You will be able to zoom in to areas of personal interest on Google maps, and you will be able to recognize name brand companies by their logo. These logos will appear directly over the exact map location of the business address. These color icons will appear beside the already appearing icons but these will be unique in color and will be clickable. Both large and small businesses can claim their listings and update their business information. However, only businesses with multiple locations and brand recognition will be able to include a logo.

This will allow users to look over a neighborhood and immediately recognize major shopping centers, grocery stores or big brand businesses without actually looking for that business. Somebody moving into a neighborhood can immediately check the distances to their favorite locations without spending hours searching for them one by one.

Currently advertisers will pay to have their logos appear on the map, but this feature is only available in limited beta to companies in the U.S. that have multiple locations and recognized brand. Look for Google to expand these features in the future.

I haven’t made up my mind yet on the whole QR Code launch. QR Codes are used throughout the world in places like Europe, Japan, and Australia. Potentially, QR Codes could be the biggest thing that ever was launched for businesses globally. You are going to see QR Code Stickers in windows not only in the US but around the world.

The goal is for people walking down the boardwalk in their local town to be able to scan the QR Code in their local coffee shop and immediately get all available information that is in their Google places account. Reviews, Comments, Coupons and store info would immediately by available.

They are hoping that just by scanning a picture in a window that you will go ahead and walk into the Local Business.

Google is slowly begun sending a QR Code Decal to some 190,000 local businesses across the United States. Google is determining the highest traffic and most clicked Local Place pages for the initial rollout, following with a Full Release. The main reason for the QR Code is so that local businesses can display a unique QR Code on their place page so that people can scan the image with their smart phone and find detailed information about the company.

The store owner can also place the QR Code on their Brick and Mortar Store front so that a customer can scan the printed image and immediately get reviews, comments, coupons and etc for that business. This would combine all the information that can be found in Google places from a mobile phone at the store location.

This raises an important question – “Why would somebody want to know directions, address, phone number, reviews and etc if they are standing outside a business?”

This is a very interesting approach given that fact that this would be a massive undertaking. It is one of the largest QR Based campaigns to ever be launched in the US. QR Codes have become hugely popular in other parts of the world, but have yet to be accepted in the US.

Because of the massive scale of this new marketing campaign, the learning curve with using the QR-codes, and the lack of smart phones that are capable of using this system, it will be interesting to see if Google is able to pull this off.

Right now only the Iphone and Android based phones are capable of using this system.

Google will be needing to provide some extreme tech support and education programs to inform all of the local businesses. However, if anybody can bring the QR Code system live in the US, it would be Google.

Below you will find some helpful tips that will guarantee a successful listing.

1. Claim your profile.
Make sure that you log into  Google Places, Bing Local and Yahoo Local and verify your local business listings.  This will require either a phone or mail verification of your address.

2. Enter as much information on your business as possible
The local sites listing services like to provide their users with as much information about your business as possible.   By uploading pictures and linking into Youtube videos will give your listing the extra push to help your listing succeed.

3. Citations.

This is not the type of citation that you get from your local police officer.  These citations are “testimonies” from other websites.  When other websites have reviews or information on your business, Google will locate these listings and if they are of value they will be included in your Local Business Listings.  This provides and excellent SEO advantage.  Localeze, infoUSA, YellowPages, Yelp and etc are great examples.

4. Reviews.
The more reviews that you have with your listings will provide for a better experience for your visitors.  They can quickly see how other clients have viewed your business.  This also will help your SEO listings

5. Bad reviews won’t kill you.
If you do happen to get a bad review, the best way to deal with it is to make sure that your good reviews out way the bad.  If it is extremely terrible, you will have to bury it with good reviews.

6. Add local phone number.
IMPORTANT:  Make sure the phone number that you use for your local listing is the same area code of the town that your business is listed.  An 800# will hurt your listing.

7. Mailing Address
Your mailing address should be visible on each page of your website.  The footer is a great place to include this information.  On your Company Info page include your entire Address and contact information.

8. Keyword Research

Ask yourself the question: “How would I search for my business if I was looking for your service?”

Think about the different ways people approach your services.  Plumber – Plumbing – Plumbers – Local Plumber – Cleveland Plumber and etc.

Always think like your potential clients.

Local search is a unique system.  Your SEO strategies will have to be tailored for the Google Local algorithm.  You can take steps that will guarantee a position in the 7 pack if you do the proper SEO.  For more information please email me at david@indianapolisseotraining.com.

Google Local Optimization

1. Claiming and completing your Business Listing
2. Proper Categories for Your Business
3. Include keyword in Business Title
4. Location of business to center of city
5. Keywords in business description.

Now that you know what my top 5 things are for Google local optimization, let me explain the best ways to do this.

• Claiming and your local business listing

You would think that this one would automatically be completed, but there are a massive amount of businesses that have not claimed their local listing.  The biggest problem with this is for the potential competitor to claim the listing for their own.  Secondly, Google will not respect a listing as accurate if it is not claimed and your business information entered.

If you are in a competitive market, you will never see a non-claimed listing as #1 in Local Search.

• Proper Categories for Your Business

Google requires that the first category of your business be one that they suggest.  So you will have to pick from their list. i.e. plumber, dentist, auto mechanic and etc.

The next four categories need to be your Geo-targeted keywords.  i.e. Greenwood Plumber, Greenwood Hair Salon and etc.  Make sure that you have 4 unique keywords that your potential clients are searching.

• Include keywords in the Business Name

This one is actually “against” the Google Terms, but is still showing that it will increase rankings if you do so.  Instead of Katie’s Hair Salon, it would be Katie’s Hair Salon of Orlando.

• Location of Business to City Center

Over the last 6-12 months we have seen a decrease of importance in this main area.  However, the less competitive the market the more important this one can be.  The closest one to the city center can usually outrank the competition if the same amount of Optimization is for each Google Local listing.

• Keywords in the Business Description

When you are detailing all that your business is doing for your neighborhood, make sure that you include your town and city name that you are targeting.  This is a very quick way to optimize your listing.  Make sure that it is readable, and not keyword stuffing.  This is also a way to include more than one town for your listing.  If you service more than one town, include their names in your business description.  You will sometime be listed in more than one town because of this.

Hopefully this gives you a good foundation to build your Google Local Listing.  If you have any questions please email me at david@indianapolisseotraining.com.   We provide both Google Local Optimization services and Training for your business on how YOU can continue to optimize your Google Listing.

Call us Immediately For DETAILS.  Each Market is unique and there never is a one size fits all.  We will optimize your package specifically for what you need, no more no less.

Call: 317.42.MYSEO (317.426.9736)

Packages Begin at $197 – CALL NOW

The easiest way to tell Google that you have an image that you want to be listed would have been a Google Sitemap.

However, Google said that they do not accept images in a Google Sitemap…

UNTIL TODAY.

Google Webmasters Central Blog just announced that you CAN use a Sitemaps extension to provide Google with your image information.

Here is an example from Google:

<?xml version=”1.0″ encoding=”UTF-8″?>
<urlset xmlns=”http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9″
xmlns:image=”http://www.google.com/schemas/sitemap-image/1.1″>
<url>
<loc>http://example.com/sample.html</loc>
<image:image>
<image:loc>http://example.com/image.jpg</image:loc>
</image:image>
</url>
</urlset>

For more detailed information