The 3 Keys To Appearing In The Google Local Pack
Google’s local algorithm has always been based on 3 factors:
- Relevance
- Prominence
- Proximity
Whilst this may seem fairly self-explanatory, without ticking these three boxes, your business is unlikely to appear in these highly sought after slots. What do they actually mean though?
1. Relevance
To satisfy the first criteria, your business has to offer products or services which are closely linked to the terms that the person making the search is looking for. As simple as that.
2. Proximity
To satisfy the second criteria, your business needs to be located within the proximity of the person making the search. Again, as simple as that.
3. Prominence
To satisfy the third criteria, the prominence of your business will play a crucial role. Do you have other local listings (citations)? Are you gathering reviews? Do other customer experiences point towards new customers receiving a positive experience with you? If the answer to these questions is yes, they will all help to improve your prominence and therefore your chances of appearing in the local pack.
How Can We Help?
Setting up or claiming an existing listing is just the start of the process. We will make sure that you squeeze every last drop of potential from your listing.
We will do this by completing the following steps:
- Making sure that all of the information listed on your account is accurate, relevant and verified.
- Add images to your listing
- Make sure there are no duplicate listings which could prove harmful in the future.
- Submit a number of citations which will help to confirm your listing’s details in Google’s eyes.
- We would actively seek to encourage customer reviews. For example, if you have an e-mail database for current and past customers, we will contact them on your behalf with links to your listing and a guide for the best and quickest way to leave a review.
- Keep your listing up to date.
The benefits of having your business listed on Google Local include:
- Google Maps listings typically appear at the top of the search results pages. Therefore they are very likely to be the first thing that people see.
- Accessing Google Maps listings on a mobile phone or smart device will offer customers an easy way to either call your business or get directions to your location.
- The easy access to the impartial ratings left by current and previous customers can go a long way towards giving new customers confidence in your products and services.
- Potential customers visiting your listing are very likely to be local to your business, therefore giving you a definite advantage over businesses based further afield.
The above information is designed to offer a guide towards maximising the exposure and potential of your Google Maps listing. There are also additional factors which must be taken into consideration. If you would like Footprint Web Design to help optimise your Google Maps listing, simply give us a call today on Tel. No. +44(0)1883 372488.
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Stepping Up Your Website Security
With online security being more important than ever before, the addition of an HTTPS (HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure) certificate to a website will help to secure the connection to the website for your visitors.
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) is an internet communication protocol that protects the integrity and confidentiality of data between the user’s computer and the site. Users expect a secure and private online experience when using a website. We encourage you to adopt HTTPS in order to protect your users’ connections to your website, regardless of the content on the site.
Browsers nearly always provide an indication of whether the website you are browsing is secure or not. Just take a look at the address bar in the browser to see what we mean. Is the lock in the top left-hand corner locked or unlocked? Does it say secure or not secure? The answer to these questions will tell you whether an HTTPS certificate is in place.
Taking A Closer Look
Data sent using HTTPS is secured via Transport Layer Security protocol (TLS), which provides three key layers of protection:
- Encryption—encrypting the exchanged data to keep it secure from eavesdroppers. That means that while the user is browsing a website, nobody can “listen” to their conversations, track their activities across multiple pages, or steal their information.
- Data integrity—data cannot be modified or corrupted during transfer, intentionally or otherwise, without being detected.
- Authentication—proves that your users communicate with the intended website. It protects against man-in-the-middle attacks and builds user trust, which translates into other business benefits.
How Does It Help Though?
Everyone has the right to visit a legal website without worrying about what will happen to their details should a transaction take place.
Google has identified a number of reasons why the switch to HTTPS is beneficial for web users and webmasters alike. These include the fact that data sent using HTTPS is secured via Transport Layer Security protocol (TLS), which provides three key layers of protection:
- Encryption. Encrypting the exchanged data to keep it secure from eavesdroppers. That means that while the user is browsing a website, nobody can “listen” to their conversations, track their activities across multiple pages or steal their information.
- Data integrity. Data cannot be modified or corrupted during transfer, intentionally or otherwise, without being detected.
- Authentication. Proves that your users communicate with the intended website. It protects against man-in-the-middle attacks and builds user trust, which translates into other business benefits.
Are There Any SEO Benefits?
Previously, Google announced that HTTPS would be added to their ranking algorithm. Whilst very unlikely to be the difference between a page 10 ranking and a page 1 ranking, building trust with customers is a key part of any SEO campaign and therefore should definitely be considered.
With the majority of browsers making it clear if a website is ‘not secure’, without the inclusion of an HTTPS for your website, you are running the risk of scaring away visitors.
Contact Us
Would like to find out more about making the switch to an HTTPS connection by adding an SSL certificate to your website? Give the Footprint Web Design team a call on Tel. No. 01883 372488 today.
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The Pros and Cons of Online Reviews
Recent history has seen the popularity and impact of online reviews increase significantly. Whether business owners like it or not, potential customers often use the reviews of a service or product as a key tool in their decision-making process.
Whether people are looking for a restaurant for an evening meal, a hotel for their holiday, a plumber to fix a broken pipe or anything in between, online reviews have quickly become an integral part of promoting your business online.
There are of course two sides to everything and to provide you with a full picture of the pros and cons of online reviews, we have drawn up a list of potential positive and negative impacts.
The Positive Impact of Online Reviews
Positive reviews can result in:
- Increased conversion rates (customers spending more money!!)
- Creating increased trust with your clients
- Free advertising (great reviews on external sites can be key in drawing in new customers)
- Improved results on search engines (regular reviews are strongly believed to play a role in ranking algorithms)
- Increased feedback (the ability to leave reviews can be key in opening lines of communication with your customers)
The Negative Impact of Reviews on Businesses
On the flip side, receiving negative reviews can result in:
- An impact on the perceived reputation of your business
- Damage to trust levels (Too many negative reviews or no reviews at all can impact the trustworthiness of a business)
- Increased costs (some 3rd party review sites will charge to use their services)
- Reviews being left which may not be accurate (3rd party review sites offer complete freedom on the reviews that can be left)
- Without a drip-feed of reviews, old reviews can seem out of date
Please Note – It is essential to remember that regardless of the platform, you will always have the option to reply to any review. Positive or negative, responses are strongly encouraged. However, taking the high ground in response to a negative review is also strongly encouraged!
If you would like more information relating to online reviews and how they can impact your business, please contact Footprint Web Design today.
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