This is a talk I did for the Texas Self Storage Association discussing trends in online marketing for local businesses.
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Local Online Marketing - Key Strategies to Drive Revenue
1. Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.1
Strategies for Dominating
Local Online Marketing
Mike Merrill
Director of Marketing
@MikeDMerrill
#ThinkLocal
2. Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.2
Agenda for today
Local Online
Marketing in 2013
Challenges and Opportunities
Break
MapYour Way to
Local Customers
Key Steps to Dominate Local Search
9:15 – 10:15
10:15 – 10:45
10:45 – 11:45
3. Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.3
Assessment How to evaluate your current marketing
Behavior How purchasing behavior has changed
Trends How the marketplace is changing
Evolution How do I improve my online marketing
What You Will Learn Today
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• Poor search optimization
• Unclaimed directories
• Hidden contact info
• Bad online reputation
• Poor phone handling
• Inadequate follow-up
• Difficulty to transact
SEM
Other
Problems To Solve: Causes of Lost Leads
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Need for broader web presence
Searching For a Local Business Has Changed
compared online
reviews & ratings
of consumers
searched online97%
57%
Directories
Search
Engines
Your
Site
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Your website is one way to be found, but you need a total web
presence where consumers are searching, surfing and socializing.
You Need To Be Where The Consumer Is!
Blogs
Reviews
& Reco’s
Social
Content Sites
Location-
based
Services
Search
Engines
Your
Site
Directories
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Local Marketing Fail
Small businesses are failing at some
core tactics of local marketing:
45%
are not doing
geo-modified
paid search
40%
are not
managing local
business listings
34%
are not doing
online directory
ads
55%
are not on local
online review
sites
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Search is Local
Search engines are the #1 source
of online information on local businesses for
local consumers.
By 2015, 30% of all searches will be
local, compared with 12% in 2009
Source: MarketingProfs
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• 39% of consumers
may choose not to
purchase a product or
service if they read three
negative reviews about it
online
• 49% of local
consumers are more likely
to use a business after
reading a positive review
online
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Google+ Local Pages
• Account for 33% of visits
to local business websites
• 59% of consumers use Google
every month, and to locate a
good local business (31% every
week)
• Google Listings + Organic
Search account for
58% of visits to local business
websites
Places are Local – Google+
Source: BrightLocal
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Mobile is Driving Tangible Conversions
Source: BIA/Kelsey
Continued Research
Visited a Retailer’s
Website
Shared Information Visited a Store Made a Purchase Called a Business
Source: BIA/Kelsey
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The Evolution of Local
Offline Directories
Online Local
Commerce
100 Years Now Next
Online Directories
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We will leverage our leadership in lead gen to make getting customers
easier.
The Buying Process is Broken
CONSUMER MERCHANT
Who’s good?
How much?
When can
they come?
Will they be
on time?
What if something
goes wrong?
Who to call?
Manage keywords
Setup sites & content
Get & monitor reviews
Advertise & market
Respond quickly & well
Follow-up with leads
Schedule & manage
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It's Inevitable
$812 Billion 18%
$4+ Trillion 5%
LocalServicesTravelRetail
TAM % Online Penetration
Sources: US Travel Association Jan 2013; http://www.brainsins.com/us/blog/online-travel-statistics-infographic/
1745; US Census Quarterly E-Commerce Sales Study, 2012 Q3; IBISWorld Inc.; and, a company estimate with
regard to online penetration of local service revenues.
$1+ Trillion <1%
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Two Ways This Will Unfold
Consumer Brands Merchant Software
ReachCommerce
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Search Engine
Advertising
SEO and Local
Directories
Social Media
and Content
Mobile
Reputation
Management
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Search is Local – Paid Search
Localize Your Search
Engine Advertising
• Quickly generate leads
- Phone calls
- Emails
- Web forms
• Keywords
- Geo-located search
(city/state)
- Direct local keyword
• Leverage ad extensions
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Search is Local – Organic Search
Create a Localized
Content & Keyword
Strategy
• Owned and non-owned
• Local/regional blogs
• Bylined articles in local
publications
• Local versions of SEO-
optimized press releases
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Search is Local – Social Media Signals
Create a Localized Social
Media Strategy
• Coordinate posts with local
content strategy
• Use same keyword strategy
for social posts
• Create a solid social media
policy & training
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Places are Local
Claim & Optimize Google+ Local Pages
• Google Places is now Google+ Local
- Google+ Business Page (Social)
- Google+ Local Page (Listing + Maps)
• Claim Your Listing If
- You have not previously claimed it
- You want to merge a business page and a listing
• For Multi-location Businesses
- Google does not support merging multiple pages to
one business page
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The Web Presence Lifecycle
Business creates
quality content
Consumers
comment, like,
review and share
Consumers discover while
searching, surfing and socializing
Content
published and
indexed across
the Web
Business listens
and engages 1
2
3
4
5
Thanks for your
comments.
What’s worked
for you?
Great
advice!
I’m going
to try this!
Me too!
Business action
Housebreaking
Your Dog
PUBLISH
Housebreaking
Your Dog
Consumer action
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Benefits of Web Presence
Business
Creates
Content
Content
Published &
Indexed
Consumers
Discover
Consumers
Comment &
Share
Business
Listens &
Engages
Social Discovery
Reputation Management
Search Discovery
Brand Engagement
Increases your word-of-mouth through
sharing across social networks
Improves your reputation with positive
content on search engines and review sites
Increases your discoverability on search
engines and local directories
DiscoveryPerception
Builds positive impressions and engagement
with your brand by bringing it to life online
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Understanding PageRank
SOCIAL AUTHORITYREPUTATIONCONTENT & LINKS
+
Inbound Links
+
Social
Pages
+
Fans, Followers
& Likes
Prominent Organic Rank
Site & Blog Reviews
+
=
Social Bookmarks
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Publish Content Regularly
Daily:
• Tweet 1-2 times
Weekly:
• Publish blog content across social outposts 1-2 times
• Post to Facebook 1-2 times
Monthly:
• Post 1-2 videos to YouTube per month
• Create a unique and compelling offer to share
with fans and followers
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Improve SEO with Video
A Good Video
Speaks Volumes
• Promotional videos
• Customer testimonials
• Meet the manager/owner
*Unruly
377% Increase in Social Video Shares in Q412
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Mobile is Local – Maps
Claim Mobile Maps &
Location-Based Services
• Google+ Local / Google
Maps
• Foursquare page
• Facebook Page (mobile
check-ins)
Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.44
45. Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.45
Create a Mobile-Optimized Site
• Compare mobile
conversion rates to those
of browser traffic
• Develop mobile landing
pages for localized sites
and advertising
Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.45
46. Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.46
Mobile Optimized Sites
Not optimized Optimized
Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.46
47. Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.47
Mobile Search Engine Advertising
• According to Nielsen,
Google search reaches
71.9% of the Android
smartphone audience
• 80% of all searches
conducted via smartphone
are for local products and
services (MarketingProfs)
Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.47
48. Copyright 2013, ReachLocal, Inc.48
Driving Mobile Conversions via Adwords
Content should contain actionable information to align with
mobile user intent
Calls Store Traffic Web Traffic
Click-to-Call Location Extension Sitelinks
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Benchmark Directories & Review Sites#2
Outcome: Understanding of online reputation on specific sites
Generic Sites Storage
Specific Sites
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Respond & Address Any Issues#3
Important
to respond
publicly
Check
emotions
Take issue
offline to
resolve
Recognize
opportunity
to improve
practice
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Outcome: Public response to online reviews demonstrates willingness to listen
Sample Response
“We apologize that you had a negative experience at our firm. We are always
striving to improve in every area.We would greatly appreciate the chance to speak
with you directly about your experience. Please give us a call at 555-555-1212 so
that we may discuss and address your experience further.Thank you very much,
and we look forward to speaking with you soon.”
#3 Respond and Address Any Issues
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Outcome: Awareness of new reputation issues
Setup up Systematic Monitoring#4
Monitor
• Setup Google and Yahoo alerts
• Send to your email daily
• Consider SERP monitoring tools
such as Raven and WordTracker
google.com/alerts
alerts.yahoo.com
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Claim & Optimize
Directories & Review Sites
• Google citations
• Correct mistakes and false information
• Ensure business name, address, phone # all identical
• Optimize with unit sizes, photos, promotions, etc.
#5
Outcome: Optimized SEO ranking for business name and category
Social Media Sites
• Business profiles
• Optimize with location
• Pleasing images
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Generate More Reviews
Post Survey
#6
Do’s
Don’ts
Encourage reviews
from your location
Pay for
reviews
Outcome: Better reputation with a variety of reviews across numerous top sites
Follow-up email
within 24 hours z
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Publish Content
Content Drives
SEO
• Share positive reviews
• Publish to your website
• Start a blog
• Leverage SEO best practices
#7
Outcome: Longer term online reputation improvement
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Next Steps
1
Assess
your Web Presence.
Are you reaching
consumers in all the
key places along
their buying journey?
2
Execute
a systematic Web
Presence strategy
• Advertising
• Content & social
media marketing
• Website &
Conversion tools
3
Measure
web traffic,
reputation, social
growth and of course
leads and revenue.
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Local / Geo Targeted Keywords
self storage plano tx"
storage units plano"
public storage plano"
Plano storage"
Plano self storage"
Plano public storage"
Plano storage units"
self storage plano "
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Keyword Considerations
1. The higher the competiveness the harder it will be
to rank
2. The higher the monthly searches the more likely
you will get traffic
One strategy could be to pick medium competition
keywords with highest traffic.
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10 Tips to Optimize a Blog post for Search:
1. Define 1 Target Keyword
2. Ensure Target Keyword is In Headline – Earlier the better
3. Include Keyword 2-3 Times in 1st Paragraph
4. Include Keyword Once In Each Remaining Paragraphs
5. Add a Hyperlink in Every Post to Existing Post
6. Rename Image Files to Target Keyword
7. Ideally 300+ Words per Post
8. Use Alt-Text Keywords in Every Hyperlink
9. Include a Minimum of 1 Outbound Link With Keywords in Alt-Text
10. Modify Meta Title and Meta Description
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8 Ways to Drive Visibility (SEO) for a Blog
1. Feature your blog on the front
page of your website
2. Cross post to social media
outlets
• Twitter, Facebook, Google +,
LinkedIn
• Ask employees to share
3. Add social sharing icons to
blog template
• WordPress plugins
4. Submit to Blog Directories
• Technorati.com, alltop.com, or
industry blog directories
5. Email blog posts
– Add feature for people to
subscribe directly to posts
• Feedburner
– Feature blog posts in email
newsletters
6. Submit to Social Bookmarking
Sites: (As time allows)
– StumbleUpon, Digg and Reddit
– Pinterest if original images
included
7. Guest blogging
– Trade blog posts on similar blogs
8. Comment on other blogs
– Follow via Google RSS Reader
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• Create compelling headlines
• Optimize it for search and
social discovery
• Share photos
• Share positive reviews from
happy customers
• Ask questions and publish
polls
• Reblog industry news and
local events
Stat: 58% of Facebook users want exclusive
content,discounts and promotions
eMarketer 10/7/11
Create & Optimize Content
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• Respond to consumers to drive
engagement and loyalty
• Personalize the brand through
conversational tone
• Identify and engage with
influencers in your local
community
• Share and comment on
content from other local
businesses and organizations
Directly Engage with Consumers
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• Sign up for comprehensive
monitoring tools and listen
for reviews and relevant
keyword mentions
• Promote positive reviews
• Respond to and address
negative reviews
Listen For Opportunities to Engage
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Information Sources
Winning the Zero Moment of Truth
Jim Lecinski, Google
http://www.zeromomentoftruth.com
Branding in the Digital Age: You’re Spending your Money in All the Wrong Places
David Edelman, Harvard Business Review
http://hbr.org/2010/12/branding-in-the-digital-age-youre-spending-your-money-in-all-the-wrong-places/ar/1
The Fall of the Purchase Funnel
Dr. Bob Deutsch, Brand Strategy Insider
http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2010/02/the-fall-of-the-purchase-funnel.html
The Consumer Decision Journey
David Court, McKinsey & Company
https://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Marketing/Strategy/The_consumer_decision_journey_2373#
http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/spContent/charts/code09/CDJ-Base.swf
http://www.mckinsey.com/Client_Service/Marketing_and_sales/Latest_thinking/CDJ/Winning_the_consumer_decision_journey.aspx
How Ready is Your Organization for the New Social Buyer Persona
Tony Zambito, Social Media Today
http://socialmediatoday.com/tonyzambito/285267/how-ready-your-organization-new-social-buyer-persona
The Purchase Funnel is No More
Robin Grant, We Are Social
http://wearesocial.net/blog/2009/06/purchase-funnel/