Local Marketing Online: Part 2: Web & Map Listings

Posted on April 27, 2011

Maintaining consistency across the web is absolutely essential if you want to take advantage of the local marketing opportunities online. Unfortunately, there are hundreds of web directories and map listing services on the internet that have acquired your business information from either a contacts list provider or an outdated, cached web page. More often than not this information is inaccurate and simply does not reflect your current business strategy. Why is this important? For two very important reasons which I will explain.

First of all, search engines are now aggregating information across the internet from a variety of sources in an attempt to accurately identify the relevant companies whose web pages they are indexing and delivering in search results. So, for example, if you cannot easily be identified because your address and/or phone number information is different in the web or map listings from your website, or the listing contains either no link or a dead link to your website, or the Profile Description doesn’t match up with your website profile, search engines will not feel confident to deliver your listing as a relevant match to the search made.

Secondly, inaccurate or misleading web and map listing information may cause you to lose prospective customers. I have told this story once before but it remains relevant. We helped a high end, local brick-and-mortar retailer client claim web listings that not only inaccurately categorized and described his company as a charity but also listed a phone number that was no longer in service. How did the web directories get the wrong information? They probably found it on a list of companies that had donated money to a charity.

Claiming and strategically managing your web and map listing information is a critical component to your success. Here’s what we typically find when we claim listings for clients:

Phone numbers that are wrong or incomplete
Addresses that are wrong
Inaccurate or incomplete company name
Listed in wrong categories
Inaccurate Profile Description or none at all
Information missing
Irrelevant images or none at all
Dead links to web pages
No link to website
No listing or wrong listing in Google Maps or Map Quest

You get the picture. So how do you know where to find these directories and how do you go about making changes? Well, that’s going to take a lot of your time so get a big cup of coffee for yourself and a comfy chair! But before you go online to search for the gaggle of directories in which you are listed, you have to work out your business strategy. The goal is always to achieve and maintain consistency across the internet so that you can begin to develop your online profile across multiple web directories and map listing sites.

What you will need to do to prepare:

Conduct a comprehensive keyword research and development to determine the terms that accurately identify what you offer as well as reflect the language used by your targeted audience groups to search for what you offer. The keywords you select will be used to develop your listings and should correspond to the content you present on your website and elsewhere on the web. They are the foundation for the development of your online authority.
Write out your Company Name exactly how you want it to appear on each directory site.
Using one or two search terms from your keyword research, develop a highly focused Profile of no more than 150 characters.
Develop another one of no more than 200 characters.
Prepare 1 to 10 professional, web-ready digital images that accurately reflect what you offer and name each one using one of your search terms from your keyword research. Although each web directory or Map listing site has different requirements, typically each digital image must be smaller than 1MB (and 1024 x 1024 pixels), and must be in one of these file formats: JPG, GIF, PNG, TIFF, BMP. Since Logos are images, follow these same guidelines.
Although each directory has its own naming structure for Categories, using your search terms from your research as a guide, identify no more than 10 categories under which you would expect prospective customers to find you.
Make a list of your hours of operation for every day of the week.
Write down each location address. Indicate which one is your principle location.
Write down each telephone number, clearly identifying the principle phone number. Something to consider if you are using a toll-free number is local listing results prefer local numbers with area codes that correspond to the locale.
Write down the fax number.
Write down each email address, clearly identifying the principle one.
Write down your web address.
List each of your services exactly as you want them to appear.
List your principle product categories exactly as you want them to appear.
List any special items you want your prospective customers to know such as the principle Brands you represent, special Qualifications, Certifications, Professional Memberships, Awards, or other relevant information.

The above list represents the information you need to Claim Your Listings and ensure the information you present is consistent across all collateral web directory and map listing sites.

The benefits to maintaining consistency across web directory and map listing sites are many and include:

Supports the building of your online authority
Search engines can easily index and deliver your listing in search results
Prospective customers can find you and are clear about what you offer
Reach mobile users searching on portable phones and devices

In my next installation of the Local Marketing Online series I will take a close look at Google Places. You will learn why it is important to claim your account and how to take full advantage of all it offers.

Read the Series:

Local Marketing Online: Part 2: Web & Map Listings

Local Marketing Online: Part 1: Intro

Posted on April 26, 2011

Local marketing has become one of the most powerful ways to reach and convert customers online. With more than 2.5 billion local searches a month on Google alone, Google has taken notice of this fact and recently initiated a direct marketing campaign in targeted regions throughout the US to promote its local marketing opportunities. The company sent, by FEDEX, to select businesses a white box containing brochures and offers about the benefits of Google Places and the company’s online advertising programs.

Google is smart. They’re taking advantage of the trend and so should you. Why? Because local searches are easier and less costly to convert as prospects are typically further along in the buying cycle. The key is making sure:

You can be easily found by your targeted audience groups
They can trust you because others have said so
You deliver the right message at the right time
They can easily contact you or visit your location
You’re easily identified online as an ‘authority’ for what you offer
You follow up in an appropriate manner with the appropriate communications
You deliver on what you promise, and maybe a little extra!

In this eight part series I will explain the multiple facets of local marketing online and how its various components are now cross-referenced by the search engines to determine an ‘authority score’ which affects web page rankings. This multi-part series will cover:

Web & Map Listings
Google Places
Search & Social Media
City Sites, Reviews & Recommendations
Share Your Content
Email Marketing
Pay Per Click Integration
Mobile Marketing
Optimized Web Design
Tracking & Reporting

Look for Part 2: Web & Map Listings, where you will learn about Google Places, web directories, maps, and the importance of claiming your online listings.

Read the Series:

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 4: 3rd Party Website Advertising

Posted on April 22, 2011

Many third party websites offer online advertising opportunities. These include professional organizations, online directories, blogs, newsletters, online magazines and journals, news sites, and a variety of informational sites. Online advertising programs for these types of websites are varied and may include banner only (i.e. graphics), text only, or a combination of media which may also allow for video.

In Part 4 of this series, Online Advertising and User Intent (see Part 1: Intro, Part 2: Social Media Advertising, and Part 3: Search Engine Advertising), I hope to show how to apply the concept of user intent to online advertising on third-party websites.

3^rd-Party Website Advertising

Your understanding of the intent of your targeted audience groups, or the reason they visit these third-party sites in the first place, provides you with the information you need during your campaign selection, planning, and development process. With some programs, such as Google AdSense, the content network is so vast and diverse that your selection process for where your ads will appear is somewhat restricted. Nonetheless, it is imperative you evaluate each advertising option carefully to avoid wasting your budget and to ensure you meet your goals.

Just as you have profiled your targeted audience groups to identify the characteristics and interests that allow you to develop an impactful advertising message, you must also profile the third-party websites you are considering to ensure your message reaches your intended audiences.

During your evaluation process, here are a few questions to help you along:

What does the website offer?
Who would be interested in what it offers? (Look at the substance of the content presented.)
What type, or types, of audiences are attracted to the content: consumers, business professionals, engineers, purchasing agents, etc?
In what age range might visitors be?
What may be the education level of visitors?
Are they sophisticated readers, highly educated on the subjects offered, or new to the material?
Does what you offer logically fit with the content on the site?
Could the content detract from what you offer?
What do visitors generally do at the site? (i.e. post comments, ask questions, research, relax, play games, etc.)
Is there a particular page or type of content most likely to attract your targeted audiences?

By carefully evaluating these considerations you can make assumptions about the intent of site visitors who frequent the sites you want to place your ads on. With a profile of both the advertising venue and the intent of the visitors it attracts, you have the information you need to select the right sites and to develop your highly focused advertising message. Make sure you are clear about:

Whom you are addressing
What they will be doing while you are trying to attract their attention

To summarize, advertising on third-party websites follows the same logic as advertising on social media sites. In order to attract the attention of your targeted audience groups, you have to understand and respect why they came there in the first place. By making accurate assumptions, you can develop an effective ad that:

Addresses your target audience groups’ known interests
Addresses their assumed interests as they relate to their known interests (e.g. “You’re reading about kitchen and bathroom remodeling so you may be interested in the decorative glass I sell for cabinets.”)
Taps into their emotion as it relates to their known interests
Gets them to take the action you desire without having to abandon why they came to that site in the first place

Read posts in this Series:

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 1: Intro

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 2: Social Media Advertising

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 3: Search Engine Advertising

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 4: 3^rd-Party Website Advertising

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 1: Intro

Posted on April 11, 2011

Planning your online advertising campaigns can be a daunting task. Once you have decided how much your budget is you are faced with the myriad of online advertising program choices including those offered by:

Search Engines like Google and Bing
Social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Buzz, MySpace
Professional networking sites like LinkedIn
Professional organizations
Online magazines
Online industry blogs, newsletters, journals
News sites
Shopping sites
3^rd Party websites (related businesses, information sites, etc)
Web Directories

The best way to decide where you want to focus your efforts is after you have done your homework. You need to understand not only the advertising platform, pricing, and the structure of the ad program, but even more importantly the advertising venue and the intent of those who frequent it.

“Intent” refers to the reason a person went to that site in the first place. For example, it is pretty easy to understand the intent of people who visit Google. They are obviously searching for something. And we can know what that is by the terms they type into the search box. But the intent of a person who spends time on Facebook is very different. He usually wants to share aspects of his life and work with his Facebook friends, or conversely, to learn what they are sharing.

By making intelligent assumptions based on your informed understanding of the intent of the audience groups you are targeting with a particular ad program, you can develop a highly focused message that not only speaks to their interests but successfully draws their attention away from their task and onto the message you want them to interact with and respond to.

In the following series of posts, I will introduce you to the concept of intent and how it applies specifically to:

Social Media Advertising
Search Engine Advertising
3^rd Party Websites Advertising

You will learn how to profile intent for each venue in order to craft the right message that gets the results you are looking for. In the meantime, if you have a specific questions / concerns regarding your current / upcoming advertising venue selection and user intent impact on campaign performance, post a comment or contact me directly.

Read posts in this Series:

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 1: Intro

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 2: Social Media Advertising

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 3: Search Engine Advertising

Online Advertising and User Intent: Part 4: 3^rd-Party Website Advertising

Power of Google’s +1 for Business

Posted on March 31, 2011

Google just announced the release of its latest social media tool aimed at bringing users ever more relevant search results that take into consideration “relationships as well as words on webpages.” The new tool is called ‘+1’ because it is essentially a graphical ‘+1’ that allows users to click on it to express their view that they liked the web page in the search results listing it corresponds to.

Let’s say you click a +1 because you like a particular site you found when searching for ‘commercial draperies.” Now all the people you are connected to through Google (your chat buddies and gmail contacts) will see that a person in their social network made a +1 recommendation. It will appear next to the link in the search results for ‘commercial draperies’ corresponding to the web page you liked. It will look like this: “Joe +1’d this” and will be visible to all the people in your network to see. If you change your mind and want to remove the +1 recommendation, you can do so at any time through your Google Profile page.

This new social media tool is a clear demonstration of the direction Google and the internet is going. Users are no longer passive recipients but active participants, not only in their own search experience, but in the search experience of their trusted social network of friends, family, and business associates. Google regards it as a great asset to users who may be faced with a plethora or choices and are looking for a little advice from a trusted resource, i.e. a person within their social network with whom they already have an established relationship.

Adding a whole new dimension to the power of “word-of-mouth,” Google +1 offers business owners huge potential to reach limitless target audiences through the interconnectedness of social networking. If you are a business user who is taking advantage of Google Apps for Business you already have a significant network of contacts and chat users. +1 recommendations made by any member of your business network could effectively reach those not only within their network but within each of the individual networks of those with whom they are connected. The reach potential is virtually limitless!

But that’s not all. As you monitor the +1 recommendations of those within your business network you begin to understand more about their interests and which webpages they like. You also begin to understand their intent behind the search: eat pizza, buy window coverings for the office, book a conference facility in Houston, and so forth.

In light of the recent admission that social networking criteria impacts a website’s relevance through its ‘authority score,’ it is safe to assume that Google will most likely start to factor +1 recommendations into the authority score as well.

I welcome comments and insights from readers about Google’s latest social networking tool +1 and how it may impact business websites.

Look for my upcoming posts on the concept of ‘intent’ and how it can be applied to successful online advertising.