Search Results for: barnacle

Which Local Citation Sources Let You Specify a Service Area?

November 13, 2018 by Phil 6 Comments

Just because you set your sights on a region doesn’t mean you’ll rank well there. That’s always been true of the service area you pick for your Google My Business page, so why should you care about the service-area settings on local-search sites much smaller than Google?

A few reasons:

1. You might improve your visibility on those sites. Places like Yelp, YP, BBB, Angie’s List, and others have a decent headcount, partly because those directories tend to rank well in Google’s local results.

2. The service-area settings in Google My Business changed recently, and in ways that may make your info on third-party sites more important to your rankings on Google’s local map. For service-area businesses you don’t need to specify a street address. The other big change is you can’t target a radius anymore (like 30 miles around your address). The main upshot of those changes is now you can tell Google you serve the entire state, or 5 counties, or a similar chunk of territory. How will Google determine how you rank within that region? I don’t know, but it’s possible Google factors in the info you’ve put on third-party local directories, so you should try to use that to your advantage.

3. Maybe you just care about the details on your local listings, but don’t want to log into every single site to check whether you can define a service area.

It might help to know which local listings – besides Google My Business – let you specify a service area. I looked at about 20 of the better-known and (usually) more-important sites for service-area businesses. About half of them let you define your service area. Most of those sites let you choose a service area even if you’re a bricks-and-mortar business – which is also what Google My Business does now, by the way.

Here are the non-Google “local” sites (mostly for US businesses) that let you set a service area:

AngiesList: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar

Apple Maps: no

BBB: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar

Bing Places: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar, but it’s based on the category you select

CitySearch: no

ExpressUpdate.com (AKA InfoGroup): no

Facebook: no

Factual.com: no

FourSquare: no

HomeAdvisor: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar

Houzz: yes

LocalEze: no

Manta: no

MerchantCircle: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar, but you have to pay

MyBusinessListingManager.com (AKA Acxiom): no

SuperPages: yes

Thumbtack: no

YellowBook: no

YellowPages: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar

Yelp: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar

Zillow: yes, even for bricks-and-mortar

Most of those sites also let you hide your address, if you want to.

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How has Google’s recent change to service-area settings tied in with your business or your strategy?

How do you show your service area on your non-Google listings?

Did I miss any other sites where you can specify a service area?

Leave a comment!

How Long Does It Take for a User-Submitted Yelp Page to Rank on Page 1 for a Branded Search?

June 19, 2018 by Phil Leave a Comment

One week or less, from what I’ve seen.

A 7-Eleven opened nearby last year, but Yelp didn’t have a page for that location. The locally-owned convenience store that used to be at that location had and still has a Yelp page. (Nobody’s reported it as closed, and Yelp hasn’t de-duped.) But the 7-Eleven didn’t have one for 9-10 months after opening.

I guess their SEO person is grazing in tidier pastures.

Anyway, I took it upon myself to submit a Yelp page for 7-Eleven, as I do from time to time. I’m not big on convenience stores, and I’m even less big on pro bono enterprise local SEO, but my grand act was borne of curiosity: I had occasion to look up the hours. Recently, a drunk guy crossed the street to ask if I knew how late the 7-Eleven was open. I told Otis 11pm sounded right, but that I didn’t know for sure. I looked it up when I got back from my stroll. Turns out Google My Business didn’t have the hours, so I checked Yelp, which also didn’t have the hours.

On June 11th I created a Yelp page for 7-Eleven (minus the hours). When I checked it on June 18th, a week later, it ranked #4 for a brand-name search. (It probably ranked on page 1 even sooner than that. Wish I’d checked.)

So what? Well, I suggest you patrol Yelp occasionally for “unofficial,” unclaimed, in many cases user-submitted (or competitor-planted) pages for your business. You may or may not want that page, and it may or may not make your business look good, and it probably will be mighty visible when people search for you by name.

Keep an eye on competitors’ Yelp pages, too. Those may rank well, even for competitive search terms, but you can probably get them removed or fixed without too much heartache.

How to Rank for “Near Me” Local Search Terms

January 29, 2018 by Phil 20 Comments

You’ve noticed or heard that “near me” searches are super-popular, and that you should try to rank for those terms in Google Maps and in the rest of the local search results.

Only two burrs in your saddle:

How?

What happens if and when all your competitors jump on the “near me” bandwagon by doing the dumb-n’-easy on-page optimization?

There’s advice out there like, “Just put ‘near me’ into your title tags and in the anchor text of your links.” That’s a fine start, but what are you supposed to do once all your competitors do the same? How can you become Google’s “near me” golden child before competitors try to ruin it?

I’d be remiss not to mention right away that I haven’t autopsied “near me” searches as much as Andrew Shotland and Dan Leibson have. You’d be remiss not to read their posts on the topic, right before or right after reading this one.

Still, I’ve stuck an arm in the “near me” search results for clients and non-clients, and have a few suggestions for you. Some tips on how to do effective “near me” local SEO – that still works for you even after your competitors attempt to muscle in:

1. Understand that the “me” part of “near me” is a specific place, and not just another keyword to target. The results Google shows to people who search “near” them can differ as they walk down the street.

Exactly where “near me” is changes from day to day or minute to minute, because the results that Google and other search engines (or apps) are based largely on knowing exactly where the searcher is. That’s one reason you might optimize the stuffing out of your page or site for “near me” terms and still be outranked by a competitor who just happens to be nearer to the searcher when he/she is searching. The reverse also is true: just because you’re the closest to the searcher doesn’t mean you’ll dominate “near me” search results.”

Location/proximity matters, but is one factor of many. Your job is to make it clear to Google and to searchers exactly where you are, and exactly what you do.

2. Don’t necessarily use “near me” verbatim. It’s natural for a customer to use that phrasing, but it sounds weird if you say “near me” in the first-person voice on your site. Use “nearby” “near you” or “near [city/place]” or “in [city/place]” when doing so makes for a less-clunky read. Google will get the idea, and you won’t confuse people.

3. Don’t just target your highest-priority search term + “near me.” Try to be more specific. You want to give people more reasons to pick you – reasons other than that you’re nearby. What if your competitors are also near the searcher? If appropriate, work into your title tag / H1 / body / URL / page name an often-searched-for variation, like one of these:

“24/7 [service] near me”

“emergency [service] near me”

“cheap [service] near me”

“best [service] near me”

“find [service] near me”

“buy [product] near [city]”

4. Latch onto the local directories that target and rank well for “near me” terms. Usually the best way to do that is to pile up reviews on those sites, but there are other ways to practice “barnacle” SEO.

Take note of local directories that explicitly go after “near me” terms.

Some illustrative links:

homeadvisor.com/near-me/
thumbtack.com/near-me/
yelp.com/nearme/hvac

5. Say what landmarks or town lines you’re near, or which neighborhood you’re in, or which cities you serve – on your “location” or “city” or “state” pages and maybe even on your homepage. Describe your business’s location as though you were giving a first-time customer directions over the phone. If possible, also throw in an exterior photo or two.

Mention the specific cities or towns or neighborhoods customers come from.

If you’ve got a service-area business, you probably shouldn’t barf up a list of 75 cities. Maybe mention the top 10 or 20 by name.

If possible, add other relevant “local” content that helps would-be customers.

6. Flesh out your “Location Finder” or “Service Area” page. Try to do it in the way I described in my last point, but make sure it’s also got at least a few detailed blurbs on your services and a list of the specific services you offer. Just having a lot of “location” information isn’t enough: On top of knowing where you are and where you serve customers, Google needs to know exactly what you offer at those places. Petco does a good job of that.

7. Provide old-school driving directions. From the biggest city to your north, and from the biggest city to your south, and so on. Both Google and people like those crunchy bits.

8. Assume that searchers’ behavior – both in the search results and on your site – matters even more than usual. One of the main reasons “near me” searches have exploded in the first place is that Google’s become frighteningly good at learning about searchers and their habits, especially on mobile. In my experience, if nobody clicks on your search result, Google will hold that against you. If people click through to your site but don’t like what they see and hit the “back” button, that’ll drag down your rankings sooner or later. Make your pages stickier by working on your copy.

9. Stop shooting for the “whale” links and first try to nab more links from sites relevant to your area.

A link from the New York Times or the Smithsonian is great, but not if you ignore simpler link opps that can help you in the meantime. Those link opps include joining a local Chamber of Commerce, joining a couple state- or city-specific professional organizations, and helping out local causes in whatever way you can.

10. Turn “Portfolio” or “Our Work” pages or posts or photos into “[type of job] near [place]” bits of content. This is most obviously applicable to you if you’re a contractor, but you can get creative if you’re in another field. You could do a page or post on “Remodeled Kitchen Near Kenmore Square” or “33-Year-Old Roof Replaced Near Venice Beach.” Or you could do “April 3, 2018 Estate Sale Near Bronx Zoo” or “Walking Dachshunds Near Downtown Dallas.” This is a twist on my recommended approach to “city” pages.

11. Don’t change your local SEO strategy too much just to grab more “near me” visibility. It’s probably not the game-changer some say it is. Sure, those searches are popular, and it’s important to get a piece of the action now, but it’s only a matter of time before the “near me” watering hole gets too crowded.

People who type in “near me” want the same things as those who don’t. For you the mission is still the same: make it clear (on and off your site, to Google and to people) exactly what you do, exactly where you are, and exactly what makes you good at it.

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What’s a “near me” visibility strategy you’ve used?

How about one you’ve seen work well?

Leave a comment!

10 Underrated Local Review Sites You Overlooked

September 28, 2017 by Phil 25 Comments

You know about the big local-business review sites. You know about the review sites that matter most in your industry. You probably know about the pipsqueaks, too.

But what about the review sites that matter more than you know? Isn’t it possible there are some gaps in your online reputation?

If there aren’t, I’ll eat my hat. There are always gaps – even for businesses with tons of reviews on many sites. You probably know the benefits of diversifying where your customers review you. Those benefits also extend to sites you might have dismissed as irrelevant or insignificant, or that you didn’t even think of.

I’m not saying all of these review sites are relevant to your situation, but at least some will be.

Here’s a rundown of what I consider the 10 most-overlooked local review sites:

Care.com
Why it’s overlooked: it’s not a super-established “brand.” Partly because the name itself is mushy, and partly because it’s not a search engine or a social network or a startup run by drama queens. It’s just a solid reviews site. It’s also visible one. Care.com is all over Google’s search results in the in-home care and education spaces, for example, and most “service” businesses are eligible for a listing there.

WeddingWire
Why it’s overlooked: because there’s a good chance you don’t run a bridal shop or a tux shop, or are a florist or photographer. WeddingWire also lists businesses in all kinds of related industries: limos, venues, jewelry, and so on. You can also get listed and reviewed there even if you own a car rental or a cryotherapy place, or if you’re a dentist, a dermatologist, or a plastic surgeon. Maybe they’ll even allow divorce lawyers.

Zillow
Why it’s overlooked: because most people think it’s just for real-estate listings and agents. It’s not. Pretty much any contractor or other home-improvement professional can have a listing there – and reviews there. Though Zillow isn’t the 800-pound gorilla in the contracting space that it is in real estate, it may just be a matter of time. In the meantime, anyone who sees your Zillow reviews there is probably pretty close to calling you.

Thumbtack
Why it’s overlooked: because it’s got a home-improvement bent, it’s up against more-established sites like HomeAdvisor, Angie’s List, and Houzz. Also, Thumbtack doesn’t seem to go out of its way to encourage reviews – for customers to write them, or for businesses to ask for them. Still, the site is pretty visible in some niches, and can serve as a nice barnacle site – especially for “near me” search terms. I wouldn’t be surprised if Thumbtack is acquired by an even-bigger player one day. I’d scare up at least a few reviews there.

Groupon
Why it’s overlooked: Groupon deals can be business-destroyers. They often attract crybaby customers. It doesn’t help that new businesses and businesses in dry spells are the ones most likely to offer deals. Often those businesses also are the ones least-equipped to pull off the deals without incident – or to handle an online reputation disaster well. But if you’re a pretty established business and aren’t dying for customers (but still want to attract more of them), look under the Groupon rock. Yes, Groupon takes a big cut of the deal, but you can get reviews that stay up long after the deal ends. Those reviews are highly visible, because Groupon is. Even if you don’t want to offer a deal, you can get customers to “recommend” you and write “tips.”

GlassDoor
Why it’s overlooked: customers don’t talk about it, because customers can’t write reviews there. GlassDoor is a place for employees (past and current) to review your company anonymously. Just the same, because customers can see what’s on GlassDoor easily enough, because it’s on Google’s local results like stink on a monkey. If you stop short of encouraging everyone on your team to review you (anonymously), at least encourage the happy people to say their piece. The angry ones will. Time is of the essence.

InHerSight
Why it’s overlooked: because it’s relatively new (started in 2015 or 2014, from what I can tell). It’s similar to GlassDoor, except it’s specifically for women. InHerSight is not exclusively a review site, but on it women can review (anonymously) places they’ve worked. As of this writing it’s not a super-visible review site, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes off.

WebMD (doctor.webmd.com)
Why it’s overlooked: if you’re anything like me, you associate WebMD only with feeling a mysterious new pain, Googling it, reading the WebMD result, and concluding you’ve got 3 days to live. But it’s also a giant healthcare directory. If you’re a doctor, do what you can to rustle up reviews there.

Amazon Home Services
Why it’s overlooked: Amazon hasn’t done much in local search yet, and most business owners don’t want to wet Amazon’s beak or possibly deal with frustrating leads (a la Groupon). Still, if you can get listed, it’s probably worth having a few reviews there, which can benefit you both before and after the sleeping giant wakes up.

Better Business Bureau
Why it’s overlooked: most business owners associate the BBB with “complaints” from customers and with questionable accreditation ratings of certain businesses. But it’s also a local-business reviews site, in the mold of Yelp and Google and so on.

BBB results often are extremely visible in the local organic search results – maybe more so than they should be – both for brand-name terms and often for the terms you really want to rank for. Because people can (but don’t have to) write anonymous reviews there, and because an angry customer is likely to be there anyway to lodge a complaint, bad reviews are especially likely to appear on BBB – and to stick out. The good news is good reviews stick out there, too. Of all the “underrated” review sites I’ve mentioned, I consider BBB the most overlooked one of all.

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What’s been your experience with those review sites?

Can you think of other review sites you consider overlooked?

Leave a comment!

Update 10/9/17: For a short list of overlooked review sites in the UK, see the comment from Caroline of Alba SEO.

The Ridiculous Hidden Power of Local Reviews: Umpteen Ways to Use Them to Get More Business

March 13, 2017 by Phil 22 Comments

Even the obvious benefits of great customer reviews are almost too many to count. To wit:

They take a little pressure off your site to “convert,” because visitors arrive largely pre-sold.
They can help you eat up more of page one of Google.
They help you cultivate non-Google Maps or non-Google sources of visibility.
They take some of the pressure off your local SEO and other online-marketing efforts, because they build your reputation online and offline.
You’ll be a little more attuned to customer-service if you know you’ll ask for a review eventually.
Even if your rankings stink, they help you land more word-of-mouth referrals. (Those people probably Google you, too.)
Whoever sees your reviews in the local search results is more likely to pick up the phone.

Those are just the beginning, though. You can squeeze many other benefits from customers’ reviews and from the process of earning and encouraging them. As AJ Kohn said about commenting on blog posts, the hidden power of reviews is ridiculous.

Here are some of the less-obvious ways you can use your reviews to help your local SEO and marketing even more.

1. Use them to research keywords. You might not call your services what your customers call them, and you might not search for them in the way they search for them. Where appropriate, try to incorporate those phrases into relevant pages of your site, or create separate pages on them.

2. Mine your reviews to learn exactly what kinds of customers have reviewed you, and why. Use those insights to determine who are the other customers most likely to review you (and ask them), and to make your services better.

3. Study your competitors’ reviews. Ask the same questions as in points #1-2.

4. Use a freshly-written review as an excuse to contact the customer who wrote it. Say thanks. Ask how he or she is doing, or just say you’d like any further feedback. That’s good to do on principle, and sometimes you’ll get repeat business out of the deal.

5. Use a new review as an occasion ask for an additional review, on a different site, if the customer is willing.

6. Write owner-responses in a way that makes you look great to anyone reading your reviews.

7. Copy and paste the reviews onto your site. (Google doesn’t seem to mind, and neither does Yelp, and other sites surely don’t care.) I suppose this isn’t such a hidden benefit of reviews, but I have to mention it because it’s so important. Your customers’ reviews are copywriting rebar. Your selling points are stronger if you’re not the only one touting them. Also, if you cite the city the reviewer is from, they’re semi-“local” content you don’t have to write. They’re particularly useful on city pages.

8. Put them on a “Reviews” or “Reviews & Testimonials” page on your site. It might even rank for keyword + reviews local search terms.

9. Use them on a “Why Choose Us?” page.

10. Add reviews badges or widgets to your site to showcase the reviews. The badges serve as third-party “trust” symbols, if you use the badge(s) provided by the site where you’ve got the reviews.

11. Create your own badge, if none is available on the site where you’ve got a pile of good reviews.

12. Allude to your reviews in your AdWords ads.

13. Include them (or excerpt or link to them) in your email signature, possibly along with a link to your “Review Us” page.

14. Use them as seeds for blog post topics. You can expand on certain selling points (or other points) a reviewer brought up.

15. Use them to reduce surprises and customer-service issues, by encouraging visitors to read your reviews before they call you. Even if that means they have to open up another browser tab and take their eyes off your site for a minute. Say something like, “We want you to know how we made other customers happy, and we want you to be our latest happy customer, so please take a minute to read our reviews.” When they come back, they’ll be more likely to call you, and less likely to eat up your time with questions your past customers already answered.

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Any non-obvious powers of reviews I didn’t mention?

How do you leverage your reviews (the good and even the bad)?

Any great real-life examples of one of the points I mentioned?

Leave a comment!

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