Introduction and Overview
Why should you be bother about having a Local Listing?
Research by the prestigious BIA/Kelsey Group shows that in the USA (with the UK not far behind) Web Triber Directory that 97% of all consumers use digital media to shop locally!
This doesn’t mean that they are buying online, what it means is that consumers are comparing prices and looking for coupons online before they make a purchase, either online or offline. Web Directory
Traditional advertising media is dying and is being replaced with online media, creating a listing in Google’s Local Business Listings is just one marketing strategy (cheap and effective) that small businesses can use to promote themselves to a wider audience.
The balance of power in local shopping is shifting to online, Business Listings you need to be in the race to win it!
This information, once you have gone through it completely, will enable you to comfortably and confidently get your local business listed in the top seven in Google local search listings. It will also show you how to get to number one, it’s just a matter of more work! Business Honors Directory
I will go through each step one at a time from listing a business (Real Life Case Studies) to getting it to the top of the listings.
Many local businesses are missing out on a massive opportunity to advertise for free on Google, there is a search feature on Google which I am sure most of you have seen, that allows a business to have their name, address and telephone number appear on a map on the first page of Google’s search results.
These results are show next to the map in a box of 3 to 7 listings and Hi5Biz Directory are triggered by certain types of businesses and keywords (some keywords don’t trigger the maps like ‘Website Marketing or Web Design which is ironic as we are the very businesses that promote Google!), also by location.
Although the exact algorithm Google uses to rank the listing is unknown, the observations included in this paper are the results of testing hundreds of listings for clients.
The map has information such as the website, Classy Web Directory telephone number, address, number of reviews and directions to the business.
Yahoo and Bing have also introduced this feature but for the benefit of this paper I will only be addressing Google’s Local Search.
This paper is in two parts:
Part 1: Creating a Google Local Search Listing.
Part 2: Dominating Google’s Local Search.
Please read the complete document fully first, gcash2win before trying to gain a listing.
Part 1: Creating a Google Local Search Listing.
Before we get started you need to know which “keywords” to optimise your listing for, these are the words that people would type in to Google to find your service or business. This is a subject that deserves a paper in its own right! If you have no idea how to find them try and put your self in your potential customers shoes and think what they would type into Google to try and find your service.
Some of you may find that your business is already listed in Google but you haven’t put it there! This is because Google will have found your business while searching through the web from another source such as a business directory. If this is the case then you need to claim your listing (more later). gcashtowin
