Google Places
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Should You Count Reviews & Ratings Out In Google Local Rankings?
For years now, there has been some discrepancy between statements from Google Local engineers and general optimization advice from some local search marketers where reviews and ratings are concerned. So, what’s the skinny? Rating values may simply not affect your rankings. Read on to see why. Ratings Vs.
Google on Reviews: Asking for them is OK, Soliciting them is BAD
What is the difference between asking for reviews and soliciting them? It seems that a number of SMBS have discovered that one leads to jail time. Google has been throwing out reviews left and right of late. This is not a bug but the outcome of a newly aggressive review spam filter.
If you deal with Dentists, Doctors and Lawyers – hang on, because there are more changes brewing that Agencies and SEOs need to get a grip on. I’m preliminarily sharing what I know with you guys FIRST. Then I’m going to Google for clarification and confirmation on some of this. UPDATE: 6/26 – Just posted strategy and tips, so the practitioner dupes won’t impact ranking for the main practice listing.
Google Places DUPLICATES – Have Doctor, Dentist or Lawyer DUPES? You NEED to Read This - Google Places – Google+ Local SEO Blog
Google Places Marries Google+, Gives Birth To New Google+ Local Pages
Say goodbye to Google Place Pages, and say hello to Google+ Local Pages . That’s the name for Google’s new baby — a result of the marriage, or merger, of Google Places and Google+. It’s the main part of several related announcements today from Google. As I’m writing this late Tuesday night, there’s no link yet for me to send you to, so let me suggest you check out Greg Sterling’s detailed overview of the news on Search Engine Land – plenty of information, screenshots, etc., in his article. Update: Google’s announcement is here . The TL;DR version for small business owners is this:
Today Google announced the integration of business pages with Google + and the demise of their Google Place page. This is a change that has long been anticipated and one that simultaneously gives a business more control over their page AND dramatically enhances the review environment. Greg Sterling has a good overview of how specific details will change. Effectively Google + has become a destination for local search and a shared local experience. And tasks that were accomplished on the Place Page like reviews will happen on Plus instead.
Google Places Pages Are No More – But What has Changed?
As part of our citation building service , I research local citations and their influence on the organic local search rankings daily. That is why I decided to publish a series of articles related to the topic of citation building for local SEO. The current one is related to one of the most important factors in measuring the value of different citations (according to Google’s “ Generating Structured Information ” patent) – relevance of the source. And there is undoubtedly no better way to measure relevance in Google’s search results than checking the search results themselves. Similar studies have previously been done – first by Andrew Shotland , and then by Ash Nallawalla , both in 2009.
Local Citation Building Study Part 1: Niche-Relevant Citation Sources
Vanessa from Google announced a new PO Box policy in the Google Places Help forums. The new policy forbids you to place your PO Box information in both the address 1 or 2 fields. Previously, if you had a PO Box, Google recommended you put it in the address 2 field - that is no longer the case.
Google Maps Changes PO Box Rules
I had the pleasure to speak on the Hardcore Local Tactics session at SMX West a couple weeks ago and wanted to post my slidedeck. There are some gems in it so please enjoy… Also, I was interviewed by Eddie Bluff of Site-Seekers on local search and the interview went live during the conference. We talk about the state of local, some theory behind the ecosystem and directories that work, Places Optimization and some onsite tactics.
SMX West Presentation about Onsite SEO + An Interview! - Nifty Marketing | Nifty Marketing
Google Places & Local Search Buzz – Issue #1 April 27 2012 - Google Places Optimization and Local SEO Blog
Introducing the Google Places & Local Search Buzz A new weekly roundup of the most important tips and news in the world of Google Places and Local SEO. Milestones in a Google Places Campaign That’s Working | LocalVisibilitySyste m.com – Your business is unlikely to inch up or down in the local rankings. The problem is that can make it very tough to tell if you’re doing things effectively or back-asswards.The “business categories” you choose for your Google Places page matter —big-time. Your choices can help get your business visible to all the local customers you’re trying to reach, or they can cause Google to pluck your business off the map (and not put you back until you fix your categories). Fortunately, it can be easy to pick the optimal categories when you’re first creating your listing, and it’s also easy to change your categories later if you didn’t get them quite right at first. All you have to do is login to your Places page and change them—and you don’t even have to get a PIN and re-verify your ownership of your Places page. Whatever stage your Google Places page is in, you can get visible to the maximum number of local customers by picking your categories according to 13 best-practices: 1.
13 Best-Practices for Picking Google Places Business Categories
Why You May Need To Hide Your Google Places Address ASAP
The author's posts are entirely his or her own (excluding the unlikely event of hypnosis) and may not always reflect the views of SEOmoz, Inc. Last month, the inglorious septic system at my little old home in the country backed up and my washing machine erupted, drowning my laundry room and kitchen in two inches of water. I waded right into the flood at 9 o'clock at night with my arms full of grocery bags, shouted some colorful words and then went online. Nota Bene: do not operate a computer while standing ankle deep in water. Find a dry spot to crouch in first and then use Google Places to find a 24 hour plumber.Best Local Search Tools - 2012
It’s possible to get a business visible in Google Places and other local search engines without using any tools…but why would you want to? Sure, you can drive a nail with a brick (or that poundcake your in-laws sent for Christmas), but it’s much more effective, quicker, and easier if you’ve got the right tool. I’ve rounded up a list of the best tools that I, other local-searchers, and wise business owners use on a daily basis.Local links for local people! (Image - League Of Gentleman BBC) A quality link for me is an editorial link on a real site – a site that’s been around for years. The site in question is well linked to itself, and dooesn’t sell links – and is careful who they link to. These sites are kind of hard to get links from – but that’s the point… Strategy ?
Local Links For Local People -
It appears that Google has again increased the search radius for a large number of “search phrase + city” searches Since the spring of last year, Google has been reducing the radius for displaying results on many local searches. Effectively this meant that businesses outside the smaller radius would no longer show a pinned result.