#simply due to the inconsistency of how or when it's spammed

[slushblock]

Angler gives Aberrant a Beach Ball. Aberrant looks at it with "what am I supposed to do" face, While Angler is like ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )

inelegant snort-laughter intensifies

[essaytyper123]

buy essay

About me

Buying College Essays

Buying College Essays Usually such web sites are infested with fraudulent writing companies. In our flip, dealing with us means you get your dissertation writing providers without a concern that you simply do one thing illegal. Quality is among the prime priorities of our team. We make every thing possible to ship solely the best customized essays to your inbox. We guess you already went online, found 1000's of writing assistance firms on-line and feel a bit at lost deciding the place to buy an essay online. Read on to search out out what we do and you’ll by no means wish to use some other services. Furthermore, a scholar who decides to buy essays from online writing service is given reductions often. We are able to turn into your writing companion as long as you want us, and your spendings shall be less with each next order you place with us. Well, we would say it's going to take some trial and tribulations however there are some tips that will allow you to buy essays only from professionals. And should you’re reading this – you don’t have to go anywhere else, since one of the best writing company is already at your service. We know the way important it's to you so we'll all the time be giving all our greatest whenever you buy essay on-line from us. We are the corporate that has conscience, due to that, we aren't asking for a really expensive payment. Our firm is absolutely conscious in regards to the limits in budgeting for students. So you’ve finally made up your thoughts to buy essays? That’s nice however how do you choose from so many writing help firms that provide to offer help with essays online? One should not underestimate the level of risk contagious websites bear. A single file downloaded alongside with your essay help could turn your hardware into an entire mess, and everybody is aware of how costly the companies of a programmer value nowadays. We obtain a full pack of anti-virus, anti-spam and anti-spy packages for you to not be worried concerning the security of the system via which you receive our ready projects. I discovered this service among college essay service on the web. I definitely advocate this service to everybody who's fighting the writing part since I am higher at talking. When you purchase an essay from our specialists, you possibly can concentrate on something that you do higher and faster. Many college students select this smart choice to keep away from stress and sleepless nights. Our assist is cheap though our papers are of the very best quality. Taking into account our inexpensive companies, you will pay a reasonable value for an exceptional educational assignment. The interface of the Essay writing service is consumer pleasant and requires no extra PC skills in order that it is very easy to purchase analysis papers on-line. You don't have to fill quite a few order forms, get plenty of passwords at virtually each step of order. Nowadays the Internet is drowning in websites of illicit content. Every time I cannot write an essay, I purchase it out of your company. Your writers are all the time cautious with my instructions and deliver masterpieces. Even if I come across any inconsistencies, your writers eagerly respond to my requests. These are simply some of the reasons on why you need to contact specialists like EssayPanda or RewardedEssays for an essay to purchase. When you determine to buy a web-based essay, you might think that it's not secure. However, our firm supplies danger-free services. It means you don't have to fret about your privateness and the standard of labor, as we guarantee both. So what else makes us different from anyone else?

[entergamingxp]

Last Oasis dev explains rough launch as servers finally go back online • Eurogamer.net

Post-apocalyptic survival MMO Last Oasis is finally back online after a week of downtime following its extremely rocky Steam early access launch back in March – and developer Donkey Crew has shared a few words on what, exactly, went wrong.

Last Oasis, if you’re unfamiliar, casts players as human survivors, doomed to endlessly roam an Earth that no longer rotates in order to stay ahead of the scorching sun.

It’s a wonderfully appealing premise, and one that plenty of players were eager to experience for themselves when Lost Oasis entered early access on 26th March. Sadly, however, Last Oasis’ launch was plagued by server issues, with severe wait times and server crashes leaving many that purchased the game simply unable play. After a few days with no improvement, Donkey Crew elected to take its servers offline for a week to get to the bottom of things.

“Our coders have been working day and night on this issue and need some sleep,” it wrote at the time, “We need to properly investigate why our load testing didn’t pick this issue up, find out why, figure it out properly and solve it.” Donkey Crew also offered a “no questions asked” refund for those that didn’t want to wait out the downtime.

Servers finally went back up for public testing this weekend, with the goal of assessing server performance following a week of fixes, and Donkey Crew also used the occasion to shed more light on Last Oasis’ troubled launch, which occurred despite a year-long beta and many large-scale load tests, according to the developer.

Following a relatively smooth first few hours, it explained in a new Steam post, things quickly began to deteriorate as “more and more people failed to connect and a large number of players were stuck in queues”. Then, making matters worse, servers started repeatedly shutting down.

As Donkey Crew puts it, Last Oasis’ lobby and joining queues simply weren’t optimised enough for the “tens of thousands of players connecting simultaneously” at launch. “Clients were sending massive numbers of requests to our backend to check for the status, essentially spamming it. Doing so shouldn’t have overloaded the gameservers with the verification process, but the sheer amount of those requests did.” Worse, a bug meant that “clients were continuing to send those requests indefinitely” while players remained stuck in queues.”

“At some point,” the developer continued, “the database became so slow with all the connections that the game servers couldn’t verify their consistency state on time anymore, forcing them to all shut down simultaneously. Again, it was a failsafe to make sure that the world doesn’t become inconsistent and breaks the logic of the game in the long run.”

“Our systems were essentially stuck in a loop with multiple issues affecting each other,” explained Donkey Crew, “As all the servers were shutting down and restarting, over 20k people were trying to rejoin at the same time, leading to our queue system failing, which then kept overloading the master server, letting only a few people to join a time until the master server would shut off again and take all servers down with it. And the cycle would continue.”

Donkey Crew described its attempts to simultaneously bring servers back up and fix the underlying causes as feeling like “rebuilding a house of cards in the middle of a hurricane”. Additionally, the pressure and stress of the occasion “mixed with worsened communication due to the quarantine situation made things even more difficult.”

After “days of working non-stop”, Donkey Crew made the decision to take its servers offline and get some rest before attempting to tackle the issues again.

The next day, though, it “woke up to something we did not expect: a lot of you expressing understanding and support. We can’t tell you how much of a morale boost that was for everyone on the team. It helped us to get our shit together: organise properly, analyse logs and code and fully check what went wrong. Over the last few days, we can easily say we found a lot. We’ve been refactoring large parts of the code that we’ve seen cause problems, changing the database structure that was failing, and fixing various integrity issues that appeared. As far as we can tell, all the known issues have been fixed.”

That optimism appears to have held true; Saturday’s public test went well enough for Donkey Crew to leave its servers up, with no additional wipes or server shut downs required, and Last Oasis has remained operational since then with minimal disruption.

Hopefully, with server issues seemingly resolved, Donkey Crew can now put Last Oasis’ rough launch behind it and start building on the game’s early promise, as highlighted by Eurogamer’s Emma Kent when she took an early look at the game. The developer hopes to get the ball rolling with a new content update due some time this week.

from EnterGamingXP https://entergamingxp.com/2020/04/last-oasis-dev-explains-rough-launch-as-servers-finally-go-back-online-%e2%80%a2-eurogamer-net/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=last-oasis-dev-explains-rough-launch-as-servers-finally-go-back-online-%25e2%2580%25a2-eurogamer-net

[moversdevelopment]

Link building mistakes to steer clear from

The moment you create a website is the moment when your ever-lasting struggle to reach top positions in Google rankings starts. Not only is it necessary to reach the top, but it is also of utter importance to keep this position as long as possible. Undoubtedly, achieving this goal is very challenging. It can become manageable only if you pay close attention to your website value at all times. One of the highly helpful strategies which provide website owners with satisfying website value and top rankings is effective and well-planned link building. Unfortunately, those inexperienced or impatient ones are prone to make link building mistakes very often. That causes severe damage to the website’s reputation. Thus, here is all you need to know about link building mistakes to steer away from.

Building links to irrelevant and meaningless content is among the top link building mistakes

If your aim is to get links to your website, it is compulsory to create high-authority, relevant, and link-worthy content. Otherwise, people will have no interest to link to your site. In addition, your Google rankings will have scarce chances to be satisfying. Instead of offering viewers worthless content that will make them leave your website instantly, apply these strategies:

Make the content detailed, in-depth, and comprehensive concerning the topic.

Use infographics in your content strategy to capture the attention of the viewers easily.

Base the content you offer on relevant data and research conducted in the field.

To improve the credibility, quoting experts and influencers is highly advisable.

Provide viewers with a vast number of examples and case studies.

Building links to irrelevant and meaningless content is among the top link building mistakes.

Badly-planned and disorganized guest blogging can lead to link building mistakes

It is a mere fact that guest blogging is a cheap, legitimate, and, undoubtedly, useful means for getting links to your website. However, to be able to use it to its full potential, you need to provide premium quality content. Only then will top blogs accept to publish it. This way, you will be able to get brand development for your business and also influence a broad audience.

The most frequent guest blogging related mistakes that influence link building are the following:

Writing guest posts of insufficient quality to get backlinks.

Focusing only on top-tier websites which have very high editorial standards. – Although a backlink at one of these sites will prove your reputation and authority in the field, it will take months for your post to go live. Thus, if you want guest blogging to help your business grow, wasting a few months is a luxury you cannot afford.

Hiring the services of only one guest blogger for link building. – As impossible as it may seem, Google easily recognizes these practices. Then, it penalizes your website. Hence, hire multiple bloggers or simply concentrate on a few target websites and contact the writers who already write for them.

Badly-planned and disorganized guest blogging can lead to link building mistakes.

Neglecting the impact of internal linking is a wrong strategy

When you eventually earn a backlink from a reputable website in your business field, try your best to make most of it. Pay attention to both the content you provide and the internal link structure of your website. By providing you with a backlink, an authority site gives you a vote of confidence. That increases the credibility of that page on your website.

Furthermore, if there are any internal links from this page, the authority and credibility will transfer to those pages as well. On the other hand, if your internal structure is inconsistent, it is a considerable obstacle to distributing the value to all the important pages on your website. Eventually, your rankings are affected.

Using online tools to generate numerous links to your website harms your reputation

There is an immense number of online tools which can help you generate countless backlinks to your website very fast. Unfortunately, doing this is one of serious link building mistakes. These backlinks have no authority or value. Thus, all you can expect is a penalty by Google due to these spam and low-quality backlinks.

Using the exact match anchor text is not beneficial

Using over-optimized anchor text is what inevitably triggers the Penguin Google algorithm and gets you penalized. Instead of always using the exact keyword you strive to rank for, use a mixture of branded, partial, naked, and generic anchor text. Understandably, the more branded links, the better.

Link building mistakes include building links to the homepage only

We have already mentioned the evident importance of the internal link structure of your website. Consequently, building links to your homepage only is nothing but a wrong and pointless strategy. Although it is useful to a certain extent because it can help in raising your brand awareness, overusing it will trigger Google algorithms by all means. Hence, make your backlinks natural by pointing them to other pages that are relevant and in accordance with the content. For those who are in the moving industry, this is the smartest strategy that will intrigue the viewers and provide free moving leads for moving companies.

Not providing your website with enough social signals prevents further improvement

If you are brainstorming the ideas on how to increase traffic for your blog, providing shares across social media is the most intelligent decision. Google has recently started considering the number of social signs as an important factor when determining its rank position. Thus, it is high time you started promoting your content to increase your social signal strength. Some of the most helpful strategies include:

Making social site buttons always visible on your page

Inviting your readers to share the content

Interacting with social influencers since they may want to share your content

Creating the content of outstanding quality

It is high time you started promoting your content to increase your social signal strength.

Participating in link exchange programs is risky

We cannot but admit the fact that this has been a common SEO practice for quite a long time. Exchanging links with other websites can be beneficial for all the parties involved but only on one condition. If you exaggerate with reciprocal linking and get involved in mass link exchange programs, you will activate Google algorithms. This strategy is not allowed, so it is yet another among link building mistakes you need to steer clear from.

The post Link building mistakes to steer clear from appeared first on Movers Development.

from Link building mistakes to steer clear from

[destinymarketingsolutionsofficia]

Google Penalties Expert Guide: How to Find, Fix, and Avoid Them

  The last thing you want to deal with in your SEO campaign are Google penalties. But it can happen to you if you’ve been fairly aggressive with your campaign. A Google penalty is a manual penalty given by a Google employee after reviewing your site. It is not to be mistaken by a fall in rankings due to an algorithm change. While a penalty will hurt your campaign, it’s not the end of the world. You can definitely recover and continue to get the benefits of SEO.

  How to See If You’ve Been with Google Penalties

  The first thing you have to do is to make sure that you have a penalty in the first place. If you’re a Houston business owner that doesn’t have much experience with SEO, it can be hard to figure out if you’ve been hit with a penalty or if there was an algorithm change. If you’ve recognized a fall in rankings, then check this Google algorithm update page to see if there were any recent changes.

  If there wasn’t anything major that has occurred, then you’ve probably been hit by a penalty from Google. To check what the penalty is, you can login to your Google account and go the the Google Search Console. Simply enter your domain and go through the verification process.

  Once you are able to get to the dashboard, you want to go the “Search Traffic” section into lefthand menu options. It will collapse and open more options. From there, you want to click on “Manual Actions”. This will give you a list of manual actions that your site has been hit with.

  If you want a professional SEO to look over your site for you, click here for a free video SEO analysis.

  Different Types of Penalties Houston Businesses May Face

  There are various types of penalties that you may face as a Houston business owner. You’re likely to see more penalties if you or your SEO has been using black or grey hat SEO techniques which are SEO exploits that Google frowns upon. Sometimes it might be just a technical error on you or your webmaster’s part. Here are some examples of the penalties and how to recover from them:

  Cloaking or Redirects

  Sometimes you may want to show Google one page while showing your visitors another page for the same URL. This is something that many affiliate marketers do to attain high search rankings while also managing to convert more visitors into sales.

  To fix this issue, crawl your site with the Search Console and compare the pages that are provided to you with the cloaked pages. Fix any inconsistencies between the two. Sometimes the problem stems from sneaky redirects that try to trick the visitors. After fixing the issues, submit a reconsideration request.

  Thing or Low Quality Content

  Google has gotten better about low quality content. They’ve been able to detect spun, scraped, and auto generated content created by various software programs. They also look for content that are duplicates. The latter can often happen by accident if you’re copy and pasting manufacturer product and sales descriptions on an eCommerce site. To fix this problem, simply remove the low quality content from your pages.

  Blogging is a must, but there’s no point creating content if you’re creating low quality material. If your content is original but is still getting flagged, rewrite them by adding more useful content that is valuable to your target audience. You’ll also want to make your content longer to increase the quality and increase your ranking prospects.

  Use tools like Copyscape or its lower cost alternatives to see if you’ve accidentally posted duplicate content on your site. After the fixes are made, submit a reconsideration request.

  Keyword Stuffing or Hiding Them

  An old SEO strategy that people have used is to stuff their pages with keywords at the very end for an onpage optimization boost. They may also use hidden text by blending it with the background color (white) to keyword stuff. While hardly nobody uses this strategy anymore, it may be triggered by things like WordPress themes and free templates that try to link back to the developer’s site. Remove any onpage black hat tactics or tricky redirects then submit your site for reconsideration.

  Links from Bad Neighborhoods

  If you’ve been aggressive with your link building campaign, then you may have gotten backlinks from a bad neighborhood. Sometimes this can be caused by unnatural link building (reciprocal links, bought links, low quality guest posts, etc.) dubbed as the Penguin penalty. This is one of the more common violations and search engine spam penalties business owners see. Google recommends that you disavow backlinks that have have been flagged by Google.

  In the Search Console, go to the disavow links page to disavow low quality links.

  Hacked Sites

  An issue that many people don’t expect is their site getting hacked. Many times you won’t even know that your site was hacked because nothing is changed. Hackers simply add malware, bad redirects, and malicious links onto your page. These hacked sites are detected by Google and users are prevented from viewing them for their safety. These hacks are usually done through WordPress exploits.

  Figure out how to get rid of the hacks. Then update your WordPress to prevent it from happening again. You’ll also want to get plugins that that prevent hacks from happening in the first place. After you’ve worked with an experienced webmaster to fix the issue, you’ll want to submit a reconsideration request.

  These are some of the more common penalties, but there are still a handful of others that you may face along the way.

  How Long Does a Google Penalty Last?

  After you’ve fixed the penalties, you’re probably wondering how long it will be until the penalties are removed. There’s no specific timeframe on when the penalties will be removed, but you can expect your site to be updated within 30 days. If you’ve incurred some serious offenses by partaking in black and grey hat strategies, you’ll probably have to wait a lot longer to get the penalties removed.

  If you think that the penalties stem from careless mistakes you’ve made with your campaign, you ought to check out the starter guide on how SEO works. This will teach you the fundamentals and give you an idea of what Google wants so that you do not make mistakes that hurt your campaign.

In conclusion, fixing any Google penalty is possible if you do a thorough analysis and fix everything Google has identified as problematic. However, the process is not easy. You’ll usually want the help of a SEO professional to guide you. If you need some help, request a free video SEO analysis from us at Destiny Marketing Solutions. We’ll provide solid advice on how to approach penalties and move forward with building a winning SEO campaign.

The post Google Penalties Expert Guide: How to Find, Fix, and Avoid Them appeared first on Destiny Marketing Solutions - Digital Marketing Firm in Houston, TX.

https://destinymarketingsolutions.com/google-penalty-guide/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=google-penalty-guide

[destinymarketingsolutions]

Google Penalties Expert Guide: How to Find, Fix, and Avoid Them

  The last thing you want to deal with in your SEO campaign are Google penalties. But it can happen to you if you’ve been fairly aggressive with your campaign. A Google penalty is a manual penalty given by a Google employee after reviewing your site. It is not to be mistaken by a fall in rankings due to an algorithm change. While a penalty will hurt your campaign, it’s not the end of the world. You can definitely recover and continue to get the benefits of SEO.

  How to See If You’ve Been with Google Penalties

  The first thing you have to do is to make sure that you have a penalty in the first place. If you’re a Houston business owner that doesn’t have much experience with SEO, it can be hard to figure out if you’ve been hit with a penalty or if there was an algorithm change. If you’ve recognized a fall in rankings, then check this Google algorithm update page to see if there were any recent changes.

  If there wasn’t anything major that has occurred, then you’ve probably been hit by a penalty from Google. To check what the penalty is, you can login to your Google account and go the the Google Search Console. Simply enter your domain and go through the verification process.

  Once you are able to get to the dashboard, you want to go the “Search Traffic” section into lefthand menu options. It will collapse and open more options. From there, you want to click on “Manual Actions”. This will give you a list of manual actions that your site has been hit with.

  If you want a professional SEO to look over your site for you, click here for a free video SEO analysis.

  Different Types of Penalties Houston Businesses May Face

  There are various types of penalties that you may face as a Houston business owner. You’re likely to see more penalties if you or your SEO has been using black or grey hat SEO techniques which are SEO exploits that Google frowns upon. Sometimes it might be just a technical error on you or your webmaster’s part. Here are some examples of the penalties and how to recover from them:

  Cloaking or Redirects

  Sometimes you may want to show Google one page while showing your visitors another page for the same URL. This is something that many affiliate marketers do to attain high search rankings while also managing to convert more visitors into sales.

  To fix this issue, crawl your site with the Search Console and compare the pages that are provided to you with the cloaked pages. Fix any inconsistencies between the two. Sometimes the problem stems from sneaky redirects that try to trick the visitors. After fixing the issues, submit a reconsideration request.

  Thing or Low Quality Content

  Google has gotten better about low quality content. They’ve been able to detect spun, scraped, and auto generated content created by various software programs. They also look for content that are duplicates. The latter can often happen by accident if you’re copy and pasting manufacturer product and sales descriptions on an eCommerce site. To fix this problem, simply remove the low quality content from your pages.

  Blogging is a must, but there’s no point creating content if you’re creating low quality material. If your content is original but is still getting flagged, rewrite them by adding more useful content that is valuable to your target audience. You’ll also want to make your content longer to increase the quality and increase your ranking prospects.

  Use tools like Copyscape or its lower cost alternatives to see if you’ve accidentally posted duplicate content on your site. After the fixes are made, submit a reconsideration request.

  Keyword Stuffing or Hiding Them

  An old SEO strategy that people have used is to stuff their pages with keywords at the very end for an onpage optimization boost. They may also use hidden text by blending it with the background color (white) to keyword stuff. While hardly nobody uses this strategy anymore, it may be triggered by things like WordPress themes and free templates that try to link back to the developer’s site. Remove any onpage black hat tactics or tricky redirects then submit your site for reconsideration.

  Links from Bad Neighborhoods

  If you’ve been aggressive with your link building campaign, then you may have gotten backlinks from a bad neighborhood. Sometimes this can be caused by unnatural link building (reciprocal links, bought links, low quality guest posts, etc.) dubbed as the Penguin penalty. This is one of the more common violations and search engine spam penalties business owners see. Google recommends that you disavow backlinks that have have been flagged by Google.

  In the Search Console, go to the disavow links page to disavow low quality links.

  Hacked Sites

  An issue that many people don’t expect is their site getting hacked. Many times you won’t even know that your site was hacked because nothing is changed. Hackers simply add malware, bad redirects, and malicious links onto your page. These hacked sites are detected by Google and users are prevented from viewing them for their safety. These hacks are usually done through WordPress exploits.

  Figure out how to get rid of the hacks. Then update your WordPress to prevent it from happening again. You’ll also want to get plugins that that prevent hacks from happening in the first place. After you’ve worked with an experienced webmaster to fix the issue, you’ll want to submit a reconsideration request.

  These are some of the more common penalties, but there are still a handful of others that you may face along the way.

  How Long Does a Google Penalty Last?

  After you’ve fixed the penalties, you’re probably wondering how long it will be until the penalties are removed. There’s no specific timeframe on when the penalties will be removed, but you can expect your site to be updated within 30 days. If you’ve incurred some serious offenses by partaking in black and grey hat strategies, you’ll probably have to wait a lot longer to get the penalties removed.

  If you think that the penalties stem from careless mistakes you’ve made with your campaign, you ought to check out the starter guide on how SEO works. This will teach you the fundamentals and give you an idea of what Google wants so that you do not make mistakes that hurt your campaign.

In conclusion, fixing any Google penalty is possible if you do a thorough analysis and fix everything Google has identified as problematic. However, the process is not easy. You’ll usually want the help of a SEO professional to guide you. If you need some help, request a free video SEO analysis from us at Destiny Marketing Solutions. We’ll provide solid advice on how to approach penalties and move forward with building a winning SEO campaign.

The post Google Penalties Expert Guide: How to Find, Fix, and Avoid Them appeared first on Destiny Marketing Solutions - Digital Marketing Firm in Houston, TX.

from Destiny Marketing Solutions – Digital Marketing Firm in Houston, TX https://destinymarketingsolutions.com/google-penalty-guide/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=google-penalty-guide

[medicaldevicesblog-blog]

How to Avoid Being Blocked

Social media has become one of biggest marketing tools on the Internet with Facebook being at the forefront of this marketing revolution. There are however, guidelines and policies on how to use Facebook and when these are violated, you stand the chance of having your account blocked.   7 reasons for being blocked by Facebook Unstable IP address User IP addresses used to login to Facebook accounts don’t often change and are recorded and saved by Facebook’s data system. This is why the Facebook system sees it as a red flag when IP addresses do change. Only using one IP address and avoiding the use of a free VPN systems is the best way to evade this issue. Violation of Facebook polices All social media have very specific policies which users agree to adhere to when signing up. Violation of these policies is a sure way to have your account blocked. Posting excessive promotional links is also seen as ‘spam’ and could also easily lead to a blocked account. Any type of advertising, promoting illegal content, unsolicited contact for dating, harassment cases or any other inappropriate conduct may lead to your account being temporarily or permanently disabled. Inconsistent information When using Facebook for advertising and promotional campaigns, a credit card is required. You will be unable to start any Facebook advertising campaigns without a credit card. Be sure to fill in the correct information in order to be registered. More than one Facebook account If your main purpose for using Facebook is to promote your business, your first step will be to create one personal profile. From here you will be able to create numerous pages linked to this profile. Creating more than one personal profile could also lead to your account being blocked. This is due to the behavioral patterns of spammers and hackers. Linking your phone to your Facebook account can serve as a fail-safe as well as  as extra security. Adding too many friends in a short period of time As with Weibo in China, Facebook recommends “people you may know” according to your existing friends list, habits or former workplaces. This is a very useful tool for connecting with other users but be warned, when sending or accepting a large amount of friend requests, you may receive warnings that “you are engaging in abusive behavior”, which is slightly ironic but important to note nonetheless. (Note that this is only applicable to personal accounts and not to users liking or following your business page/s) Uploading too many photos and videos in a short time Uploading a large amount of photos or videos in a short amount of time also stands the chance of being seen as spam and can result in your account being blocked. Using an online posting program such as Buffer or Hootsuite, allows you to schedule post so you don’t have to post it all at once. 7)  Being reported to Facebook by other users Other user may report your account as a fake account or request Facebook to block the account. This does not happen with simply a single person’s view but only when there are numerous complaints. Reporting may happen because of running a fake account with a fake name, exhibiting abusive behavior by posting content that doesn’t follow the Facebook terms or by sending continuous friend request.   Can I unblock myself if my account is blocked by Facebook? Facebook has a very comprehensive information site where you can get most of the answers to your questions. Want to know more about policies and what else Facebook offers, click on this link:www.facebook.com/help 5 ways to unblock your account. So what happens if you did violate Facebook policies and end up being kicked out of the Facebook kingdom? Here is a list of methods you can use: Unblock your account using your registration email or the phone number linked to your account. Answer the security questions such as identifying your friends or filling in your personal account information such as your name and birthday as it is on your account. If none of these options work, submit an appeal. Use your ID card passport driver’s license photo when submitting the appeal to can prove your identity (here is a step-by-step guide on submitting an appeal: https://www.wikihow.com/Get-Unblocked-on-Facebook) The link to for making an appeal is as follows: https://www.facebook.com/help/contact/260749603972907 (4) Ask your friends connected on Facebook to help by following the steps below: On your preferred browser, open Facebook.com. Give the account details to log in. A security page will open, choose ‘GET help from friends’. A trusted contacts page will open up, choose a few friends who you know in person and who are in regular contact with you. Once finished, select on Continue. Facebook will transfer a security code to all the friends you chose. Next it will be your job to contact those friends, and ask them for the code they got from Facebook. Once you have received all the codes from your friends, use the code to unblock your Facebook account. Ask the Facebook Help Centre for assistance Send an email explaining the details of your issue and attach a photo of ID card, your profile photo and a screen shot of the problem. Ddu’s Facebook handle is @drugduglobal (this is the only Facebook account for Ddu). Feel free to follow for all the latest news and information of medical trade. Source:https://wordpress.com/post/medicaldeviceandequipmentinformation.wordpress.com/28

[ormlacom]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Something every woman should know - WHY MEN LIE!

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

Reverse Phone - People Search - Email Search - Public Records - Criminal Records. Best Data, Conversions, And Customer Suppor

[lawrenceseitz22]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

from Blogger http://ift.tt/2ln2ZS7 via IFTTT

[swunlimitednj]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

from Blogger http://ift.tt/2ljvZOH via SW Unlimited

[tracisimpson]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

[zeek1991-blog]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People http://ift.tt/2kMkrD0

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

[badtouchbaseball]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

[neilmberry]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People published first on http://elitelimobog.blogspot.com

[ericsburden-blog]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

[seocompanysurrey]

Reputation, Rankings, and Revenue: Navigating Local for Non-Technical People

Posted by MiriamEllis

Your local SEO agency needs new clients in 2017. Your department needs to convince management to earmark robust resources for local SEM this year. What if the only thing standing in your way is presentation?

In the 10+ years I’ve been consulting with local businesses, I’ve watched our industry grow to absorb an incredibly diverse set of disparate-seeming tasks. The breadth of the lingo alone is on the verge of becoming a dialect of its own. Here, supporting our Moz Local product, some of my internal communications with team members read like a code, packed with acronyms, abbreviations, and shorthand references that encapsulate large concepts which, while perfectly understood between local SEOs, would likely mean little to many CEOs or local business owners. In other words: shoptalk. Every industry has it.

The ability to codify and convey a complex concept by distilling it down to its essence is critical to the art of the pitch. Tell your new lead or your all-hands meeting that the company’s NAP is inconsistent on FB and YP, their DA is weak, and their owner responses are painfully MIA and watch their eyes glaze over. Today, I’d like to help you get meaningful attention by translating your local SEO work into 3 terms that almost any non-technical party will not only understand, but care about tremendously: reputation, rankings and revenue.

How to explain the main components of local SEO

1. Guideline compliance

Step One: Determine that the business qualifies as local via Google’s definition in their guidelines.

Step Two: Adhere to all guidelines to ensure that the business isn’t spamming Google. The same applies to other major local business data platforms.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation, in that the business conducts itself in an above-board fashion and doesn’t come across as spammy to search engines or consumers. It protects rankings in that penalties are avoided. It protects revenue in that resources are not wasted on risky practices and funds are being devoted to appropriate forms of marketing for the business model; money and time aren’t being spent on dubious work that can fall apart at any moment.

Further reading:

Dear SEOs: Please stop spamming Google Maps!

Video Deep Dive: Google Local Maps Spam, Is it Worth it?

Google Local Spam Hall of Shame

2. Website

Step One: Develop a technically clean website with good UX for all users/devices. If the site already exists, audit it for problems/penalties and resolve them.

Step Two: Develop the best possible website content in the business’ geo-industry.

Step Three: Properly optimize the site for local search + organic search.

Step Four: Optimize for conversions. All four goals should be a simultaneous effort.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the website delivers excellent customer service and establishes the business as an authoritative resource. It protects rankings in that penalties and filters are avoided, excellent content rises in visibility, and both local and organic results are won and held. It protects revenue in that conversions are not being lost to unsatisfactory user experiences.

Further reading:

Match Your Local SEO to Your Business Type with the Local SEO Checklist

Overcoming Your Fear of Local Landing Pages

Getting Local Store Locator SEO Right

Using the Barnacle SEO Method to Prove Local Community Awareness

3. Citations

Step One: Audit the existing citation landscape and correct inconsistent, incomplete and duplicate listings.

Step Two: Ensure listings have been developed on core local business data platforms.

Step Three: Develop geo/industry-specific citations.

Step Four: Manage citations on an on-going basis to catch emerging inconsistencies/duplicates/third party edits.

Step Five: Seek out unstructured citation opportunities (news, blogs, etc.).

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is accurately listed in consumers’ preferred places, establishing identity and professionalism — citations are simply publishing and no business wants wrong information to be published about it. It protects rankings in that search engines’ trust in the validity of the business’ basic data is being augmented. It protects revenue in that transactions are not being lost due to the misdirection and frustration of consumers via inaccurate basic data around the web.

Further reading:

The Definitive List of Local Search Citations

Duplicate Listings and the Case of the Nomadic New Mexican Restaurant

Local Centroids are Now Individual Users: How Can We Optimize for Their Searches?

4. Reviews

Step One: Perfect and reinforce customer service policies and staff training.

Step Two: Implement a review acquisition strategy for key citation platforms and for the company website.

Step Three: Respond to reviews.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that incoming customers derive trust from previous customers and the business’ reputation is being carefully managed from in-store service to online sentiment by the owner or agency department, including the improvement/resolution of negative sentiment via owner responses. It protects rankings by dint of surpassing competitors with a larger number of positive reviews on the major platforms. It protects revenue by winning trust-based transactions from new customers who are influenced by previous customers’ sentiment, while ensuring that neglect of negative sentiment or a simple lack of reviews isn’t turning potential consumers away. Actively managed reviews are one of the very best indicators of a responsive, reliable brand.

Further reading:

Diagramming the Story of a 1-Star Review

The Complete Guide to Creating On-Site Reviews + Testimonials Pages

Mastering the Owner Response to the Quintet of Google My Business Reviews

Survey: 8 Things That Really Cause Consumers to Complain

SURVEY: What Happens When Things Go South? You Lose More Customers Than You Ever Know

5. Links

Step One: Audit the existing link landscape for problem links and disavow or otherwise resolve them.

Step Two: Earn voluntary links via the publication and promotion of exceptional materials.

Step Three: Carefully seek out relevant link opportunities via safe methods such as local sponsorships, editorial contributions, or other vehicles on quality geo/industry sites.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that the business is associating with the best-of-the-best and isn’t being lumped in by search engines or consumers with shady actors or practices. It protects the website’s rankings in that links are growing the brand’s renown over time, making it an active and visible competitor and proving its relevance to search engines. It protects the website’s revenue both in fostering traffic and conversions from new sources, and in utilizing allowed practices to safeguard against sudden plunges in visibility.

Further reading:

11 Ways for Local Businesses to Get Links

The Ultimate List of Local Link Building Ideas

The Guide to Local Marketing with Sponsorships

6. Social

Step One: Identify the social hubs preferred by your specific geo/industry consumers.

Step Two: Based on the culture of each platform, develop a policy and strategy for participation.

Step Three: Participate on these platforms in a spirit of sharing rather than selling.

Step Four: Given that Social is an extension of customer service, monitor all social accounts for consumer needs/complaints and enact your policy for resolution.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation in that you are both contributing to and managing the online discussion of your brand, providing accessibility in a modern vein. It protects rankings in that some social results (like Twitter) will appear directly within the organic results of search engines like Google, establishing a sense of both company activity and consumer sentiment. It protects revenue in that neglected consumer sentiment does not lead to lost transactions or permanent negative reviews.

Further reading:

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing for Local Businesses

30 Top Social Media Sites to Market Your Small Business Locally

Three small businesses rocking local social media marketing

7. Offline

Step One: Recognize that anything that happens offline may be published online, whether this relates to company activity driving online content development or consumer in-store experiences driving online sentiment.

Step Two: Take whatever steps necessary to create a cohesive offline-to-online experience, including branding, messaging, signage, promotions, in-store apps or kiosks, and transactional support.

Step Three: Seek out real-world opportunities for establishing your brand as a community resource via traditional methods like print, radio, and television, as well as by participation in appropriate community organizations and events.

How does it impact the 3 Rs?

This protects reputation by cementing for consumers that they will enjoy a specific type of desired experience interacting with your brand, whether on the Internet or offline — it’s all about consistency, and it carries over into reviews. It protects rankings by creating the active, real-world company culture that contributes to both your own online publication strategy and the acquisition of third-party media mentions (online news, blogs, social, etc.). It protects revenue in that the most-desired end of the funnel of all of the above is the transaction, and today, most consumers will arrive at that moment via a combination of both on- and offline influences. By being present in what Google calls its four micro-moments, revenue is safeguarded and, ideally, improved.

Further reading:

What Really Earns Loyalty in the Local Business World?

3 Examples of Optimizing the Customer Experience

13 Ideas to Make Your Business More Complaint-Friendly

Printing your way to SEO success

8. Other media

Depending on the business’ industry, other forms of media may contribute directly to reputation, rankings, and revenue. This could include email marketing, video marketing, or app, tool, or widget development. In essence, these are specialized forms of content development and social promotion that will need to be built into marketing strategies wherever appropriate.

Further reading:

For More Local Traffic Hit Play ▶ Video Marketing Mini Roundup

Infographic on Nuts & Bolts of Video Marketing for Local Business

9 Killer Location Features for Retailer Mobile Apps

Video Deep Dive: Leveraging Email for Local Businesses

How much do they need to know?

I’m a firm believer in full transparency and thorough documentation of all work performed so that clients, teams, or bosses can see exactly what is being done, even if the technicalities aren’t perfectly understood by them. As you undertake the various tasks of local SEM, you’ll want to both fully detail the steps you are taking and use every available means for measuring their outcomes. That’s how you keep clients and keep your department funded.

But initially, when first presenting your proposed strategic outline, paring it down to finite goals may greatly improve your communication with industry outsiders, establishing common ground where you are seeing eye-to-eye with confidence. I have yet to meet a business owner who doesn’t instinctively sense the importance of his company’s reputation, rankings, and revenue, so rather than risk losing him with complex jargon at the outset, why not signal that you are on the same wavelength with the simplest terms possible?

As a fellow local search marketer, I know that you, too, have your livelihood wrapped up in the 3 Rs, and I’m wishing you a highly converting 2017!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

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