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New Developments in Google Local Marketing: Google Carousel

June 25, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

If there’s any truism about Google Local marketing, it’s this: sooner or later, Google’s going to decide to change something. Staying on top of those changes and figuring out what to do about them is one of the biggest hurdles for small business owners who are trying to stay visible online.

The latest development is a feature called Google Local Carousel, which rolled out on June 21st. This feature presents users with a visual list of local options that appears right at the very top of the search engine results page.

What does this mean for local search marketing, and how should you, as a business owner, respond to this change? Here are a few thoughts.

Photos are More Important Than Ever

If you don’t have a photo of your business an unimpressive picture of a Google map shows up instead. That’s not a position you want to be in.

Instead, you want something that’s welcoming and visually appealing, because in my opinion the photo is what’s going to get you the click. The horizontal view means that there is nothing “on top,” which means being in the “A” position at the left doesn’t give you the same psychological advantage (on top = best) that you would have gotten in the old view.

Try to choose a photo that gives potential customers some idea of what they’ll experience when they use your business. Don’t go for a shot of your business from the street or a shot of your sign.

Restaurants should go for plates of food that look tasty. Hotels should go for an interior shot of their comfortable bedroom, where customers will spend most of their time.

In the service business? Choose a photo of your best work if your work is visually appealing. If you’re something like a doctor or a dentist, choose your own smiling face, or a picture of your entire smiling staff, since that is who your customers will be dealing with.

Keep Working to Stay Optimized

The leftmost positions are the most prominent. Mike Blumenthal did an audit of those positions which pointed out that the most visible results still adhere to the old A-G rankings.

So while you can get seen if you’re not still in the top 7, you’re still in a bad position because you can expect fewer users to scroll all the way to the end of the results on the right, even though it’s theoretically easier and more fun for them to do so.

Bottom line? It’s best to keep right on optimizing your Google+ Local listings.

Other Insights

There have been a lot of great reactions to Carousel across the blogosphere since it rolled out on Friday. I wanted to share a two of the best so that you could benefit from them as well.

First, there’s Mike Ramsey’s Post over at Nifty Marketing: 10 Random People’s Response to Google Local Carousel.

Then, Mike Blumenthal offered another post about Carousel that I really liked: “How Many Results Are Required for the New Local Carousel to Display? At Least 5.”

Right now the Carousel is only working for restaurants, colleges, and hotels. But that doesn’t mean that other businesses shouldn’t plan ahead.

Small Business Website Redesign and SEO: Don’t Get Burned

June 24, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

The link between a website redesign and SEO is pretty clear and easy to understand. It’s this: unless you take some specific steps you’re going to lose traffic.

But before we get into why this happens and what you can do about it, let’s talk about what actually counts as a website redesign. I’m talking about completely changing your URLs, overhauling your entire site structure, or migrating all of your content to a new content management system.

For example, perhaps your original web designer put you on Perch. You discover it’s too clunky and difficult to deal with, so you decide to go with WordPress instead. You’re about to engage in a website redesign.

Overhauling or updating the content on your site does not count as a website redesign unless you’re performing a slash-and-burn on a whole bunch of pages on your site. If the URLs remain the same you’re in good shape.

In short, an actual redesign is a major undertaking.

What Happens?

A site that’s been around for awhile has typically built up a pretty complicated structure.

Internally, you might have blog posts linking to other blog posts, for example. This really helps your SEO, but this internal structure can become damaged or disrupted when you try to do the relaunch.

Why? Because if you don’t catch the URL changes on every single blog post you’re going to have internal links that are pointing to places that don’t exist anymore instead of strengthening and supporting your site the way they used to.

Externally, you’ve probably built up a series of backlinks if you’re ranking at all. If you launch the new site in a haphazard way those backlinks will also point to a bunch of places that no longer exist, and not to your site where they can do you some good. This means both the robots and the people who try the links will end up disappointed.

Finally, there’s the trust Google invested into your old site. If Google doesn’t recognize the new site as either the old site or as an extension of the old site then all of that trust simply goes away. You’ll have to build it all back up from scratch, which is hardly a pleasant thought. Remember how long it took you the first time?

What to Do About It

You can simply prevent the problem. Launch a good website from day one, put it on WordPress to begin with, and keep it properly maintained. If you do this you will almost never need this kind of an overhaul, even if you want to change your URL.

Why won’t changing the URL matter? Because you can use a redirect domain to give yourself a different URL without touching the old website at all. The two URLs will exist simultaneously, but they’ll both point to the same place.

If this ship has sailed then you simply need to be aware that a website redesign is one of those tasks that absolutely requires the help of a SEO professional.

Don’t believe me? Then prepare to go wading in the weeds for a bit. Take a look at Search Engine Journal’s take on the process: How to Avoid SEO Disaster During a Redesign – Top Marketer Concerns.

If any part of that post is Greek to you, then just get help. You’ll thank yourself later.

Does SEO Matter to Small Business Owners?

June 21, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

Search Engine Land recently ran an article called Confessions of an $100/month SEO Client. It was an interview with a small business owner who had invested very little into his internet marketing profile.

I spend a lot of time talking about building your web presence and making use of SEO. But as a business owner it’s certainly worth asking the question: does SEO matter and does it actually help your business?

The experience of the SMB featured in the interview is somewhat unique since he got a lot of leads from a local service that’s only available in California. It was still a service that placed him online, however, and which contributed to his overall web presence.

He also did a lot of PPC advertising, and it looks like he did well enough with it that he credited it for a large portion of his business. Imagine what he could do with organic traffic, which receives the bulk of the clicks!

Inforza.com recently put together some stats about SEO that SMBs should pay attention to as they evaluate this question for their own businesses.

Emphasis mine.

“8 SEO Stats that are Hard to Ignore when you’re trying to justify whether or not you should be investing in search engine optimization.

93% of online experiences begin with a search engine.

Google owns 65-70% of the search engine market share.

70% of the links search users click are organic.

70-80% of users ignore paid ads focusing on organic results.

Search is the #1 driver of traffic to content sites, beating social media by more than 300%.

SEO leads have a 14.6% close rate while outbound leads (such as direct mail or print advertising) have a 1.7% close rate.

For Google, 18% of organic clicks go to the #1 position, 10% of organic clicks go to the #2 position, and 7% of organic clicks go to the #3 position.

In short, SEO beats just about everything else. (Though social media is important for other reasons).

The 14.6% close rate struck me as particularly relevant. It’s yet another reason why small business owners need to think about diverting a lot of their old-school advertising budgets into SEO.

And it’s a great reason why you need to think about investing enough into your internet marketing efforts to actually make a difference.

What about blogging? How does that help you and why should you invest any efforts into the exercise?

Here are some statistics that The Inbound Writer blog compiled from several other sources.

Because 61% of consumers say they feel better about a company that delivers custom content, they are more likely to buy from that company.

Interesting content is a top 3 reason people follow brands on social media.

Social media sites and blogs reach 8 out of 10 of all US Internet users and account for 23% of all time spent online.

90% of consumers find custom content useful and 78% believe that organizations providing custom content are interested in building good relationships with them.

Blogs give websites 434% more indexed pages and 97% more indexed links.

The average cost to generate a lead through inbound marketing ($143) is about half the average for outbound marketing ($373).

434% more indexed pages and 97% more indexed links is a stat worth paying attention to. It demonstrates one of the reasons that blogging is so important.

Simply put, every blog post increases your chances of being found. It lets you rank for 130 keywords, as an example, instead of 3 keywords.

After awhile, all of these efforts reach critical mass and you start seeing an explosion of business that you never would have had if you hadn’t invested in SEO, blogging and social media alike.

So does SEO matter? Yes! And it will continue to matter well into the foreseeable future.

7 Strategies for Getting More Twitter Followers

June 20, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

In my last post I talked about who you should follow on Twitter. Today I’m going to talk about some strategies for getting more Twitter followers.

There are basically two phases to building a follower profile on Twitter. In Phase I, you’re following people hoping that they will follow you back.

In Phase I, you’re following more people than are following you.

In Phase II, you start following people because you want to build a relationship with them. People start following you because you’re posting all sorts of amazing content, and will do so whether you’re following them or not.

In Phase II, you’re following fewer people than are following you. You don’t have to follow more people at all in this phase unless you specifically want to forge a relationship with someone.

In fact, following more people can be detrimental, as you can lose track of the people you really interact with on a regular basis.

So, here are the strategies that will get you to Phase II.

1. Don’t follow everyone who follows you.

You don’t have to, and it just clutters up your news feed. Follow people who you feel you can form a relationship with, no more, no less.

Do this from day 1.

This may seem counter-intuitive since you’re following some people because they hope they follow you back. But this is just a little ping on their shoulder.

Typically you’re going to have to do a lot more work to build those relationships. So don’t feel like you have to do round-robin follows, even when you’re just getting started.

2. Use Hashtags

I can’t praise the site Hashtags.org enough. Even the free version tells you which hashtags are successful and which aren’t.

Hashtag.org also proposes alternatives that you may not have thought of. It’s keyword research for hashtags.

Without hashtags, interested people simply will not find your content. It’s the signal that all of the major social search engines now use, so it’s important to pay attention to them on Facebook, Google+, and Pinterest as well.

3. Be Consistent About Posting Great Content

Make sure you’re posting content to your Twitter stream on a regular basis. Keeping up with your blog? Then this step shouldn’t be hard.

4. Share Freely

I’ve talked before about re-tweeting other people’s content. If you mention someone on your blog, you should also think about tweeting their Twitter username when you tweet the blog post, at least on the first tweet.

This method generates conversations very quickly and can open up other opportunities as well. It’s a much faster way to let bloggers know that you’re paying attention and interacting with their content than simply hoping they notice your generous backlink.

5. Keep Talking

Remember, Twitter is a big conversation. So make sure you pay attention to your mentions and direct messages.

When someone mentions you they’re initiating a conversation. It would be rude not to respond. At the very least you should think about thanking them for the shout-out.

6. Host a #Chat

If you have time and a great topic, think about hosting a chat every week at the same time. Mark the chat with a hashtag.

Pose a great question. Tweet some tips. And respond to conversations as they come up.

This happens in real time. It can’t be automated!

If this concept is confusing for you look for a relevant #chat that you can join until you get the hang of it. Even participating in chats in a meaningful way can be an immense boost to your overall profile.

7. Stay Fixated on Quality

Remember, the quality of your interactions matters far more than the quantity of your followers. Ironically, however, staying focused on delivering a high-quality, high-value experience is likely to get you a higher quantity of followers, too.

The Four Best People to Follow on Twitter for Small Business Owners

June 19, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

Much of your success on Twitter will depend upon who you choose to form relationships with and how you go about forging those relationships. Much of this revolves around figuring out the best people to follow on Twitter – or rather, the best kinds of people to follow on Twitter.

In the early days of your Twitter marketing campaign, following people is how you get followers. So you want to be focused and targeted when you first start choosing accounts. Here are four types of people to target.

1. Local Organizations

Follow your local Chamber of Commerce, your local news outlets, and local charities. If you spend any time talking about outdoor issues, follow the county extension in your service area or city, too.

This will give you a lot of information about community events, which make great blog posts and re-tweets.

2. Local Bloggers

Most cities have a handful of popular local bloggers. Those bloggers are often more than happy to talk about great businesses in their city once you’ve formed a relationship with them.

Local bloggers respond really well to sharing because they’re alert to such things. They also appreciate it when you make comments on their blog.

It’s not super hard to get on their radar. It’s especially important to hook up with people who are actually in your niche – that local gardening blogger could be a big help to a fence contractor or landscaping contractor.

3. Local People

Look for local people in your target demographic. Do you sell services to well-off homeowners? Then look for local professionals: attorneys, journalists, real estate agents, insurance agents and other pros who are likely to make enough money to own a home.

If you can form a relationship with these people then you’ll be the first person they think of when they need your type of services. They may refer you to their friends, too.

4. Local Referral Partners

I touched on this when I talked about online networking. If you’re a contractor, think about following every other non-competing contractor in your city, along with the real estate agents already mentioned.

You might get a chance to share some of the cool things that other contractors have done, which always earns some appreciation and enthusiasm. Again, some of those contractors might think of you when they’re trying to decide who they might pass a lead to.

Finding these Accounts

Twitter search is a good start. Try #Cityname. Twellow is another very helpful resource that will help you dig up accounts that don’t show up on a Twitter search.

Don’t forget to tag many of your tweets with the #Cityname hashtag as well. This is helpful as it draws attention from others who are looking to connect with people inside of their own city.

For local business owners the goal of Twitter is not to gain 10,000 followers. The goal is to forge great relationships with local people. After all, useful relationships is what Twitter is all about.

Is Angie’s List Worth It?

June 18, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

If you’re a contractor, sooner or later you’re going to get a call or an e-mail from Angie’s List asking you if you’d like to pay for front page placement on their site. Is this a good idea? Is Angie’s list worth it?

First of all, you should consider whether or not you want to pay for directory listings at all when there are better options out there. All of the caveats that apply to any directory also apply to Angie’s list.

However, there are other problems.

Angie’s list isn’t even the best place to steer customers if you want them to give an online review. It turns out that Angie’s list reviews only “count” if the customer is already a member of Angie’s list.

Oh, they show up on your Angie’s List profile, but nobody is ever going to see them there. People spend most of their time paying attention to the Angie’s List search results instead.

Personally I wouldn’t want to waste time and energy directing customers to any site they’d have to pay for in order to leave a review that actually matters. I’d want to get more benefit off of that review, and I’d want to respect my customers more than that.

Angie’s List reviews aren’t helping your Google and Google+ Local visibility either. Meanwhile, you’re still having to go through all of the hard work of getting reviews. It seems to me like you’d be better served feeding your reviews into Google+ Local or Yelp so that Google will recognize them.

Darren Slaughter has some interesting things to say about Angie’s List too. Check out his video:

Angie’s List has been under a lot of fire for saying that contractors don’t pay to get listed on Angie’s List when contractors do, in fact, pay hundreds of dollars a month to pick up the bulk of the visibility on Angie’s List. They’ve maintained this status quo through a lot of double-speak that’s been well-covered on other sites.

If you do decide to proceed with Angie’s List, proceed with caution. There’s a 35%-of-contract cancellation fee if you find out you’re not getting any leads, which is a big price to pay for something that is so problematic.

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