Guide - SalesMix.com

Understanding local search

gain a competitive advantage in your market place

1) Importance of Local Internet Search

The10 local business results appearing in Google search results are commonly referred to as the “10 pack” by internet marketers. Small business owners with listings appearing in the 10 pack have a distinct advantage over their competitors. Whether or not you have a website, it is vital to ensure that your brick & mortar store appears here.

Many of your prospective customers are not using the phone. They are surfing the web on their mobile devices. And they aren't just searching for 'widgets' anymore: they are searching for "widgets AND hometown" in order to narrow their search to local businesses.

If you own a hardware store, today’s customers want more than just an address and phone number; they want turn by turn directions and a map to get to your store. Given the recent economic downturn, more and more people are spending their money with local merchants. Isn’t it time that you make it easy for new customers to find your business?

2) The benefit of a local business profile

A little effort can make a big difference in creating a Local Business Profile. The vast majority of small business owners have yet to set one up. This creates a huge opportunity for your business. Most local search queries on Google turn up businesses, with little more than basic contact information - no pictures, no testimonials, no brands and no call to action – nothing special to attract a customer.

The top benefits of a well crafted “optimized” Local Business Profile include:

Free Traffic: A strong potential for a significant increase in traffic – some of which is certain to convert into sales, enhancing your internet sales mix.

Branding: An opportunity to brand your business across local search directories promoting your business name, logo, email address, phone and fax numbers.

Communicating a Unique Selling (Value) Proposition: You have 200 characters to distinguish yourself from the competition. Be highly descriptive and creative.

So… what separates a so-called ‘optimized’ Local Business Profile from a basic one? The top 3 factors are a well written business description, high quality photos and authentic, well written testimonials. Sure, this takes some time & effort, but attention to detail is your key to your success in local search. For greater detail, read How to optimize your local business profile

Who can benefit from local search?

Some early adopters include:

Attorneys, Auto Glass Companies, Auto Repair & Service Shops, Bail Bondsmen, Bars & Restaurants, Beauty Salons, Carpet Cleaners, Dating Services, Debt Collectors, Dentists, Educators, Florists, Home Improvement Contractors, Home Security Companies, Hotels/Motels, HVAC Contractors, Insurance Companies, Landscapers, Mortgage Companies, Payday Loan Companies, Pest Control Companies, Pharmacies & Drugstores, Photographers, Pizza Shops, Plumbers, Real Estate Companies, Storage Facilities, Taxis, Television & electronic Repair Shops, Cable & Satellite companies, Towing Services, Travel Agencies, Video Stores, Window Contractors, Anyone wanting to get local customers!

Trend

According to Jupiter Research, preparer of the ‘US Online Local Advertising Forecast, 2007 – 2012’, local internet advertising will increase 13 percent from 2007 to 2012: faster than online advertising as a whole.

3) How to optimize local business profiles

Step 1 – Do the Research

Keyword is the term for the words or phrases used on the web to find your business. Selecting the right keywords that match your target customer is critical to your online success. Do not make the common mistake of replacing keyword research with a “gut feel.”
Fortunately, there are tools available online to help you with this research. Many of these tools are FREE. I suggest that you start with the Google’s Keyword Tool. One cool trick is to run your competitors’ websites through this tool to see what keywords they are targeting. There’s a good chance that you should be targeting some of these phrases, as well.
To excel in local search, you need to combine your location with your keywords. For example, if you own a used car dealership in Hoboken NJ, check the number of searches for ‘car dealers’ and “used car dealers. Then check out ‘Used Car Dealers Hoboken”, Car Dealers Hoboken, ‘Tri-State Auto Dealers,” etc. A great tool that can help you with this is GeoMake. This freeware program creates targeted lists that combine a keyword with a city, state, county, zip, etc.

Step 2 – Write a Compelling Business Description

Your business description is the equivalent of a newspaper headline. You have limited space to make your point – precisely 200 characters, including spaces. This is your one chance to make a good first impression. Take whatever time is necessary to get it right.

A neat trick is to check similar businesses in non-competing cities to find a killer description that can be modified to fit your own. Do not “STEAL” the copy word for word. The description should be unique to your business.

Step 3 – Reinforce your Brand

Your business identity is your brand. Brand components may include: legal business name, DBA, domain name, toll free numbers and email addresses. If possible, take your exact brick & mortar name online, using email and domains to reinforce it. If the exact name isn’t available, use a variation: add your city, state or zip.

Always use your business name in your email for Local Business Profiles. This can be accomplished by using one of the many free email services available on the web. I prefer Yahoo’s Ymail,as there are still a lot of great user names unclaimed and more free storage than the average business will ever use. Example: HobokenUsedCars@ymail.com. If you are building a website, GoDaddy.com is useful for checking domain availability, as well as buying & managing domains.

Step 4 – Get Testimonials, Ratings and Reviews

Don’t even think about faking good reviews for yourself. The web is filled with legions of self appointed web cops looking for fake reviews & they revel in outing the businesses behind them. The damage to your brand, once discovered, can be severe.

Getting positive reviews from real customers isn’t as difficult as you may think. Often, all you need to do is ask. Add the web address of a local directory to the bottom of your receipt, along with a request to go online to leave a review or comment. Rotate the suggested directory on a regular basis. Leading directories that encourage reviews include CityGuide, Citysearch.com, Google, InsiderPages, OpenList, SuperPages, Windows Live, Yahoo, YellowPages.com, Yelp and Zagat.

Restaurants need to be especially pro-active in this area, as restaurant review sites are among the most popular on the internet. Consumer review sites like Angies List, for professional services and the trades are also growing in popularity. As a small business owner, it is critical that you know exactly what customers are saying about you.

Ratings can influence whether or not you appear in the Google 10 pack and elsewhere. Businesses with a large number of positive reviews will rank higher than those companies with few or negative reviews. Rating values are the most important factor for achieving rankings in many local search results.

Step 5 – Include Photos, Logos and Images

Google allows 10 images. Just remember that photos and images are a direct reflection of your business. If a photo is worth a thousand words, doesn’t it make sense to use a high quality one that conveys the right image?

Provide a photo of your business in your profile. If there’s a particularly good view looking out, you might consider adding that as well.

For businesses like restaurants, it may be useful to add photos of “celebrities” who have visited your establishment.

Submit your images to Google’s Image Labeler program, (sign up through Google Webmaster Tools). This will enable your site’s images to get tagged with keywords by Image Labeler game players.

Add Photos of your business to photo sharing sites like Flickr, Fotki and 23. In Flickr, be sure to drag the images onto the mapped location for the address. You can also upload pictures of your products into these photo sharing sites. Use all of the available features, including captions, picture titles and keyword tags and then associate them with any groups, albums, or sets with a related theme.

Step 6 – Pay Attention to the Basics

Location: If your business operates from multiple locations, you should create a unique profile for each. Many directories require a local address; while others require a business address and some don’t allow work at home businesses. For those directories that your business does qualify for, include street address, City, State, Zip, and mailing address.

Contact information: Business Hours, Phone Numbers, Fax Number, email

Maps: Check out how your business address appears on the major map systems, including: Google Maps, MapQuest, MSN Maps and Yahoo Maps. It’s important that they correctly map your business. New streets and addresses can have a one to two year lag time before appearing online.

Trust and Authority: Remember to include the following information, if it applies:

Associations
Awards
Better Business Bureau Membership
Bonded or Insured
Business Credentials
Certifications
Chamber of Commerce Membership
Occupational License
Professional Affiliations

Other Useful Information:

Areas served
Brands/specialties/amenities
Email address
Forms of payment accepted
Languages Spoken
List of a few well known clients
Number of employees
Prices
User ratings and reviews
Website address (url)
Year Founded and years in business

Free Local Search Listings

BOTW Describe your business, add Additional Business Details including: Payment Options, Hours of Operation, Languages Spoken, Year Founded, Number of Locations and Employees. Customers can review your business and share their experiences. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Local.com List your company name, address, phone, email, website and relevant categories. Listings appear within the Local.com search results and participating affiliate websites. Listing may take several weeks to update. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Metrobot List your company’s website links or business name, address, zip, business type, events, polls, maps and more.. Management and update tools are available. Listings appear within Metrobot and participating affiliate websites. Listing may take several days to update. (Free to list, free to update).

TrueLocal – List your company description, website, specialties, hours, payment info and more. You have the ability to update your listings and information. Listing may take several weeks to update. No account required. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Free Local Online Yellow Page Listings

MagicYellow List phone numbers, company type, contact info, location, website, description & keywords. Listings appear within Magic Yellow search and yellow pages. Management options and tools are available. May take several weeks to update or list. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

SuperPages List relevant information including: location, hours, contacts, categories, optional enhancements and more. Listings appear within SuperPages and participating affiliate sites. Listing may take several weeks to update. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

YP.com Display relevant business information, including maps. Management tools available. Business listings appear within YP and their network. Listings update within a few days. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

YellowPages.com List relevant information about company including: names, locations, contact information & more. Listings appear within YellowPages.com and participating affiliate websites. Once updated, listings may take several weeks to display. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Local Business Data Providers & Data Listing Services

InfoUSA Provides data to thousands of popular listing services. Business owners may list relevant information about their company within a database that is shared with other local listing sites and Yellow Page listing websites. Listings take time to be included / updated. Show up in multiple sites with a single submission. (Free)

MacRAE's Blue Book List detailed product and service headings, link to websites, company email, contact info, description & other important information. Listings update regularly. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Localeze Add your corporate info to the largest search engines that provide local results. Merchant profile tools with the ability to add, edit or delete listings easily. Manage and edit multiple listings. May take up to 30 days to process updates. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Wcities List your business name, address, location, site and more. Wcities, provides data for several authoritative sites including Yahoo Local. Listings may take several weeks to update. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

iBegin Provides both U.S. and Canadian listings for millions of businesses. Listings include name, address, phone and category, in addition to closest intersections. Listings appear within many popular local search engines and Yellow Page listing sites. Listings may take several weeks to update (Free)

Local Social Networks & Online Business Networks

Citysquares.com This local search site connects people with businesses. Users find, rate and review businesses by local regions. Business owners have the opportunity to increase brand awareness, word of mouth and overall online exposure. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Insider Pages Website matches local businesses through friend recommendations. Allows local business owners to gain exposure and promote their brand. Reviews include business name, city, state and zip. Listings feature ratings and reviews shared with both friends and the Insider Pages network. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Judy's Book A search portal specializing in local and online coupons, sales and deals. Listings include reviews, ratings, business email notifications and the ability to add comments to reviews. Free for businesses to list.

LittleEngine.com A local social community for both patrons and business owners who want to support, connect, and communicate in a human-to-human manner. Relevant info is displayed in the LittleEngine community. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Lopico A local social business directory where business owners add related information about their company. Community users then rate and review businesses near them. (Free Basic, Paid Enhanced) -

MojoPages - Business owners review and get reviewed in MojoPages, the people powered yellow pages. Using intuitive search, anyone can find a business and write a review. The idea is to increase awareness and word of mouth for your company. (Free)

Tupalo - Users add spots in their local area and then they rate and review those spots and receive feedback from the community of users. Local businesses get the opportunity to increase their exposure and brand awareness. Useful features include: recent reviews, photos, maps, popular stuff, recently added and recent users. (Free)

YellowBot Users find, rate & review local business within a local region. Patrons and business owners can also share or exchange tips and experiences with one another. Local businesses gain exposure, word of mouth, credibility and more. Includes popular tags, users and cites. (Free)
Yelp – One of the fastest growing & most influential review sites. Business owners have the ability to manage or enhance reviews listed within Yelp pages. They can even join their word of mouth program. Listing updates are in real time.
(Free Basic, Paid Enhanced)

Yokld A social ranking platform for local businesses. Merchants can list their business and have it voted on by community members. Free to list favorite businesses and participate in the community.

Social Media meets Local Search

Facebook When you join Facebook, you list your hometown. Facebook then puts you in a “network” along with everyone else in your town. How much easier could it be to make local connections?

Flickr You may know Flickr as a photo sharing site, but did you know that Flickr has thousands of groups? Many of these groups are local in nature, offering a wonderful opportunity to connect with neighbors just who might be interested in your products or services. Using our Hoboken Car Dealer, he may want to join the “Hoboken NJ” group, which currently has 202 members.These members are uploading local photos, of course, but they’re also talking about local events, local news, and local businesses in the group’s discussion board.

LinkedIn is the leading social site for business professionals. It is not a place to sell products, but a place to make connections. The ability to drill down to find people in your area and industry may help you to find new business partners, employees or prospects.

outside.in Social media is nothing more than talking to people. This site helps you to connect with people to have a conversation with. Specifically, this site helps you to locate local bloggers. Visit these local blogs, read them, leave quality comments. Eventually you should introduce yourself and voila – you have a new friend.

Placeblogger is a directory of local blogs. If you’re a local business owner in Hoboken, and you’re looking for local blogs, the Hoboken directory page is the place to go. Research the blogs listed to make sure they’re still active and then follow the steps above.

StumbleUpon works like Facebook: you list your hometown when you join. On your profile page, your town shows up as a clickable link showing all StumbleUpon users from your area. You can also separate users by gender (let’s say you own an auto parts store, for example, and only want to connect with men).

Twitter is all about conversation. This arguably makes twitter the best place to find people in your area to connect with. Twitter’s advanced search page includes a geo-search option. Enter a city and state (or a zip code), and get back a list of messages

YahooAnswers can be an effective marketing tool for anyone selling knowledge or expertise. Look for the “Local Businesses” category on the home page, and then drill down until you find your city. Unfortunately, only major cities are listed.

Knowem is a tool that can help you to prevent social media profile hijacking & identity theft. KnowEm checks the availability of your brand name, user name or vanity URL on 120 popular Social Media websites

Trusted Local Internet Marketing Resources

Mike Blumenthal, Understanding Google Maps & Local Search
Andrew Shotland, Local SEO Guide
John Jantsch, Duct Tape Marketing
Greg Sterling, Screenwerk Blog
David Mihm, Mihmorandum Blog
Patrick Sexton, GetListed

Trusted Search Engine Optimization Resources

Jim Boykin, Local Internet Marketing
Aaron Wall, Seo Book
Todd Mailicoat, Seo Consulting
Rand Fishkin, Search Engine Optimization
Sphinn, Internet Marketing News, Discussion Forums & Networking

Performance Based Advertising

Pay per action or PPA advertising is popular among small business advertisers. The primary advantage to PPA is that advertisers pay only if a customer takes a specific action. This may include phone calls, appointments, or leads. The advantage of having solid measurable results and a benchmark to measure ROI also make this a very appealing advertising choice. Until recently, only those small businesses with a website could take advantage of PPC. With the recent strides in telephone technology, PPA is now a viable option for any business with a telephone.

One of the best PPA agencies right now is Yext . They operate a main directory as well as a number of niche directories using the PPA model. Every Yext PPA program has no front fees or contract. In short, it's pay-as-you-go and you may leave at any time if you aren't satisfied.