Local search class

Kat & Mouse | katandmouse.com | facebook.com/katandmouseo
Local Search Class
By
Kathy Long, LSO
Local Search Specialist
Kat & Mouse SEO & Web Design
Class Notes & Resources
www.katandmouse.com/local-search-resources
www.katandmouse.com/LocalSearch Class Workbook.xlsx

Why be online?
• 20% of all searched in
Google are local. That’s
2.24 billion!!
• 97% use internet for
local business search
• Yellow Pages are dying

Where should you be online?
• Website
• Social Media
• Google Places
• Yahoo Local
• Bing Local
• Phones
• Everywhere you can!
2 million Places claimed in US –
only 2% of total!
1st place gets 35% of clicks, 2nd
17%, 3rd 12%... 10th 2.5%

Google Places – Since October 2010
It’s either “pure” results or “blended”

Google Places – How to Rank High
1.Proximity
2.Popularity
3.Relevance

Google Places – How to Rank High
See http://www.davidmihm.com/local-search-ranking-factors.shtml for more details.

Everything Begins with
Keyword Research
Use Google’s free keyword research tool
http://bit.ly/ja3yZO
1. Jot down 3 or 4 ways you’d search for your website
2. Look for other keywords in Google’s keyword tool. Seek out
variations such as roofer, roofing contractor
3. Run the queries. Where is your website? Write it down. Also write
down top 5 or 10 competitor’s sites for those keywords.
4. Group keywords into 3 buckets:
1. Lower rank, great term, low competition
2. Lower rank, great term, high competition
3. Higher rank, great term

2: Develop Your NAP
NAP = Name, Address, Phone
–Consistency across the web is
critical!
TASK: Search for your phone
number on the web. Check to see
where your NAP is inconsistent.
Make a note of these. FIX THEM!

3: Create your categories
Google gives you 5 categories – one canned
and 4 custom categories
– Look at your competitors
– Utilize your keyword research
– Use high volume, high conversion keywords
like hotel with free wi-fi, pet friendly hotel, cool
coffee shop
– Don’t spam!

Create and Claim Your Place
• Google Places
• Yahoo Local
• Bing Business Portal
• Facebook

Place Page Optimization
• Exact or close categories – Try entering city
name in 1 or 2 categories. Test.
• Business name in title – Don’t spam with
keywords, be consistent
– City keywords in title if possible and applicable
• Point to a better landing page – contact page
• Use more info links to add additional links to
website, either internally or social sites

Add photos to
Panoramio
and geotag
Image from blumenthals.com

Add videos to
Youtube and
optimize
Free video creator
at www.animoto.com
Image from blumenthals.com

Citations
• Create articles for inbound links - add NAP
• Videos - add NAP
• Facebook Page
• Research top 10 or more competitors and do
what they do and then some more!
– Whitespark.ca/local-citation-finder
– Check More info on their Place page for more
Example: This class at Parks & Rec

More Citations
• Chamber of Commerce
• BBB
• Host/support a philanthropic event
• Sponsor local events
– Query these
• Location sponsorship
• Location sponsorship opportunities
• Location sponsor our event
• Location “thanks to our sponsors”
• Location intitel:sponsors
• Location inurl:sponsors
– Create future notifications in Google alerts with location
sponsorship for one
– Ontolo: Citation Prospecting
– Export Citation list from localsearchtoolkit.com

Citation Prospecting
Sponsor a local event.
Utilize price anchoring when pitching sponsorships
Dear Santa Cruz event,
The (event) is going to be a great event. I would love to help sponsor it
and my business, http://www.katandmouse.com, can contribute $20 for
the sponsorship.
I look forward to helping support this event to a successful conclusion
and reading more about it as it progresses on your website.
To your success,
Kathy Long
Santa Cruz resident and business owner

Local directories

Local directories
Check your site at http://getlisted.org/
Enter your site MANUALLY here:
• http://www.ubl.org
• http://webapp.localeze.com/bizreg/add.aspx
• http://local.botw.org/helpcenter/jumpstartproduct.aspx
• http://expressupdateusa.com/home.aspx
• https://my.superpages.com/spweb/products/business-listing
• https://selfenroll.citysearch.com/
• http://list.infousa.com/dbupdate.htm
• http://www.yellowpages.com/sp/advertise/
• http://www.insiderpages.com/advertiser/find_business
• http://www.openlist.com/update/
• http://www.yelp.com/
• http://www.angieslist.com

Local directories
To find more, query:
• Location directory
• Location business directory
• “list of location sites”
• Location websites
• Location sites
• “location sites”
• “location websites”
• “favorite links” location
• “recommended link” location
Must do for all Santa Cruz businesses:
Wiki Travel - http://wikitravel.org/en/Santa_Cruz_%28California%29

Reviews
– Get email addresses from customers,
segment into gmail and yahoo email
addresses and ASK
– Facebook
– Use QR Codes
– Use Thumbtack
– Brightlocal review tool
– Review Triage

Website Optimization
• Business name in title tag
• City keywords in title tag and H1 tag
• Web copy
– Include your location, a map, your cities served,
hours, email address, fax number, phone number,
directions and other any information you have
that establishes your location.
– Create page for each location
– Internal linking on keywords

Example: http://www.detroitroofing.org/
• Query “Roofing contractor detroit”
– Not in Places but contractors page shows up in organics. Why?
• Query “roofer detroit”
– #1 in Places
• Is this site over optimized? Or not optimized well enough?
Example: http://paintingcontractorusa.com/
• Optimized for nation
• Pull-down city lists don’t really work
• Well-done for city it’s located in
• Tried to show up for Orlando, FL and fails
• Is this site over optimized? Or not optimized well enough?
Example: Query “la jolla housepainter”

Example: http://www.agilemonkey.com
• Query “Santa Cruz Pilates Classes”
• Query “Santa Cruz Pilates Studio”
• Query “Santa Cruz Pilates teacher”
What do we need to do to rank for all three?

• Create a GeoSitemap
http://www.geositemapgenerator.com/
• Add rich snippets

Location rich snippet
<div class="vcard">
Taylor Benefits Insurance Agency

4820 Harwood Road #130
San Jose
CA
95124
(408) 358-7502

</div>
http://microformats.org/code/hcard/creator

Other rich snippets
Schema.org
Recommended
• Hcard – Location
• Reviews
• Restaurant
• Product

Link Building
Acquire quality links from quality sites with
keywords in anchor text
– Give free advice
– Blog commenting
– Forum commenting
– Guest blogging
– Write remarkable copy
– Infographics
– Whitepaper, research
– Create something another business in your
industry (non-competitor) would value

Link Building
Query these
• Location “sponsor”
• Location “our sponsors”
• Location blog
• Intitle blog location
• Inurl:blog location
• “tags: location”
• “filed under: location”
• Location “add comment”
• Location forum
• “location forum”
• Location join
• Location group

Link building
• Create best Santa Cruz whatever award
• Guest post about regional issues on local
blogs and relate it back to your business
• Ask for referral on client’s website
• Offer local promotion
• Write a glowing review of a local business.
Guaranteed that they’ll link to it!

Link Building
Announce your remarkable content
– Build relationships and follows
– Facebook
– Tweet
– Email
– Newsletter
– Social bookmarking
– Add share, bookmark ability to your website
Sharethis.com

Set Up Analytics
How to
• Log into google (must have gmail account)
• From landing page, click Analytics and setup
• Add code to website
• Set up webmaster tools
• Add GeoSitemap
3 analytic tools:
• Webmaster tools
• Place analytics
• Website analytics

Other
• Google Feed of products
– How to
– How to optimize
• Write a book
• CraigsList
• ?

Other – Social Media
Decreasing Stable Increasing

Other – Social Media

Social
• Why should you be there? Social Proof
– 90 percent of people seek advice from family and
friends before making a decision.
– 80 percent of people delay making a purchase
online before they talk to someone.
– Social media gives you an opportunity to build
trust and relationships.
– Google is watching you! They know if you’re
popular or not!
– They’ll spread the word and link to you!

Social
• The BIG THREE – Facebook, Twitter,
LinkedIn
– Build your following
– Build your credibility, authority and trust
– Go where your customers are, not your
colleagues
• Twubs.com to find Twitter groups
• Build authority in Q/A sites like Quora,
Yahoo Answers

Social
Make good use of check-ins for targeted
advertising, if not now, soon.
Get the apps!
– Foursquare – Reward your check-ins!
– Gowalla – Reward your check-ins!
– Yelp – Includes deals! read more
– Facebook – lands on wall!
– Google – NEW TODAY! Local directory siting!
I bet they’ll tie in “Offers”
– Yahoo Local – pulls in deals from www.zozi.com/

Summary:
7 ways to dominate 7 pack
1. Add NAP to off-site content
2. Broaden your citation mentions
3. Optimize your website
4. Get more local, anchor text inbound links
from directories, press releases, check-in
sites, blogs
5. Get reviews
6. Timely updates to your place page
7. Get active in social media

http://blumenthals.com/index.php?web-equity-infographic

What else?
• PPC
• Mobile marketing
– You need a mobile site!
– Geo-targeted text messaging
– Check-ins
– More on the way!!
• Deals
– Groupon, Living Social, etc.
– Google “Offers”
– Amazon
– Yelp
– Facebook?

SoLoMo
Social + Local + Mobile
The BUZZ

In the end
Everyone will be doing these steps. What can you do
that is more?
1. SEO – Local optimization might be enough today,
but NOT tomorrow! You need to keep optimizing
with:
1. Better content
2. More backlinks
3. Social involvement and social proof
2. Social Media
1. More followers sharing and tweeting your stuff
3. Take advantage of other marketing tools
What Google tells you to do, you should do.

Need help?
Kat & Mouse takes you to the next
level with…
• Website & Google Places optimization to get Google to take note
• Link building to move your site above the competition
• Social Media marketing – Custom landing pages, engagement,
website integration to get people singing your praises
• Mobile Marketing to capture the crowd on the street in the new
internet
• Monthly monitoring and improvements to keep you on top

Kat & Mouse
Please connect with me
www.katandmouse.com
anonymouse@katandmouse.com
408-694-3706
www.facebook.com/katandmouseo
Twitter: @katndmouse
LinkedIn - Kathy Long
LinkedIn: Join Local BizBuzz Group
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Local-BizBuzz-3215677
To your success!

Local search class

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