Marshall Chamber Marketing Workshop! Local Search & Review Sites! Image Source: h.p://impac2v8.com.au/wp- content/uploads/ 2012/10/Blogging- Helps- My- Business- Make- Money- By.png
Glossary of Terms Search Engine Optimization or SEO is the process of improving the visibility of a website or a web page in search engines via the "natural" or un-paid ("organic" or "algorithmic") search results. Organic Search Results are listings on search engine results pages that appear because of their relevance to the search terms, as opposed to their being advertisements Paid Search or Pay Per Click is an Internet advertising model used to direct traffic to websites, where advertisers pay the hosting service when the ad is clicked. With search engines, advertisers typically bid on keyword phrases relevant to their target market. Content sites commonly charge a fixed price per click rather than use a bidding system. Google Adwords is a form of Pay Per Click Advertising Citations are other directory listings for your business across the web like yp.com, manta.com, superpages.com, etc.
Local Search 97% of consumers search for a local business online 46% of shoppers use phone for local products & services Google Maps are a key to being found for local Overall organic rankings impact local results Directory websites claim and update listings Mlive.com Manta.com Yp.com Superpages.com And many, many more
Local SEO Ranking Factors Physical address in a city of search Accurate category associations Proximity of address to centroid Domain authority of website Quantity of structure citations City & State in landing page title Quantity of review http://cdn.poweredbysearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/ local_search_engine_optimization_for_businesses.png
Stats & Resources $84 per year, enter accurate info about your business and it will push out Moz.com/Local More than 100 Million people PER MONTH use Google Maps from mobile devices to find local business 1 82% of local searches follow up offline via an in-store visit, phone call or purchase 1 1 https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20140403171335-26818297-local-internetmarketing-statistics
Source: h.p://searchenginewatch.com/ar2cle/2343577/google- Local- Searches- Lead- 50- of- Mobile- Users- to- Visit- Stores- Study
Claiming Local Listings Most will already have some of your business info You claim your listing Verify address, phone, and other information to complete the listing Most will either email, call or send post card to verify
Google (Places) Business Page 1. Go to Google My Business (Business.Google.com) 2. Choose category Storefront (restaurants, shops, hotels, etc) Service (plumbers, pizza delivery, etc) 3. Enter name & address of business If it appears in drop down, select it 4. If your business is NOT listed, click NO, these are not my businesses or I ve correctly entered the business 5. Submit your information
Service Area Business
How Google Uses Business Info 1. Search Results in Mobile 2. Search Results in Search 3. Search Results in Google Earth NOTE: Other review sites show up in search results too
Local Search Results
New Google My Business Dashboard If you used Places, dashboard is now updated Update information about business here Share updates (via Google+ here) Read customer reviews here You can upload more photos Select from categories provided Profile should be as complete as possible Confirm Google Maps information
Connect Page to Google Maps 1. Create a separate Google+ page verified on Google Maps 2. Login to Google+ page Click Manage This Page 3. Go to Dashboard > Settings (top left corner) 4. Scroll to Profile Section 5. Next to This page is connected to Google Maps click Connect To A Different page 6. Click Next 7. You will see a list of changes made 8. Click Confirm https://support.google.com/business/answer/6010825?hl=en
Source: h.p://blog.swee2q.com/wp- content/uploads/2013/11/ravereview- 2.png
A Few Top Review Sites 1. Google 2. Yelp! 3. Yahoo! Local Listings 4. Trip Advisor 5. City Search 6. Facebook 7. Merchant Circle 8. Insider Pages 9. Angie s List
Review Site Tips 1. Never write fake reviews 2. Ask for reviews, mention it at your store 3. Engage with your audience 4. Don t worry too much about reviews that aren t perfect
Promote & Ask For Reviews Menus Store signs Receipts Email newsletters Email signatures
Paid or Claimed Review Site Listings You will get notifications of new reviews You can correspond with the reviewer *Yelp allows 1 email to a reviewer, until they respond. Then you can email them 1 more time
Rebecca Dutcher! BluFish Consulting! 616.490.1068! rebecca@blufishconsulting.com