO vertical.
Break
Stretch & Grab Some Coffee
GMB/Spamfighting Q&A Panel
Joy Hawkins, Greg Gifford, Tim Capper, Colan Nielsen
Bring us your tough questions/problems. Let's solve them!
How to Factor E-A-T into Your Local SEO Strategy
Lily Ray, PathInteractive.com
E-A-T (expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness) has become increasingly important across all areas of organic search, but local SEO is often not one of the primary areas of focus in discussions about E-A-T. However, that doesn’t mean that E-A-T is not important for local SEO success. Learn the factors that contribute to a business’ E-A-T in local search, and how you can optimize to increase the perceived credibility and trust of your business.
Lunch!
An In-Depth Look at Local Services Ads and Upgraded GMB Profiles
Tom Waddington, Wachae.com
Table Stakes - Automation Storytelling for Local SEO
Noah Learner, TwoOctobers.com
There is hidden power within the Google Search Console API to deliver deep levels of optimization at a level that has been previously invisible and largely unattainable using the Native Google Search Console UI. The power is within the technology that Noah Learner will share. Noah has used these technologies, tools, and hacks to compete effectively against much larger firms.
Emphasis will be on GSC/UI native connectors to Google Data Studio using local business data. Focusing on optimization of retail store pages, collection pages, articles and guides as it relates to featured topics such as: optimizing the bottom of funnel terms through purchase intent and content expansion through question searches.
Prepare for a real-world tour of visibility comparisons between GSC/UI vs Native Connector vs. API. This talk will set you up for how to begin within your own business data and give you the competitive edge you are looking for.
Break Time
Stretch it out, grab a glass of water, sharpen your pencils!
Local SEO - The Proof is In The Pudding
Greg Gifford, SearchLabDigital.com
Using a series of case studies, Greg will walk through the Local SEO tactics his agency used with clients to bring big wins in 2020, when COVID caused one of the biggest disruptions to business in recent history. See how targeted content, link building, and Google My Business optimization can result in massive gains in organic traffic and leads, from small single-point businesses to multi-location entities. He'll also show how proper reporting helps keep you accountable and give clients a better view of ROI, so they stick around for a longer period of time.
Offline to Online - Strategies to Make the Transition
It's a challange to move offline retail businesses to online ecommerce. Our panel can help you brainstorm ideas, source tools and answer questions to make the process easier and less painful.
Google Posts Quiz Time - Ranking, Tactics & Strategy for Local Businesses
Joy Hawkins, SterlingSky.ca
Event Location

Location
YWCA Toronto
87 Elm St
Toronto, ON M5G 0A8
Canada
Network With Us!
While we wont be hosting an in-person networking event with this conference – we encourage everyone to head on over the the Local Search Forums to meet other local search professionals and business owners – ask questions and get to know one another!

Photos
Photos from Previous LocalU Events
LocalU has run dozens of events and helped thousands of business owners across the US and Canada since 2009.
Image via Anthony Johnson Photography

