Google Places
Google Now Requesting Business Documentation for Places Verification
April 30, 2012 | 
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On April 23rd, Vanessa, the Community Manager for Google, confirmed that Google may in fact request a scanned copy of your business license for some businesses when conducting a Google Places verification. This new process seems to be a verification measure Google may use in the near future for businesses with which they have deemed “unclear” or may not have enough information on. Advice Interactive does not presently have an example from our clients and can only “speculate” what happens if you don’t supply your scanned copy of your business license. Our Google Places optimization experts think this is yet another move from the Big G to try and get rid of the spammers since this comes right on the heels of the Google Penguin release. Advice fully supports this move and think it’s a nice shift to provide another level of certainty to the users of Search that a business is truly legit.
Google Over Optimization Penalty – Crisis Averted
I’m not sure if you know this but Google implemented an update to their algorithm today, starting around 11 am CST.
Stop Spam
This is the change that Matt Cutts from Google warned us all about. This new change will penalize sites that “over optimize”, use unnatural link building tactics and those who buy links. Now, normally when Google updates their algorithm, we hold our breath and watch the SERPs for our clients hoping that we don’t lose any ground as a result of the updates. I’m not saying we are nervous at all about our national & local SEO tactics for our clients. I’m just saying that Google’s intentions are not always clear.
Today was a bit more hair-raising than most Google updates. Today, during the updates, our own site dropped from our #1/#2 spot for our favorite keyword terms to Page 12 and bounced around the SERPS all day. I’m saying we went from the top of page 1 to the middle of page 12 and everywhere in between before the day was done…that’s terrible for an Internet marketing company! Just yesterday, we told a potential client not to even consider a SEO company that doesn’t show up at the top of the search results for their local area and keywords, and here we were a day later completely off the map. Not only were we hurt, but the update affected a few of our clients’ ratings, as well.
As you might imagine, we were not about to stand for this! We have always prided ourselves on our own refusal to even consider SEO tactics that are not in the spirit of Google Best Practices. We knew that this momentary drop in the rankings would be very short term and, after working all day to find a way back to our normal position of prominence, we, and our clients who were affected by the change, were back at the top of page 1 and stronger than ever.
The moral of this story is that Advice Interactive Group, while just as vulnerable to Google’s whims as everyone else, is dedicated to getting searchers the best results they can get. Whether they need a local plumber, an attorney, gutters for their home or the best SEO Company to represent their business online, we know we’re doing it right for our clients and for Google.
Google Places SERP Showing Different Results – New Changes?
Late on April 16th and continuing on today, Google Places is showing a new display format on the SERP (search engine result page) for Places searches solely across all niches of businesses.
Here is a screenshot of how the Places SERP looked just yesterday.
You will notice at the bottom, you can see more than 1 page to the SERP.
Today, that same search returns this SERP.
If you scroll down to the bottom you will see NO other organic rankings that lead to page 2 and 3 and so on. It looks as though they have just vanished into thin air.
We do not currently know if it’s a bug or a new design. Personally, I think it’s just an error but time will tell.
If you are not staying on top of what’s happening with Google Places and your business listings, let Dallas SEO firm, Advice Interactive Group, manage your Places page and your local visibility.
Google Places Questions Answered In Hangout
Google Hangout Gives Advice
Insider Track Direct From Google Hangout
On April 4th 2012, leaders of Advice Interactive Group joined the main Google Places Team, at a Google Hangout streamed LIVE from Google headquarters. Joining us from Google were Joel Headley and Vanessa Scheider via real time live video discussion.
The discussion allowed us to ask Google direct questions about Google, Google Places, and the Google Places search strategy that was very informative. Being able to join these types of sessions keeps us at Advice ahead of the game and you ahead of the competition.
Even though there were dozens of lessons to be learned, some “Insider Information” we took away from this Hangout is as follows:
- We believe that Google’s contractors or phone call check up staff is using Google’s own Google Earth product to view the type of area where you have your business address. If the address looks like it’s in a residential location, the recommendation is to hide the address. No questions.
- We believe that Google+ Profile Pages and Google+ for Business Pages are becoming a very authoritative social signal to Google, especially if you have you have multiple business locations.
Here is an example of our Advice Interactive Google+ Page.
What do you need to do?
- Look up your Google Places listing. This is exactly what the Google representative sees when they look at your address. Go to Google Maps and enter your address, then zoom in to the place marker. Here is a quick tutorial on Google Maps (tell people to mute sound if possible) . As you can see, this random example shows you how a business location can look to any user that uses Google Maps or Google Earth to find a particular business.
Search engines are all about connecting their user to the most relevant search results. As the Google Places algorithm evolves, it seems as though search engines are shifting to rely more on “social signals” rather than “backlinking signals.” Recently Google de-indexed 100,000,000 million private blog networks that were known for poor content and were part of a paid linking “scheme.” The point is social aspects help build quality Places rankings.
We recently posted a blog on how Google+ Page posts are showing ranking on Page 1. If you do not already have an optimized Google+ for Business Page, you need one now. Here is a link to create your own Google+ Business Page or we can do it for you.
We know that Google is trying to tie in all their products into 1 hub and we firmly believe that in order to truly capture the “new” type of local rankings, each business needs to have a Google+ Profile Page and a Google+ Business Page. The profile page is for the owner and +Business Page is for the business brand.
Also, Google suggested the types of images you upload to your Google Places page be actual pictures of your business location, inside and out. Even though it does not seem to have any ranking reward, it was mentioned on the Google Hangout by Google representatives. If your Places page ever passes through the filter and draws a flag, when a Google rep does the actual “spot check” and sees your actual business photos, you are more than likely going to pass the test and will not risk having your listing removed. It was also suggested you have actual business photos posted to one of their photo tagging sites, like Panoramio, as this reinforces the importance of “social signals.”
We at Advice Interactive believe in going the extra mile – especially when the internal product is part of the bigger picture. Everyone knows Google has the lion share of searches and if they give us “signals” on how to prove your relevancy and legitimacy in a user search, we should comply.
Posted in Google Places, Google Plus, Search Engine Optimization, SEO, Social Media | 
Tags: google hangout, Google Places, google+, google+ business pages, page 1 rank, seo, serp | 
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Important Google Places Announcement for Clients and Resellers
Attention: All Clients and Resellers!
On March 22nd Google updated their guidelines for Google Places:
In short, the guidelines now state, “If you do not receive customers at your physical location, you must select the “Do not show my business address on my Maps listing” option within your Google Places dashboard. If you do not hide your address, your Google Places listing may be removed from Google Maps.”
It is essential that your business adhere to these guidelines, as Google reserves the right to suspend access to Google Places and or all Google Products for businesses that violate these terms. Hiding your address in Google Places only hides it from the public. Google will still show your Places page in the appropriate search results and hiding the address will not affect your placement. The recent Venice update (January 26) reduced the impact on rankings for businesses that hide their address. Venice improves the triggering of local universal results by relying more on the ranking of your main organic search results. The organic results “signal” Google Places to bring about the most realistic and appropriate rankings.
PLEASE TAKE NOTE: Google has a team of telephone operators calling businesses and asking for their address and whether they take customers at their address. THIS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT! Be sure that your employees and/or call center personnel understand that they may receive a call and the caller will ONLY ask for their address.
Our Recommendation:
- Be honest when Google calls
- If you rent a shared office, be sure they know that. If you have multiple businesses at your address, be sure you are both talking about the same business.
- If you have multiple addresses for your business, be sure you tell them and find out which location they are calling about. With multiple locations, you have no idea which Google Places page they are trying to verify. The wrong address might cause them to de-list a page at a different address. This is especially difficult when you have tracking numbers that all lead to one, central call center. You MUST confirm which number the caller dialed, so you can give them the proper address. Otherwise, you may lose a listing for your satellite office.
Finally, it is extremely important that you follow these guidelines to the letter. You have worked very hard to reach the search ranking you currently enjoy, and it would be a travesty to lose your position due to a miscommunication.
If you are paying for us to manage your Google Places, you do not need to change anything in your account. Our team will make the appropriate changes for you. If you are managing yours or your clients Google Places yourself or your business has another SEO firm managing this for you, please take the appropriate action.
As always we are standing by to help.
Bernadette Coleman
Managing Director & CEO
Advice Interactive Group
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San Antonio TX Plumbing and Refrigeration Service Launches New Website from Dallas SEO Firm
San Antonio TX plumber, Guarantee Plumbing & A/C, has teamed with Dallas SEO firm Advice Interactive Group to improve their online presence and better serve the San Antonio and metro areas with plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration services. A recent San Antonio plumbing press release states:
Guarantee Plumbing & A/C in San Antonio specialize in new plumbing installation and repair, heating inspection and repair, drain cleaning, geothermal heat pumps, handicap pluming and remodeling, and industrial freezers for commercial properties. The San Antonio heating company employs experienced plumbing and heating technicians and takes pride in customer retention and satisfaction.
Guarantee Plumbing & A/C specializes in commercial refrigeration installation and repair. The highly trained technicians work on everything from smaller refrigerator units to refrigerated warehouse facilities. Some of the services include equipment maintenance, ice machine repair, compressor service, and cooling tower repair.
The new website from the Dallas Internet marketing company features online service request forms, push-to-talk calling, discount plumbing coupons and social media. Please visit the new Guarantee Plumbing & A/C website for additional information. For search engine optimization, web design, and local search tools, call Advice Interactive Group at 214-310-1356 for advice. Or visit localsearchtool.org to check out the new website grader to see how you’re doing online.
Posted in Google Places, Internet Marketing, Local Search Tools, Press Release, Search Engine Optimization | Tags: dallas seo firm, dallas web design, google maps, google places ranking, internet marketing, local business directory, local search tool, san antonio plumbing & heating, social media | No Comments »
San Antonio TX Courier Launches New Website from Dallas SEO Firm
San Antonio TX courier, Dependable Express, has teamed with Dallas SEO firm Advice Interactive Group to improve their online presence and better serve the San Antonio and metro areas with a complete range of delivery and shredding services. A recent courier press release states:
Dependable Express in specializes in San Antonio courier and secure shredding service. Dependable Express provides delivery of legal documents, medical supplies, and process and court filing service among others. The San Antonio shredding service includes certified personal document shredding, commercial, and monthly routine shredding.
The superior logistics and cutting edge technology used by Dependable Express to offer the most advanced courier service in the industry is second only to the San Antonio TX delivery services’ commitment to outstanding customer service and professionalism. Drivers at Dependable Express must go through extensive training including HIPAA, hazmat, specimen spill, blood-born pathogen, and patient sensitivity training; prepared for any type of delivery.
The new website from the Dallas Internet marketing company features online quote generator, account creator, online push-to-talk calling, an online blog, social media platforms and a new aesthetic design. Please visit the new Dependable Express website for additional information. For search engine optimization, web design, and local search tools, call Advice Interactive Group at 214-310-1356 for advice. Or visit localsearchtool.org to check out the new website grader to see how you’re doing online.
Rank Locally on Google with Search Engine Optimization
Full service Search Engine Marketing (SEM) for Page 1 ranking in Google should involve four main areas of focus and optimization. A client should have a fully fleshed out Google Places listing, citations, off-site search engine optimization (SEO), and on-site SEO. The diagram to the right explains in simple form what Advice Interactive Group will do to ensure Page 1 rank in Google.
Google Places Page
Your Google Places listing should contain accurate Name Address Phone (NAP). If you have more than one office location, a main location should be determined and registered with Google Places. Fill out all of the listing and do not leave anything undisclosed. Choose your categories, add photos, videos, and make sure there are no duplicate listings.
Citations
The volume of citations you have across the Internet are important to how Google’s search engine algorithm views your authority in your industry. The more of an authority on a subject Google thinks you are, the higher your site and content will appear in the search engine results page (SERP). Citations of videos, photos, national directories, local business directories, press releases and other things will strengthen your authority because a number of mentions on different platforms and media signal that you are such.
Off-Site SEO, Backlinks, Social Media
Backlinks (people linking to your site content) are important to search engines because if people are linking to your information then logic says you are an authority. Saturating the web with articles, press releases, blog posts and comments, as well as other social media efforts will also increase presence through new and fresh content.
On-Site SEO
There are a number of ways for your company website to be optimized that involves behind the scenes work regarding content. Among them are anchor text links on keyword links from inside content pages. Even images should have keyword anchor text. A professional search engine optimization company will be able to do proper keyword research for your industry and your targeted locations so that your site will rank in Google.
Contact Advice Interactive Group at 214-310-1365 for more information on how to rank on Page 1 in Google and other search engines like Yahoo! and Bing by checking out the Local Search Tool on the home page. The local SEO firm has a solution for you and your company. Not just advice, but solutions.