Our Blog

Google Reviews Earn Top Ranking for Local SEO

marciacatlin · October 12, 2018 ·

Google Reviews for Local SEO
Your reputation is an invaluable asset, and not just to you.
In Google’s pursuit to deliver the most relevant and beneficial results for local searches, they want to know how your business is perceived as well as what your business does.

Google Reviews for Local SEO

How? By the reviews you have and what your average customer rating is. Want proof? Features of the new Google Maps state outright that the “highest-rated” businesses near you will be returned when you search with local intent.
The quality and quantity of reviews on Google is one of the most important ranking factors for local SEO. When a person scans the search results for a local product or service in Google, the business listings that include customer reviews present greater credibility and receive more clicks.
Why Google reviews do help rankings.
Google trusts your customers more than it trusts you!
When a customer reviews your business (good or bad), it tells Google that not only is your business a real, legit operation, but that other people have interacted with it and can help future potential customers make decisions.
Google likes content.
The more content that your site has available to read, the more Google will know about your business. When you leverage customer reviews on your site for SEO or generate them on Google My Business, Google has lots of fresh content to read and lots of keywords to add to its understanding of your business.
Do ask your happy customers for reviews on Google. Google has made it more difficult to get reviews, so the effort is worth it. Your competitors will have the same challenges.
Customer service will always be the biggest differentiation between you and your competition. Make sure service and integrity are at the center of everything you do.
How easy is it for your customers to leave reviews about your company? For help setting up your reviews link and/or Google My Business website, call Marcia at 561-906-3436 or email me.

How to Launch an eCommerce Website for Your Retail Store

marciacatlin · August 25, 2018 ·

eCommerce dominates the retail space. You may also be surprised to know that these days if you own a retail store, you may also need an e-commerce website.

Here’s why.

Today 71 percent of shoppers believe they will get a better deal online than in brick-and-mortar stores. The total sales value of e-commerce retailers is expected to reach $414 billion by 2018.

It’s called having the Best of Both Worlds!

Here are 4 ways an eCommerce site can grow your retail business.

It will help you understand customer behavior.
68% of online shoppers abandon their carts before making a purchase! Nobody really knows how many people decide not to purchase when they enter a physical store. Now with an online store, you can collect data that will give you insights into such problems.
It will help your business recover 30 percent of lost sales.
An app or plugin can email online customers who’ve abandoned their carts, reminding them about their ‘almost purchase’ or sending them an additional incentive.
It will allow you to advertise more effectively.
Google is currently hosting 1 trillion searches a day. With each of these searches, e-commerce stores have the opportunity to run a targeted pay-per-click (PPC) ad that reaches prospective customers directly.
It will help you grow your customer base.
People who never would have wandered into your physical location can easily find your store online.

There are real advantages to selling your products online plus keeping your retail store up and running. Having an eCommerce site allows you to collect new leads, advertise, and find new customers online. When your store is online, you allow your customers to shop how, where, and when they want!

The 9 Essentials. Steps to Getting Started

Determine your primary customers
Who are your primary customers? How will they find your website?
Primary customers are the ones who’ve already been consistently shopping at your brick-and-mortar store.
This existing customer base gets you a running start with an audience that’s already interested in your brand.
Choose your domain name
Choose a catchy, SEO-friendly name that will resonate with your audience or stick with your brand name.
If your online store depends on organic traffic, you might want to drop your brick-and-mortar name in exchange for something more SEO-friendly.
Select initial products to place online
Top sellers in your brick-and-mortar store.
Items that receive special requests or calls for 2-3x per month.
Products that are nationally popular.
Learn what your competition is doing
Write custom page titles and meta descriptions
Take pictures of your inventory
“Original images and image descriptions helped us to rank far above other retailers using stock photos. Having alt tags on all images is absolutely necessary.”
Offer free or discounted shipping for customers who spend above a certain amount
Choose your payment methods
What’s the easiest payment method to set up?
How can you accommodate a wider audience?
PayPal is a must.
Come up with an ironclad shipping and refund policy
Make it easy for customers to return their products. Customers would need to complete a return request in order to receive a return shipping label from us. This way, we could confirm the item wasn’t past the 20-day return window.

eCommerce Startup Special Offer. Now you can launch your online store for less with our BigCommerce Startup Special . It includes everything you need to get up and running quickly, affordably and hassle-free.

A Beautiful Design

Marcia will help you select a mobile-friendly theme perfect for your BigCommerce website. Then I will do basic customization of the templates to best express your brand – including colors, fonts and adding your logo. (Any theme that requires purchase is not included in the Startup Special pricing.)

Get started with your 14-day BigCommerce Free Trial. No credit card is required.

BigCommerce Free Trial

How To Rank in Google Maps

marciacatlin · July 10, 2018 ·

Mobile phones have changed everything. Searching Google, how people get things done and now local SEO.
And local businesses have a big advantage, too! Nearly 60% of all Google searches have local business focus.
It’s now a lot easier for you to simply pull out your smartphone, open the Google app, and speak your search query. And for searches with a local “intent”, Google will include the local search results even if you don’t specifically mention a local city.
For your local business, mobile is critically important for generating local business traffic. But only the top 3 local search results in Google will be given on both mobile phones and desktop searches. So what can you do to give your business a better chance at this coveted placement in Google?
Getting a better Google Maps ranking is becoming the #1 objective for local and small businesses.

How To Get Better Rankings in Google Maps

1) Build your local business citations (NAP) in specific business directories. A business directory is an online list of businesses within a particular niche, location, or category. One way local businesses can get found by online searchers is through inclusion in business directories. See the list here: The Ultimate List: 57 Online Local Business Directories.

A citation is a record of your NAP – your business name, address, phone number, and website URL. Google uses citations as a way to validate your business location. Use your targeted keyword phrase in the description of your Google Maps business listing. Make sure your primary category is the most relevant category for your business. Include your business category in your title.
For example, if you are a landscape lighting company, then include the phrase “landscape lighting” in the title of your Google business page. Google refers to these elements as modifiers in the title. You must be careful not to overuse/abuse the use of modifiers, which means do not stuff your title with keyword phrases.

rank in google maps — 3 pack “landscape lighting west palm beach”
Custom Lighting of America, Inc. is my client!

2) Verify Your Google Business Page. Visit this link to get started with adding your business to Google Maps.

3) Here are some quick video tutorials on adding or claiming your business in Google Maps.

How to Add or Claim Your Business on Google
How To Verify Your Business on Google
4) When optimizing the titles of your Google business pages always include the business name, business category, and the name of the targeted metro area. For example, if you are a landscape lighting company, then include the phrase “landscape lighting” in the title of your Google business page. Google refers to these elements as modifiers in the title.
5) Use your targeted keyword phrase in the description of your Google Maps business listing.
6) Make sure your primary category is the most relevant category for your business. Another way to know the best category to select is to look at the current top-ranked businesses in Google Maps. For example, search your targeted keyword phrase in Google (i.e. ‘landscape lighting west palm beach’ as an example), look at the landscape lighting companies that are ranked letters A, B, and C, and then identify the category they are using.
7) Use schema language and your business NAP on your website. Your business NAP is basically an acronym for your business name, address, and phone number.
8) The NAP of your business also references citations. Citations are references to your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) that are published on external websites and directories. Google uses citations to determine the accuracy and relevance of your business information.
See the list of top local business directories =>The Ultimate List: 57 Online Local Business Directories
9) What is Schema language? It’s a structural protocol adopted by Google, Yahoo, & Bing to make it easier to determine certain datasets within web pages. Direct data such as your NAP is particularly relevant when it comes to local SEO.
There are many other Schema or direct data sets that can also be leveraged in your web pages depending on your type of business. Schema language or direct datasets dramatically enhance the authority of your web pages within your local market – a key strategy to understand.

Here is a schema plugin that will get the job done for you: Markup (JSON-LD) structured in schema.org
Keywords in your Google Business Page Title

Google Maps 3-Pack Service

Getting your business to rank in the top three local search results requires a concerted local SEO effort on your part.
It is also important to remember that no one can guarantee a top ranking on Google or Google Maps. It depends on various factors, including your website, keywords, and your biggest friend, persistence.
If you don’t have the time or expertise, you can take advantage of my Google Maps 3-Pack service:
INCLUDES Google My Business setup & verification, optimizing Google My Business pages per above, listings/citations in all of the relevant business directories, Schema plugin setup; one post and CPA on GMB (posts expire every 7 days). Reports and updates.
Google Maps Package*
Based on a 4-month commitment
$300 Setup Fee
$250/mo. – mos. 2-4
Have any questions or ready to get started? Contact Marcia HERE.