newsletter – Page 5

Why Googling Yourself Won’t Tell You What You Need to Know

Last Updated: February 15, 2024

Finding out how you rank on Google should be pretty simple, right? It feels like a quick search for your business name is all you’d need to do. Unfortunately, Google makes this way more complicated than it has to be.
Although it’s perfectly logical for you to assume you can check your ranking just by googling yourself, that’s not the reality.

Keep reading to find out how googling your own company name doesn’t actually give you a clear picture of your site’s performance. We’ll also give you some tips on what you should look at, instead. So read on!

Google Personalizes Your Search Results

Why? Well, it all boils down to Google’s search algorithm.

You’ve probably heard about this elusive “algorithm” many times before—maybe even right here on this blog. The algorithm is a tool Google uses to provide each individual user with a personalized experience. In other words, it’s designed to provide you with the search results it believes you want to see. Often, this means you and your friends, relatives, and coworkers could all get different results for the same search terms.

How does Google customize your search experience? It does so by factoring in things like:

Your browser’s search history
Your search terms
Your browser’s IP address (i.e. your physical location)
Whether you’re logged into your Google account (thus sharing even more personal data)

So, right off the bat, you can see how a quick Google search won’t give you a clear, objective picture of what your ranking looks like.

But that’s not the only bad thing about googling yourself…

Clicks Skew Results

The practice of frequently googling your company name can actually become harmful to your business over time.

This is because Google also keeps track of what you click. (The purpose of this is so Google can learn your habits and deliver results it thinks you want to see.) So, if you continually search for your company name and don’t click on the results, Google will assume you don’t like those results, and it will eventually stop showing them to you.

The reverse is true, also: If you search for your company name and always click on your website in the results, you’re bound to see it appear in a higher position every time.

In other words, whether you click or don’t click, you’re driving your company’s placement up or down in your own individualized search results. This gives you a skewed perception of how your site is actually performing for other people.

Does Ranking Even Matter, Anyway?

It may seem like you’re stuck in a losing battle, but here’s the good news: Your website’s ranking doesn’t even matter!

[record scratch]

You read that correctly. Although it may seem reasonable to expect your ranking to be a solid indicator of how well your website is doing, there are many other data points that can tell you this with greater accuracy.

After all, your placement in search results is only relevant to a very narrow, specific set of conditions, as we outlined above. So, instead, you should be focusing on other metrics like:

Your overall website traffic
Website traffic trends (i.e. whether your visitor numbers are going up or down)
Sales funnels (i.e. the series of steps leading a potential customer to your site and then to take further action, like filling out a contact form or calling you directly)
Conversion rates (i.e. how many sales you’re making as compared to how many people are visiting your site)

Check out Google Analytics for all this info. It’s a free tool, so don’t hesitate!

Focus on Your Site Visitors

In simpler terms, you should be focusing on your website visitors, instead: Look at how they’re getting to your site and where they’re coming from. (After all, they could be coming from word of mouth, social media, local business directories, etc.)

Then, look at whether you’re doing a good job of turning those visitors into paying customers. These are the factors that actually have an impact on your bottom line.

Ranking is more or less irrelevant.

Why You Aren't Ranking in Search Results for That One Service

Last Updated: February 15, 2024

You feel like you have a kick-ass website with tons of great content. You’ve been promoting your business on local directories, too. You’re getting plenty of calls and leads for some of your services, yet there’s a noticeable lack of leads for one service in particular. For example, you own a landscaping company and you’re getting lots of calls for lawn mowing but no calls for tree removal–even though you’d much prefer to book tree removal jobs.
Needless to say, this is most likely caused by the fact that you’re not ranking in search results for tree removal. But why aren’t you ranking for that service? And, more importantly, how can you fix it?
There are two possible explanations for why you aren’t ranking for a given service:

You don’t have a dedicated page on your website for this particular service; or
You aren’t using the right keywords

Keep reading to hear more about these ranking issues and how to fix them!

Do You Have a Webpage Specifically for This Service?

The most common reason you aren’t appearing in search results for “X” service is simple: You don’t have a page for it on your website.
Google will only rank you for services you explicitly advertise or offer—meaning, it will only rank you for services you have dedicated content for. This is simply because Google isn’t a fortuneteller. It won’t know you offer a specific service unless you emphasize it on your site. Therefore, the ideal solution is to go through your website and make sure there’s a page for every service you offer.

Google Can’t Predict Which Services You Offer

Sometimes we think Google is smarter than it really is. Sure, when it comes to keywords, Google is good at detecting natural language and synonyms–but only when there are slight variations between words and phrases. That’s why each page can–and should–have a variety of closely related keywords.
For example, let’s say your landscaping company offers tree removal services. Google won’t automatically place you in results for tree removal searches unless you have a specific page titled, “Tree Removal.” Why? Because, linguistically, “tree removal” is different enough from “landscaping” or “lawn care” that Google won’t automatically put them together. So, if you want to get leads and book jobs for tree removal services, then you need to make sure there is content on your website dedicated to talking about this service. This is the only way your business will rank on Google for tree removal.
Appliance repair services are another great example of Google’s limitations. You can’t assume Google will rank you in searches for “refrigerator repair,” “dryer repair,” or “dishwasher repair” just because your website mentions “appliance repair” a bunch. Rather, you must write content aimed at each service specifically, including keywords closely related to these specific units.
How to fix it:
So, what’s the takeaway here? Go through your website and make sure you have a separate page for every single service you want calls for. (Or, at the very least, make sure you have a substantial amount of content dedicated to each service so Google can detect those keywords.)

Are You Using the Most Appropriate Keywords?

The other issue we see often is that you’re not using the most fitting or popular keywords for your services. This happens most commonly when there’s a certain regional slang or phrase at play.
Here’s a prime, real-life example we saw with one of our clients recently:
We were working with a towing company and testing out different keywords for their services. We were having difficulty getting this company to rank for “tow truck” in their geographic area, so our client asked us to include “wrecker” as a keyword for that service. They were right!
As it turns out, “wrecker” is a popular term for a tow truck in this client’s locale. Although Google’s natural language index didn’t consider it a synonym for “tow truck,” enough people were searching for the word “wrecker” in the context of tow trucks that this keyword wound up driving a lot of traffic for our client’s service.
How to fix it:
The takeaway here is to think about the words and phrases your local customers use most often. At the end of the day, you know your customers best! Then, make sure these overlooked keywords are included in your copy so you can capture as many keyword variations as possible.
Of course, Prospect Genius is always here to help, too! We can give you a free consultation over the phone and look into what services you rank for as compared to what services you want to rank for. Give us a call or fill out the form below!

How to Stop Amazon Echo From Leaving Your Business in the Dust

Last Updated: February 15, 2024

Did you get an Amazon Echo or Google Home as a gift during the holidays? Statistically speaking, you or someone you know probably has one of these smart speakers.
A January 2018 report from NPR and Edison Research shows 39 million Americans now own smart speaker devices like Amazon Echo and Google Home. This equates to about 1 in 6 Americans and is a 128% increase from January 2017. Furthermore, according to sales numbers, there are actually about 45 million smart speakers installed in the U.S.—which make sense, considering 20% of Echo users and 13% of Google Home users own multiple devices.

Why You Need to Care About Smart Speakers

Why should you care about these sales numbers? It’s simple: These numbers prove that a major, undeniable change is underway. This change will certainly impact your business, whether you’re ready for it or not.
You probably haven’t given much thought, if any, to the idea that Amazon Echo and Google Home could affect your business in any way. At first glance, it seems absurd.
However, as smart speakers and voice assistance continue to gain prominence, they’re going to have a tremendous influence on how people engage with technology, the internet, and search engines.
These are things you absolutely must care about and pay attention to if you have any hope of thriving in 2018 and beyond. Keep reading to find out why!

The Connection Between Smart Speakers and Voice Search

First, let’s take a look at how smart speakers and voice search relate to the larger online world.
As more and more people use their smart speakers to get basic information (“Hey, Alexa. What’s the weather forecast for today?”), the act of voice search is becoming more familiar, even habitual, for many users.
This has major implications for how we’ll interact with our technology in the very near future. In fact, as TechCrunch notes, our comfort with smart speakers is already starting to affect how we use other devices, too:

The adoption of the device for in-home voice assistance had a trickle-down effect as well, as 44 percent found they started using the voice assistance on their phone more since getting a smart speaker.

In other words, due to the popularity of smart speakers, voice assistance and voice search on smartphones are seeing an increase in usage, as well.
And, as we’ve covered in previous blog posts, the rise in voice searches has led to significant changes in search engine algorithms.

READ: “Do You Know What Siri and Voice Searches Mean for Your Website?”

How Voice Search Directly Affects Your Business

So, to recap: Smart speakers like Amazon Echo clearly contribute to the growth of voice search. In turn, the growth of voice search leads to changes in how search engines work… But how does any of this relate to your business?
It boils down to the impact voice search has had on search engines. People use their normal speech patterns when they ask questions to their smart speakers and phones. Of course, their natural speech is much different from robotically typed search terms. Therefore, Google and other search engines have adjusted their algorithms to better detect natural language. This way, they can deliver more relevant and accurate results to voice search users.

READ: “How Voice Search Is Changing the Way You Need to Write”

As a result, all website content must follow suit. Your site must be optimized for voice search by containing more natural language (while still hitting important keywords, of course). If your website doesn’t satisfy this need for natural language, then Google will be less likely to pick it up during routine searches. It’s as simple as that.

Get Ahead of This Sweeping Change Now!

Smart speakers are only the latest advancement in the larger trend of voice search and voice assistance. If you don’t embrace the impending voice search revolution and adapt accordingly, you’ll be left behind in the dust.
Don’t let your website become an artifact of the past. Update and improve your content now before it’s too late!

How You Can Save Money by Referring a Friend

Last Updated: February 15, 2024

Honestly, who doesn’t love a good discount? We sure do!
If you, too, are a fan of saving some dough, then you’ll be happy to hear about our client referral program: When you’re a Prospect Genius client and you refer a friend to us, you can actually receive a generous credit on your bill. Talk about a win-win, right?
Keep reading to see how the referral discount could work for you!

How Our Referral Program Works

Do you have a friend who owns a small, local business and could use some help with online promotion? Maybe they need a new website, or maybe they want to put themselves out there on social media for the first time.
We offer a wide variety of online marketing services that we can customize to meet virtually any local company’s needs. So, if you introduce them to us, chances are we’ll be able to create an optimal solution to help amplify their web visibility. Then, if we’re a good match for your friend and they sign up for one of our services, you’ll get a $50 credit on your next bill.

How to Get Your Discount

Here’s what the client referral process looks like:

First, to be eligible for the discount, your friend must make a minimum purchase of $200.
Once your friend’s initial payment processes successfully, you will see the one-time $50 credit on your next bill.
You will receive one credit for each referral you send to us.
However, there’s no limit to how many referrals you can receive credit for!

So, for example, you would be eligible for your referral discount if your friend purchased any of the following services from us:

CoreSite
Directory Dominator
SocialStart
2+ pages of website content
Custom logo design
Remarketing campaign
A few hours of custom website work

And the possibilities don’t stop there! Any of our smaller products and services can be bundled together to meet the $200 minimum, as well.
One thing you can always trust, though, is that our online marketing team will never pressure you or your friend to make an unnecessary purchase. If it won’t help you achieve your business goals, we won’t sell it to you. Period.

Help Us Spread Success!

Referring a friend to PG is a true win-win: Your friend gets some much-needed help promoting their business online, while you save a nice little chunk of change on your next bill.
So, if you’ve enjoyed your time partnering with PG and we’ve helped you successfully grow your online presence, tell your friends! At the end of the day, we want to see as many local businesses thriving as possible. There’s room for everyone at the table!

Top 3 Online Marketing Changes You Need to Know in 2018

Last Updated: February 15, 2024

New year, new internet?
Well, the internet’s changes may not be quite that dramatic. However, as we always say at the beginning of a new year, it’s smart to look ahead and see what you need to watch out for. The surest way to succeed is to prepare, after all.
From far-reaching Google updates to online behavioral trends, 2018 will see some major shifts that business owners will want to be aware of. While Prospect Genius doesn’t have a crystal ball and can’t make any guarantees, we’re pretty confident in our predictions for online marketing changes you can expect in the coming months.
So, ready to dive in? Read on for our list of the top three online marketing changes coming in 2018!

1. Google Launches Its Own Lead Generator for Local Services

Google has launched its own version of pay-per-lead directories like HomeAdvisor, Thumbtack, and Angie’s List. It’s called Local Services.
When a service provider signs up for Local Services, their listing is displayed at the top of search results pages. A user clicks on the service provider’s name, and they see a profile page complete with contact details, customer reviews, and other pertinent details. Then, when a user decides to call or message the service provider, the service provider is charged for the lead. If you’ve ever used a platform like Thumbtack or HomeAdvisor, then you can probably visualize how Local Services works.
But how do budgeting and ranking work on Local Services? According to Ginny Marvin’s article on Search Engine Land:

Advertisers set a weekly budget determined by the number of leads they want to receive. Google won’t say specifically what factors go into the rankings in the ad unit, but [Product Director for Small and Medium Business Ads Kim Spalding] said there’s a focus on quality (ratings and reviews), the ability to connect right away, location and a number of other factors.

Currently, there are 17 confirmed cities with access to Local Services. Google announced plans to expand that number to 30 by 2018. The current 17 cities are:

Atlanta
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Detroit
Los Angeles
Miami
New York
Philadelphia
Phoenix
Riverside, CA
Sacramento
San Diego
San Francisco
San Jose
Seattle
Washington, D.C.

And the service categories that have access to Local Services right now are:

Locksmiths
Plumbers
Electricians
HVAC
Garage door services
Handyman services
House cleaning services

Why you need to know about Local Services:

If you’re in any one of these service categories, your competitors might take advantage of Local Services and get more visibility on Google’s search results pages. Moreover, pay-per-lead services like Thumbtack and HomeAdvisor are about to take a huge hit as Local Services siphons off their user bases. Therefore, if you rely heavily on one of these services for the majority of your leads, you’ll need to diversify your marketing approach. Focusing on Facebook and SEO will be crucial.

2. Google’s Mobile-First Index Means Mobile Optimization Is a MUST

True, we’ve been saying “mobile optimization is a must” for years now. However, that’s because it’s been true for years, and the urgency just got a lot more real.
You see, Google has been slowly working on what it calls a “mobile-first index,” wherein Google ranks webpages based on the mobile version of their content, even when searches are performed on desktops. As Barry Schwartz, a renowned web consultant, explains, this is due to the majority of searches happening on mobile devices these days:

As more and more searches happen on mobile, Google wants its index and results to represent the majority of their users — who are mobile searchers.

Furthermore, Google won’t add pages to the index until its mobile and desktop versions are a 100% match in terms of content, links, schema, etc.

Why you need to know about Google’s mobile-first index:

This all means you not only need a mobile version of your website, but you need one that doesn’t lose any of your site’s content or usability. While the roll-out of the mobile-first index is expected to go “very slowly,” you’re better off optimizing your mobile site sooner than later. After all, Google is known to implement sweeping updates seemingly overnight, so Google’s idea of “very slowly” could mean anything. Your best bet is to make your mobile site a major focal point in 2018.

3. Live Chat and IM Will Be Everywhere (Thanks to Millennials)

You might have already noticed platforms like Facebook and Google My Business placing a larger emphasis on instant messaging. For example, Facebook’s business pages allow “Send Message” as a call-to-action option. In fact, it will even add a badge to your page if you have a fast response rate to messages. You can expect instant messaging and live chats to gain even more prominence in the coming year.
Why? Because this is how millennials prefer to communicate, and millennials are gaining more and more purchasing power. You may still think of millennials as a bunch of young, broke college kids, but the truth is, the oldest of them are actually in their early 30s now. This means they’re established in their careers and starting to own homes.
As they gain more influence as consumers, businesses must adapt to their preferred methods of communication. And, considering they grew up with the immediacy and convenience of email, AOL Instant Messenger, and texting, these are the types of communication methods they prefer.

RELATED: “Why You Must Market to Millennials (And How to Do It)”

Why you need to know about live chat and instant messaging:

Millennials are currently the largest living generation. You can’t neglect or ignore them. Therefore, make it a priority this year to reassess the media you’re using for communication. Have some sort of instant alternative to the phone available for convenience. Whether it’s an active Facebook page that you use for direct messaging or a live chat plug-in on your own website, it will greatly improve your appeal to millennials. Plus—let’s be frank here—millennials aren’t the only ones who appreciate convenience!
Interested in adding a live chat tool on your website? Let us know! Lots of small business owners and service providers enjoy how easy these tools are to use. Prospect Genius can install and implement a live chat plug-in on your site for only a small setup fee (with zero charges after setup).
Our clients may also like to know we’re currently developing texting capabilities via CallTrax™ lines. Stay tuned!
So, be on the lookout for these major online marketing changes coming your way in 2018! If you have any questions or concerns whatsoever, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Happy New Year!

Prospect Genius

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