Archive for April, 2009
Google Local Results For Non Local Queries
Posted by: | CommentsApril 13th, 2009 by sarahl@mannixmarketing.com
Google Local is all the buzz with the expansion of local results for non local search queries. What are you talking about? Let’s delve into this a bit more.
If you type in a non local search query, Google now shows search results related to your IP address regardless whether you typed in your location or not! What’s even better is that these local search results are pulling in whether you are signed into your Google account or not! Wild. Go ahead, try it out.
For kicks, I typed in “restaurants” into Google. The first 3 results show restaurants.com, zagat.com (reviews of restaurants in major cities) and of course, restaurant.com. Low and behold…guess what comes up next!
In the fourth spot, a Google map appears listing restaurants in the Glens Falls area. These local business listings are known as the “10 Pack” that are based upon your search query and IP. Sometimes, if the locale is off the beaten path, Google may only list the top 3 local places within an IP address.
Even though I didn’t add my location to my search query, Google is customizing my results to where my IP is located in hopes of providing me with even more relevant information. Google also supplies me with additional restaurants in the 12801 zip code:
Google also gives you the option to change your location to somewhere more specific. By simply clicking on the “change location” link above the 10 Pack listings, you can customize search results for a broad based search phrase. Type your zip code and you are off!
Does Google only pull in local results for obvious products or services? Answer = No. Try queries such as, “police stations“, “parks“, or even “dog kennels” and local results will appear among nationally ranked sites. So what?
This new search functionality puts local businesses on the map whether they are trying to get found or not! For the first time, both national businesses and local businesses are somewhat on the same playing field. With the query “dog kennel” Google gives me the option of shopping for a crate/kennel, reading reviews about kennels, or booking a stay for Fido at Bailey’s Bed and Breakfast in the next town over!
Bottom Line:
- Now more than ever, claiming your local business listing matters. Have you claimed your local Google or Yahoo local listing? Get Found locally.
- The long tail does matter. Make sure each web page has fresh content as the engines will either pull a snippet from the Meta data or the web page itself. Getting listed in the “10 Pack” will make you more credible and clickable!
- IP Matters: Are search engine rankings truly dead? Us marketers have heard this a lot lately. Dead? Maybe not completely cu put…but maybe less relevant now with the onset of personalized search and intent based search within advertising platforms.
Stay tuned for more buzz about Local search and Google Local Business Listings…
Local Search Grows 58%; Outpaces Overall Online Search
Posted by: | CommentsA surge in the annual growth of local search far outpaced growth of overall Web search, according to a study from the Yellow Pages Association (YPA), conducted by comScore, Inc.
The study found that local search – the practice of using online search tools to find local businesses, products, or services – grew 58% in 2008, reaching an annual total of 15.7 billion searches. By comparison, overall core US web searches grew at a much smaller rate of 21% year-over-year, nearing 137 billion searches by the end of 2008.
Local searches now stand at 12% of core searches on the top 5 portals, according to the YPA.
Buoyed by the growth in local search, the YPA said that Internet Yellow Pages (IYP) and other locally focused online business directories also saw double-digit growth of 23% in the same period, totaling 4.6 billion searches in 2008.
As more users conduct local searches, exposure to sponsored links for Yellow Pages data is increasing as well, YPA reported. Year-over-year, IYP sites have seen their exposure to sponsored links increase 50% to reach 353 million in December 2008 alone, demonstrating the increasing need for local business information.
“As local search grows, our data becomes more valuable,” said Neg Norton,YPA president. “Even if the searcher doesn’t know the company or brand they will ultimately give their business to, the decision to actually make a purchase has often already been made. That is a strong argument for local merchants to develop and maintain an online profile, if they haven’t already done so.”
Additional study findings:
- 75% of the top 100 keywords searched on Internet Yellow Pages sites were non-branded, indicating that a majority of consumers have not decided on a specific company or product brand when they begin their search.
- Nearly half (45%) of Internet Yellow Pages and local online directory searchers made an online purchase in the fourth quarter of 2008.
A recent report from Borrell Associates noted that small and medium-sized businesses are increasing their investment in local, interactive advertising and are now investing 11% of their advertising dollars online, up from less than 4% three years ago.
About the study: comScore measured real-life internet browsing, buying and transactional activity of approximately one million US internet users who granted permission to be monitored from December 2007 to December 2008.
Why You Need a Video Presence Online
Posted by: | CommentsEveryone seems to be looking for fast, inexpensive, quality video marketing. According to Dr. Silvia Pfeiffer, Vquence’s CEO and former CSIRO research scientist: “A video is 50 times more likely to rank on the first page of Google search results than any other content. It is therefore imperative for every product, brand, and marketing campaign to have a social video element.” What do you need to do to join the frenzy?
First, change your website’s main landing page from text to video (but don’t forget to keep all other text as text and not images to still allow Google and other search engines to crawl it to get you more traffic):
- Information presented in text is correctly recalled by only 8% viewers, where as same information presented in a graphic animation is recalled by the whooping 65%.
- It takes your web site visitors only 0.3 seconds to decide whether to stay or leave (compared to 4 seconds 4 years ago). With video, it increases from 15 seconds up to 1 minute, if the video content is holding their attention.
- Keep your video to 1 minute long max, we do not recommend having a video longer than 2 minutes. People have short attention spans nowadays. Also, don’t forget to let people know how long the video is, indicating it on the player – 20 minute long presentations will scare them off and cause them to leave. If you absolutely need to get information across in 20 minutes, consider making a 1 minute “teaser trailer” about it to get them to watch the whole thing.
Second, share your video on Social Networking Sites (and that is entirely free, although it does take up your time at the beginning):
- If you haven’t done so yet, you’ve got to jump the wagon and join Twitter (we assume you are already on Facebook and LinkedIn).
- Follow us on Twitter for daily dozes of selected animated marketing videos, or simply for your inspiration.
- Post your video at least on YouTube and Vimeo (there are dozens more sites, but these tend to have the most focused audience). In 2008 search engines were responsible for 11.18% of all video referrals, followed by social networks with a 3.66% share of all referrals.
- Tag your videos with up to 20 keywords that your prospects are likely to search for.
Third, update your video to a new one at least once in 3-6 months (or, depending on your business, it might be every month or once every year):
- Market changes constantly, and you’ve got to continue the conversation with your prospects before they’re bored again.
- Research shows that people forget about your brand if you haven’t updated them with new information in 3 months.
- Depending on the size of your business, you might want to create “internal” videos to let everyone in your department know exactly what it is they are working on – and help boost the overall business and brand understanding with each product release.
We hope this article will be helpful to you in deciding whether or not your particular company needs an online video presence.
Learn more about the author, Ksenia Oustiougova.
Localeze Introduces Local “Confidence Score” Reflecting Data Accuracy
Posted by: | CommentsApr 28, 2009 at 9:16am ET by Greg Sterling
Local search data and content provider Localeze has introduced what it’s calling the “Localeze Confidence Score.” The confidence score is the company’s statement to third party search engines and local directory partners about the accuracy of its local data and business records. The company is associating a confidence score with each of the millions of records it provides to those partners.
According to the press materials:
To arrive at a score, local business listings are driven through a comprehensive and ongoing process employing 14 individual weighted validation parameters. When combined, these elements apply an aggregate quantitative value to each listing, which represents its overall presentation-strength. This tool gives local search engines complete control over the selection and filtering of data they receive through the powerful Localeze Enhanced Business Registry.
Listings that it obtains from sources that update regularly or directly from local businesses will tend to receive higher confidence scores than sources that offer infrequent or irregular updates. However this criterion is one of many, as suggested above, that contribute to the confidence score. I spoke to Localeze President Jeff Beard about the launch yesterday. The confidence score is part of a larger effort to transition the company from “data vendor” to “content management company” that offers a much broader array of services to the local online marketplace.
The new scoring methodology will enable search engines to assess the probable accuracy of the listings they’re serving in response to local queries (a much more frequent happening now on Google). While Beard wouldn’t say that search engines or online directory publishers would factor Localeze’s confidence score into their algorithmic rankings, it’s quite likely that the score may become one of the many weighted factors determining organic local search rankings.
Localeze is one of three major providers of local data to search engines. The other two are InfoUSA and Acxiom.
Count Your Keyword Currency in a Bad Economy
Posted by: | CommentsIn these tough economic times, people are turning to the Internet to find great deals on products and services. Take a look at Amazon.com’s earnings. There a lot of changes you can make to help your website or blog rise in search popularity. However, refining your use of keywords may be one of the best places to start because, keywords are the currency of the Internet.
You actually help place a value on that “keyword currency” every time you use a search engine like Google. Your keyword search, and more than 200 million other searches each day combined to determine the value of each and every keyword. Some keywords or keyword phrases are amazingly popular like “Paris Hilton”. Others are relatively obscure, say for example, “Zafu and Zabuton”.
Before you write your website or blog post find your keyword theme — your keyword niche. A keyword theme is a group of keywords and keyword phrases that center around one focused idea. You will probably find greater success with search engines like Google if you work with keyword phrases rather than keywords. Instead of “shoes”, consider “red running shoes”.
Also remember, if you feel the burning desire to write about a popular keyword phrase like “Paris Hilton”, your voice probably will not be heard. Find a “keyword niche” that is just right for you. Write your content and form your sales pitch around your chosen keyword theme. These keywords will be your bread-and-butter.
Here is a great tool to help you discover the value of your keywords and keyword phrases as compared to other keywords and keyword phrases. Check it out — Google Insights for Search. Just type in your keywords and Google insights for Search will show neat graphs plotting the popularity of your various keywords in relationship to each other and over time. You also get a map that shows you relative popularity of keywords geographically. See how your keywords will work in Kenya, Japan, or Pakistan (practical for some and entertaining for others).
Recently I wrote an article about stress and relaxation. So which is the more popular keyword “stress” or “relaxation”? After a little research with Google Insights for Search I found that “stress” is far more popular; so I wrote my article about “stress” rather than “relaxation”. Curious, how the popularity of this keyword drops during the summers and has a sharp drop mid-December each year. Are your keywords — website or blog post, seasonal? This would be good to know so that you can plan your advertising and promotions.
When you write, be sure to put your keyword or keyword phrase in the title. Repeat it again once or twice in the opening paragraph is well. Search engines look for keywords in the larger type on the page like titles. They also look early in the article like the first and second paragraph. Do not try to stuff your article full of the keyword thinking that will help. Search engines are smart and will give you a poor rating. Just write great content that focuses on your keyword theme.
Try Google Insights for Search as you are planning your next Internet writing project.
Learn more about the author, Aaron Gaul.
