Search Results for: customer reviews

10 maneras fáciles de prepararse para el dominio de la IA en un mundo post-buscadores

Last Updated: May 20, 2025

La forma en que las personas encuentran negocios locales está cambiando rápidamente. Estamos dejando atrás los motores de búsqueda tradicionales como Google y nos estamos moviendo hacia herramientas impulsadas por inteligencia artificial como ChatGPT, Grok y Gemini. Estas plataformas están ganando usuarios a un ritmo acelerado y están quitando grandes porciones de tráfico a los buscadores. Si usted todavía depende de los motores de búsqueda para atraer nuevos clientes, está apuntando a una audiencia que se reduce cada vez más.

Las herramientas de IA no solo son más inteligentes, también son más rápidas, más convenientes y, a menudo, más útiles que las búsquedas tradicionales. Por eso, cada vez más personas las usan para hacer preguntas, pedir recomendaciones e incluso para encontrar proveedores de servicios locales. Y aquí está la clave: estas herramientas ya están decidiendo qué negocios recomendar… y cuáles ignorar.

Por eso, negocios como el suyo deben actuar ahora. Si espera hasta que empiece a doler, será demasiado tarde. Y no puede simplemente “pagar por entrar” como lo haría con anuncios PPC. Aún peor: estos modelos de IA no se actualizan todos los días, ni cada semana, ni siquiera cada mes. Es común que estén desactualizados por uno o dos años, porque reentrenarlos cuesta millones de dólares. Eso significa que la información nueva (como su sitio web) podría no estar incluida durante muchos meses, o incluso años.

Aquí hay 10 acciones fáciles que puede tomar hoy para ayudar a la IA a reconocer su negocio y recomendarlo a futuros clientes.

1. Pida Mejores Reseñas

No solo más reseñas, sino mejores. Pídales a sus clientes satisfechos que sean específicos:

“Instalaron rápidamente y de manera profesional un nuevo calentador de agua en San Marcos, TX” (¡oro puro!)
“Buen plomero” (mayormente inútil)

La primera tiene un servicio específico, usa buenos adjetivos (rápido y profesional), e incluye la ciudad y el estado. ¡Eso es la trifecta! Cuanto más detallada sea la reseña, más fácil será para la IA (y para los clientes) entender exactamente qué hace usted y dónde lo hace. Si tiene que ofrecer un descuento o recompensa por una reseña, hágalo. Si tiene que ofrecer una mejor recompensa por usar las PALABRAS CLAVE correctas en la reseña… también hágalo. Sea directo y dígale al cliente por qué. Apreciarán su franqueza y pensarán que usted está al tanto de la tendencia de la IA.

2. Consiga Más Reseñas

Ya no basta con tener 10 reseñas. ChatGPT, el más flexible en este tema, dice que espera que los pequeños negocios locales tengan al menos 50. Grok quiere 100 o más. Si tiene menos, es probable que la IA lo pase por alto en favor de un negocio con una mayor cantidad de reseñas.

Pídale reseñas a cada cliente satisfecho. Ofrezca un descuento o una pequeña tarjeta de regalo si es necesario. ¡Empiece a subir esos números!

¿Necesita ideas para conseguir más reseñas? Échele un ojo a estos artículos que hicimos sobre ese tema:

3. Responda a las Reseñas (De Forma Profesional)

Las herramientas de IA (y los humanos reales) prestan atención a cómo responde usted a las reseñas — especialmente a las malas.

Agradezca las reseñas positivas.
Mantenga la calma y sea profesional con las negativas.
Nunca discuta ni culpe al cliente.

Las buenas respuestas muestran que usted es responsable y confiable. Créalo o no, estas son dos cualidades que la IA está programada para valorar.

¿Se le complica esto? No se preocupe, a la mayoría le pasa, pero nosotros ayudamos a nuestros clientes con esto todos los días. Solo contáctenos y con gusto lo ayudamos.

4. Cree Páginas para Cada Servicio que Ofrece

Nos ha escuchado insistir en esto por años: haga una página para cada servicio. Ahora no es solo para Google, también es para la IA.

En vez de decir solamente que ofrece “servicios de plomería”, divídalos en páginas separadas como:

Reparación de inodoros
Instalación de grifos
Instalación de calentadores de agua

La IA no puede recomendarlo para un servicio si no sabe que lo ofrece. Por muy inteligente que sea, aún necesita que se le diga exactamente qué hace usted.

5. Liste Todos Sus Servicios Claramente

Si aún no está listo para crear páginas individuales para cada servicio, al menos asegúrese de listar todos sus servicios por separado en un solo lugar. Eso significa, por ejemplo, que debe poner “instalación de calentadores de agua” y “reparación de calentadores de agua” como elementos distintos. Haga esta lista lo más completa posible. Aunque esto no ayude mucho con SEO, sí puede darle un poco de ventaja en el mundo de la optimización para IA.

6. Indique Claramente Su Horario y Si Ofrece Servicios de Emergencia

Este punto es importante y se pasa por alto con frecuencia. Si usted responde llamadas las 24 horas y ofrece servicios de emergencia, dígalo de manera clara y visible en su sitio web. ¿Por qué? Porque cuando alguien le dice a una IA: “Necesito un plomero de emergencia cerca de mí”, usted solo aparecerá si esa frase está en su sitio. De igual forma, si alguien busca un plomero a las 8 p.m., el que esté marcado como abierto hasta las 9 p.m. tiene más probabilidades de salir en los resultados.

7. Haga Que Su Información de Contacto Sea Muy Visible

Asegúrese de que su número de teléfono, correo electrónico y dirección estén fáciles de encontrar. Póngalos:

En el encabezado y pie de página
En una página de Contacto
En sus páginas de servicios

Las herramientas de IA no pueden recomendarlo si no saben cómo pueden contactarlo los clientes.

8. Presuma Su Experiencia

¿Tiene 10, 20, 30 años en el negocio? ¡Dígalo! Tener un historial sólido genera confianza. Las IA (y los clientes) son más propensos a recomendar empresas que parecen estables, experimentadas y confiables.

9. Gane Algunos Premios (Y Muestre los que Ya Tiene)

No necesita un Premio Nobel, solo algo que le dé credibilidad:

Un premio local de “Lo Mejor de…”
Reconocimiento de la Cámara de Comercio
Mención en una asociación de su gremio
Premios de HomeAdvisor, Angi, BBB o Thumbtack

Estas menciones de terceros le dicen a la IA que usted es confiable, y eso lo hace más recomendable. Incluso si sus premios tienen algunos años, consiga el gráfico y colóquelo en su sitio junto con un par de oraciones al respecto. Esto le dirá a la IA que usted está ganando premios y aumentará su credibilidad.

10. Aparezca en los Directorios Correctos

La IA obtiene mucha de su información de los directorios de negocios. Claro que mientras más, mejor, pero asegúrese de que su información esté incluida (y sea consistente) en los siguientes específicamente, ya que estas son las fuentes que las IAs usan para formar opiniones sobre su negocio.

Google Maps / Perfil de Negocio de Google
Yelp
BBB (Better Business Bureau)
Thumbtack
Nextdoor
Houzz
Angi

Estas fichas también le dan más oportunidades para recolectar reseñas, lo cual, como ya sabe, es fundamental.

Reflexión Final

Como comentamos la semana pasada, la IA está cambiando la forma en que los clientes encuentran negocios. Desafortunadamente, aunque esto facilita las cosas para el consumidor, las complica bastante para los negocios. Tiene que seguir haciendo todo lo que ya hacía para los motores de búsqueda, pero ahora tiene más trabajo y menos oportunidades de aparecer en los resultados. A veces, solo una… Pero con algunos movimientos inteligentes, puede mantenerse a la cabeza y asegurarse de que su empresa aparezca cuando alguien le pida ayuda a una IA.

Y si en algún momento necesita ayuda con cualquiera de estas cosas (sitios web, reseñas, directorios), estamos a solo un mensaje de distancia.

online digital marketing industry info

Last Updated: April 14, 2025

Do you need online marketing?

We offer a wide range of options to help you with your online marketing. Unlike many other companies, we do NOT use a one-size-fits-all approach. Depending on what you already have in place, we’ll work with you to fill in the gaps and get your online presence working to support your business. We have solutions for:

Building Websites
PPC Ads ( Google or Facebook )
Social Media Marketing
Backlinking

We’d be happy to have a conversation with you about what might best fit your circumstances and budget. We’re a low-pressure operation and you can reach us from 8am to 6pm ET at 800-689-1273

How can digital marketing benefit my small business?

For thousands of years, the best type of business is referral business. Unfortunately, most businesses cannot survive on that alone. That’s where digital marketing comes in. These days, you need a strong presence on social media, a well-optimized website, and a strategy to knit it all together. Fortunately, you’re in the right place. We can help you figure out what’s working well, what’s not, and what gaps exist in your current efforts.

What’s the difference between Facebook ads and Google ads?

The simplest way to think of it is “push” vs “pull.” When it comes to a product or service that people know exists, they’ll search for it. That’s where Google Ads are a good fit. If you have something that is brand new or generally unknown, you have to push that in front of people to raise awareness. That’s the right situation for Facebook Ads. Once we figure out which situation you fit into, we can devise an ad strategy to help maximize your return.

What are backlinks, and why are they important?

Backlinks are simply links to your site, on someone else’s site. In Google’s world, each of these links counts as a “vote” and the more votes you have, the more likely you are to make it to the top of the search results.

How long does it typically take to see results from a digital marketing campaign?

This will depend on what you have going on already, as well as what you sign up for with us. On average and in general, our SEO clients start to see traction in about 60-120 days and reach peak performance some time after that. PPC clients will see results right away and then reach peak performance after a couple of months.

How do you measure the success of a campaign?

This will depend on what sort of campaign you’ve signed up for. For campaigns that involve a website, backlinks, PPC, etc., we like to focus on the number of phone calls, texts, and emails received. Traffic, ranking, clicks, and things of that nature are important, but ultimately no one is going to hand you money for being #1 on Google’s search results. What you want is humans to contact you so that’s where we focus.

Can I target specific demographics or regions with my ads?

Yes, but this will vary in granularity and capability depending on if we’re talking about PPC or SEO. With the SEO we can target geographies, but we won’t have much control. It’s up to Google et al to match up the search query with the proper location and content so it’s really out of our hands. PPC, however, allows us to fine-tune and target very granular geographies and demographics.

What is the importance of mobile optimization, and how do you approach it?

We design sites in a mobile-first methodology. We don’t ignore the desktop users, but we’re mobile-first and have been for years. We’ve been through all the itterations over the years ranging from “mobile what?” to separate themes for mobile and desktop to the modern responsive designs. Google does not view this as optional anymore so neither do we. We’ve got you covered on this front.

Can I choose specific platforms or channels for my campaigns?

Depending on what you mean, yes. We can tailor our services to your specifications because we are NOT a one-size-fits-all shop. Just let us know what your requirements are and we’ll work with them.

How do you handle negative feedback or reviews online?

When clients get negative reviews, we strongly encourage them to let us write the reply. We’ll need their side of the story and all the details from them, but when it comes to crafting a reply, it’s best that a dispassionate 3rd party writes the response. It’s critical to remember that you’re not writing the reply for the person who reviewed you. That ship has sailed. It’s for the next person who comes by and reads that review. That’s where your opportunity still lies.

What is pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, and how does it work?

PPC is a style of digital marketing where you pay for every click, as opposed to SEO where you get traffic organically. It will produce results much more rapidly than SEO but can also be much more expensive, especially when it’s not done well.

What is Google’s phone number?

If you’re a paying customer of Google Ads, you can typically get access to a representative at Google, including by phone. Outside of that situation, it’s all but impossible to speak to anyone there.

How can I get a phone number for Google?

Is this call from Google legitimate?

If you get a call from a caller ID claiming to be Google, it is often fake. However, if it is from 650-417-9099 it is real. That’s a call you want to answer because it is actually Google calling you for a legitimate reason.

SEO Myth-Busting: Geotagging Photos To Improve Local Search Rankings

Last Updated: April 9, 2025

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You’ve probably heard the latest online marketing “trick”: geotagging your photos. The pitch is simple: add location data to your pictures (like where you took that shot of a fixed pipe or a new deck), and Google will magically push your business to the top of local searches like “plumber near me.” Sounds like a silver bullet, right?

Wrong. It’s a myth. Geotagging isn’t going to make or break your online success. It’s not bad, it’s just not worth your time. Let’s bust this myth wide open, figure out who’s pushing this nonsense, and get you focused on what actually brings in customers.

What’s Geotagging, Anyway?

Geotagging means adding your location info to the meta data of your photos. Most phones these days will automatically add the latitude and longitude of where you are when you take your photos and stick that information into the file’s meta data. The idea is that Google sees this and says, “Oh, this electrician works in [Your Town]!” and bumps you up in search results. It’s being sold as a fast, easy way to win at local search. But here’s the catch: it barely moves the needle, and you’ve got better things to do.

Where’s This Hype Coming From?

I know that you’re busy fixing sinks, mowing lawns, or wiring houses, so you might not have time to dig into why this keeps popping up. Here’s the scoop:

SEO “Experts” Want Your Money: Some marketing companies and so-called gurus on TikTok or YouTube push geotagging as a must-do trick. They’re selling you tools or services, and this sounds fancy enough to hook you. They don’t care if it works, they just want your cash.
Your Buddy at the Bar Said It Worked: Ever hear a fellow tradesperson swear they geotagged a photo and got more calls? Maybe it happened, maybe it didn’t, but chances are something else (like a new review) did the heavy lifting. Word spreads, and suddenly everyone’s jumping on the bandwagon.
Old Advice That Won’t Die: Years ago, little tricks like this might’ve helped with Google. Not anymore. But outdated tips keep floating around online, confusing busy folks like you.

The truth? This hype preys on people who don’t have hours to mess with marketing and just want a quick fix. Sorry, but geotagging isn’t it.

Busting the Myth: It’s Not Wrong, Just Useless

Here’s the deal: geotagging your photos won’t hurt your business. If you’ve got a spare hour and love fiddling with your phone, go for it. But don’t expect it to flood your inbox with leads. Why?

It’s Super Easy to Fake: Anyone can change a photo’s location data in seconds. Snap a pic in Ohio, edit the file on your phone or computer, and tell Google it was taken in Florida. No special tools needed. Google knows people can lie like this, so it doesn’t put much stock in geotags. Why trust something that’s so easy to fake?
Google Doesn’t Care Much: Google’s smart. It already knows where your business is from your Google Business Profile (that free listing you set up with your address). A geotagged photo might add a tiny hint, but it’s like whispering in a thunderstorm. Google’s listening to louder stuff.
Your Time’s Worth More: Say you spend 10 minutes tagging every job photo. That’s an hour a week if you do six jobs. What’s that get you? Maybe one extra person finds you in a random image search. Maybe. Meanwhile, you could’ve called a happy customer for a review that actually boosts your rank.

Studies back this up. One test with lawn care businesses showed geotagging helped a tiny bit for “near me” searches in super-specific spots, but it didn’t help (and sometimes hurt) for bigger city searches. Google’s own experts say it’s not a game-changer. Bottom line: it’s a weak signal, drowned out by the stuff that really counts.

What Should You Do Instead?

You’re not here to waste time on overhyped tricks. You want more calls from local customers. Focus on these instead:

Fix Up Your Google Business Profile: Make sure your address, phone, and hours are right. Add a few good photos (no geotagging needed, Google knows where you are). This is your online storefront so keep it sharp.
Ask for Reviews: A handful of 5-star reviews from real customers beats 1,000 geotagged photos. Text your last happy client and ask. Takes five minutes, works like magic. Better yet, sign up for ReviewStream and we’ll do it for you!
Post About Your Work: Share a quick pic or story about a job on your Google profile or a basic website. Say, “Fixed a leaky faucet in [Your Town] today!” That tells Google and customers where you are, no fancy tags required.

These take less time than geotagging and get you way more bang for your buck.

The Verdict: Skip the Geotagging Hype

Next time someone tells you geotagging’s the secret to crushing it online, smile and nod, then get back to work. It’s not a scam, just a distraction. You’ve got pipes to unclog, wires to fix, or lawns to mow. Leave the photo-tagging to the influencers and focus on what brings real customers through the door.

How Long SHOULD Things Take? Setting Realistic Timelines

Last Updated: March 17, 2025

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In today’s digital world, everyone expects instant results. But when it comes to SEO, backlinks, and Local Service Ads (LSAs), things don’t work that way. Many business owners assume that once they launch a website or add a backlink, they’ll see immediate results on Google. In reality, even a Google Ads campaign (arguably the quickest thing to turn on and off) won’t be at peak performance for at least a month or two.

Let’s break it down so you can understand why things take time and what to expect when working on your online presence.

The Search Engine Road Atlas

A great way to think about Google is to compare it to an old-school road atlas. Back in the day, if a new road was built, it wouldn’t appear in printed atlases until the next edition was published, maybe a year later. Google works in a similar way.

When you search for something on Google, you’re NOT searching the live internet. You’re searching Google’s database of known webpages. If Google hasn’t discovered your new site or backlink yet, it won’t show up in the search results.

Here’s how the process works:

Google’s bots (also called crawlers or spiders) find your website. This could take days or weeks, depending on how often your site is updated and linked to.
Google processes and categorizes the data. Your website isn’t immediately visible in search results. It goes through indexing, testing, and ranking processes first.
Google updates its search results. Only after this entire process is complete will your site or backlink start appearing in search results.

If everything happens quickly, you might see your site or backlink appear in a week or two. But if you’re on the slower end of the cycle, it could take two to four weeks or more before anything changes in the search results.

Backlink Delays: Double the Wait

Backlinks (links from other websites to yours) are an important part of SEO. But even after you add a backlink, it doesn’t mean Google will recognize it immediately. There are two reasons for this:

The site hosting your backlink needs to approve and publish it. If you add your business to an online directory, for example, you may have to wait for their team to review and accept your listing.
Google then has to find and process the backlink. Just like with a new website, Google’s bots need to crawl and index that backlink before it has any impact on your rankings.

This means you could be waiting weeks or even months before a new backlink actually helps your SEO.

Local Service Ads (LSAs): No, They Won’t Go Live Today

Some marketing agencies promise they can get your Local Service Ads (LSAs) live in just a few hours. This is completely false.

LSAs require:

Business verification: You must submit business licenses and insurance documents.
Employee background checks: If your employees enter customers’ homes, they must pass background screenings before your ad is approved.

This process takes days or weeks, not hours. If someone tells you otherwise, they’re either misinformed or lying.

Recent Changes to Google Timelines

If you think SEO and online marketing delays are frustrating now, 2025 has made things even worse.

Google Business Profile (GBP) Appeals Are Taking Longer

If your GBP gets suspended and you appeal it, expect delays.
Many responses from Google seem AI-generated and unhelpful.
Even with aggressive follow-ups, some appeals are taking months to resolve.

Google Business Profile Reviews Are Also Delayed

If your reviews disappear from your GBP, getting them back is now a long, uphill battle.
We’ve seen cases where it took months of back-and-forth with Google just to restore lost reviews.
If your GBP is suspended, your reviews may be stuck in limbo for an extended period.

Bottom Line: Be Patient and Plan Ahead

SEO, backlinks, LSAs, and Google Business Profiles all take time. If you expect instant results, you’ll only end up frustrated. The best approach is to:

Plan for delays. Expect at least a few weeks for most online changes to take effect.
Work with knowledgeable experts. They can help navigate these roadblocks efficiently.
Don’t believe “instant” SEO promises. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

While it’s frustrating to wait, understanding these timeline myths can help you set realistic expectations and avoid unnecessary stress.

Are GBP Heatmaps (AKA Local Search Grids) Helpful Tools or Shiny Distractions?

Last Updated: February 17, 2025

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When it comes to marketing your small business online, there’s no shortage of fancy tools promising to give you an edge. One of the more recent ones making the rounds is the Local Search Grid (or GBP Heatmaps), a tool designed to show how your Google Business Profile (GBP) ranks across different points on a map. Sounds useful, right?

Well… not really. At least, not for most small businesses. This falls into the category of “data for the sake of data” in my opinion.

**Who Actually Benefits from These Heatmap Tools?**

These tools were built primarily for multi-location brick-and-mortar stores that rely on walk-in traffic. Think chain restaurants, retail stores, dental offices, or gyms. These businesses need to see how far their visibility extends and where they might need to improve. For them, expanding to neighboring territories is about getting rankings from the next block over, not the town that’s 10 miles away.

If you’re running a single-location service-area business (SAB) like a plumbing, electrical, or roofing company, these tools will be a shiny toy that will lead to very little actionable data. Why? Because your business doesn’t rely on people coming to you—you go to them.

Why SABs and Single-Location Businesses Don’t Need This Tool

Minimal Time Savings

While it might seem like this tool would save you a whole bunch of time, it likely won’t. In fact, it might be a net drain on your time because you’ll spend hours playing with it, trying to gain some key insight that just isn’t there. It’s largely going to confirm what you already know.

You Already Know Where Your Customers Come From
If you’re a service-based business, you don’t need a fancy map to tell you where your jobs are coming from. You can just check your invoices. If you haven’t gotten a job in a certain area in a while, that’s your answer, no heatmap required.

If You Have a Storefront, Checking Your Rankings Is Easy
For most single-location businesses, you probably care about how you rank in 3-5 key areas. Guess what? You can figure that out in under 5 minutes by doing a few Google searches. Better yet, delegate it to an employee. Paying for a tool to do this is like buying a $100 calculator to solve 2×2.

The One Possible Exception: Hyper-Dense Metro Areas

There might be a small benefit if you’re in a super densely populated city like New York, where neighborhoods are essentially micro-markets. In that case, knowing how you rank in one neighborhood versus another could be useful, since getting from, say, Hell’s Kitchen to SoHo for a service call can be a hassle.

However, even then, most people aren’t searching for “Plumber in Hell’s Kitchen” or “Appliance Repair SoHo.” They’re searching for broad terms like “Plumber NYC” or using a borough name like Brooklyn or the Bronx. So while there’s a possible use case in these situations, it’s still a maybe.

Better Ways to Spend Your Time & Money

Instead of chasing a shiny tool that doesn’t move the needle, focus on the basics that actually impact your local rankings:

Optimizing Your Website (better UX, internal links, location pages, refined copy)
Fully Optimizing Your GBP (photos, categories, business info)
Getting More Reviews (yes, reviews matter a lot)
Building Backlinks (local citations, partnerships, and industry directories)
Investing in PPC or Local Directories (better ROI than a heatmap tool)

If you’re running a business with multiple locations (like a regional chain or a franchise) these tools can make sense. They help track performance across different areas and locations, giving you a way to optimize at scale.

But for 95% of small businesses? It’s just not worth it.

Final Thoughts: Don’t Chase Data for the Sake of Data

Local Search Grid tools aren’t a scam, they’re just built for a different kind of business than yours. If you’re a small business with a single location, they won’t give you any insights you couldn’t figure out on your own in a few minutes.

So before you spend money on another marketing tool, ask yourself: Is this actually going to help my business, or is it just a distraction? Because in most cases, it’s just not worth it.

Prospect Genius