About Beau Graves

Beau Graves has almost 20 years of marketing experience and combines his love of content marketing and brand building to help partners succeed. He’s known as the “SEO Cowboy” for his mix of digital marketing know-how and love of Western heritage and culture. He’s helped big brands execute large scale campaigns using organic search, creative content and demand generation. His approach is building strong partnerships and mentoring teams to help them reach their full potential.

Table of Contents

• Who is Beau Graves?
• Current Projects that Excite Beau
• Tactical and Strategic Local SEO Advice from Beau
• Where Does Beau See the Future of Local SEO Going?
• How to Get in Contact with Beau
• Conclusion

Who is Beau Graves?

Early Life and Education

Born in Orem, Utah and raised in what was once a farm area now a college town near Utah Valley University (UVU). As the youngest of three siblings with a 14 year age gap between him and his older brother Beau learned to see the world differently.

Educational Challenges and Early Career

Beau openly shares his struggles with traditional education, he had ADD and was a hands on, visual learner. He wanted to be a judge because of his debating skills but his path took a different turn. After high school he went straight into the workforce, he started with physically demanding jobs like framing houses and landscaping.

Digital Marketing

His entry into digital marketing came by accident when he was looking for better career opportunities. He started at $13 an hour and helped small businesses build their online presence. The 2008 economic crash was a turning point in his career when at 24 he was promoted to manage a team of 22 people after his boss was let go.

Avalanche

After 6 years in his first digital marketing role and a brief stint at another agency Beau joined Avalanche where he’s been for almost 10 years. He started as an SEO specialist and has grown to be part of the executive team and developed and lead the SEO and strategy divisions.

Current Projects that Excite Beau

Bridging Traditional and Digital Marketing

One of Beau’s current exciting projects involves integrating traditional advertising with digital marketing strategies. His team at Avalanche has been expanding into traditional media buying, including:

• Billboard advertising
• Radio spots
• Print media
• Non-traditional print channels

Addressing Attribution Challenges

In today’s marketing landscape, Beau is particularly focused on solving the complex challenge of attribution as traditional digital tracking methods become less reliable. He notes that this creates an interesting parallel with traditional marketing, which has historically operated without precise attribution metrics. This evolution requires marketers to:

• Develop new measurement methodologies
• Create innovative impact assessment models
• Adapt to the growing influence of dark social
• Design custom solutions for different business types

Tactical and Strategic Local SEO Advice from Beau

The Three Pillars of Local SEO

Beau organizes local SEO into three main components:

1. Technical SEO
• Ensures proper crawlability
• Maintains searchability
• Implements technical best practices
• Meets Google’s technical requirements
2. Content/Onsite SEO
• Focuses on user experience
• Creates valuable, relevant content
• Avoids over-optimization
• Reflects natural business communication
3. Offsite SEO
• Manages business profiles
• Maintains citation consistency
• Builds authentic reviews
• Develops local presence

Google Business Profile Optimization

Beau emphasizes the critical importance of Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) in local SEO strategy:

• Set up and maintain an accurate business profile
• Ensure consistent business information across platforms
• Actively manage and respond to reviews
• Add relevant photos and videos
• Use UTM tracking for performance measurement

Local Landing Page Strategy

The approach to local landing pages should be tailored to the business type:

Multi-Location Businesses (e.g., Credit Unions)

• Create specific branch pages
• Include location-specific information
• List staff members and services
• Provide operating hours and contact details

Single-Location Businesses (e.g., Restaurants)

• Focus on optimizing the homepage
• Showcase the business experience
• Display menu or service offerings
• Include photo galleries

Pro Tip: UTM Tracking

Beau recommends implementing UTM tracking for all Google Business Profile links to:

• Monitor performance metrics
• Track location-specific traffic
• Measure conversion rates
• Analyze customer journey paths

Where Does Beau See the Future of Local SEO Going?

AI-Driven Search Experience

Beau predicts a significant shift toward AI-controlled local search experiences:

• Integration of AI assistants like Google’s Gemini
• More sophisticated voice search capabilities
• Enhanced natural language processing
• Improved contextual understanding of user intent

Evolution of Search Commands

Future local searches may become more conversational and specific:

• Users will be able to request “best-rated” businesses more effectively
• AI will better understand and filter based on multiple criteria
• Integration with mapping and navigation systems will improve
• Real-time data will play a larger role in search results

Increasing Difficulty in Gaming the System

As AI becomes more sophisticated:

• Traditional SEO manipulation tactics will become less effective
• Authentic business quality will matter more
• Genuine customer reviews will carry more weight
• Real business performance will be the key ranking factor

How to Get in Contact with Beau

While specific contact information wasn’t provided in the transcript, Beau can be found at Avalanche, where he serves as a fractional chief marketing officer and SEO strategist. His expertise in local SEO and digital marketing makes him a valuable resource for businesses looking to improve their local search presence.

Conclusion

Beau’s insights into local SEO demonstrate the importance of adapting to changing digital landscapes while maintaining focus on authentic business value. His emphasis on proper technical implementation, combined with genuine business quality and customer service, provides a solid framework for local SEO success. As the industry moves toward AI-driven