Category: Google+ Local

Google seems to be either testing or rotating in more aggressive of the Knowledge Panel on mobile to garner reviews and additional location details. I am awaiting Jeremy Stoppleman’s forthcoming hue and cry. Last week over the cours of the day I saw these three Knowledge Panel presentations for the same location. (These have probably … Continue reading Google Testing More Aggressive Review & Content Calls to Action on Mobile Knowledge Panel →

Google is in the process of updating the Google My Business and My Business List (bulk) interfaces to create greater consistency of the user experience. Several weeks ago they launch a new navigation experience and today they are updating the Info Panel. My sense is that there is more to come. (h/t to Joy Hawkins and … Continue reading Google Continues Unifying Google My Business & Bulk Interfaces →

Google announced the inclusion of expert opinions and top 10 list data into local search results. For now its appearing on restaurants but I assume that it can and will show more widely as Google figures out how to assign these sorts of results to other entities. These results are currently on mobile browsers and … Continue reading Google Now Inserting Critic Reviews & Top 10 Lists into Mobile Local Search Results →

There have been an increasing number of reports (H/T Michael Wallace) of a horizontal Local One Box showing at the top of the search results as opposed to the side. There have been sporadic reports of the search results being shown as cards. Rasmus Himmelstrup, an SEO Analyst at Resolution Media, sent along an example of … Continue reading Google Testing Horizontal Local One Box + Card Format for Serps →

Frank Motola of Brandastic shared with me another recent example of Google’s test of a horizontal Local One Box that sits prominently at the top of the serps rather than to the side. This test has been reported for several weeks although I have not yet seen it in the wild. It would be one more … Continue reading Google Continues Test of Horizontal Local One Box →

The business description that Google has been asking businesses to create forever and that has not been seen anyplace for about half that long has finally been removed from Google MyBusiness. (Thanks to Dan Leibson of Local SEO Guide for pointing this out). It is soon to be “replaced” with “attributes” that offer more granular characteristics … Continue reading Comatose Google My Business Description Moved from Hospital to Long Term Care on Path to Burial & Replacement with Attributes →

The Houston lawyer who decided that he needed to show a reviewer that they “need to learn the consequences of their actions,”  for a bad review must not have gotten the message that suing customers over online reviews is a terrible idea. The act is usually dumb* and the consequences almost always counter to the interests of the … Continue reading Dumb & Dumber: Houston Lawyer Sues Over Review →

Local U Advanced is a great event; its collegial, casual, intimate and provides leading edge local marketing information. When you add New Orleans to that equation and the fact that it will be on Friday so you can spend the weekend in New Orleans it becomes even that much better. The agenda for the event … Continue reading Local U Advanced New Orleans – October 21st – Pre Agenda Tickets Now on Sale →

I am a big supporter of free speech. I am though always a little suspicious when the likes of Yelp is its protector. Yelp is “actively defending” reviewers right to free speech with a new wave of consumer alerts placed on business listings. Yelp nukes by their own admission 25% of all reviews. Thus it would seem … Continue reading Yelp Promotes Free Speech But Only for Active Yelpers →

For the past several weeks Google seemed to have had its heart set on screwing up Knowledge Panel and Local Finder Business Photo display. That apparently was in anticpation of a new, more attracitve display of both images and interior views that is slowly rolling out. Spotted by Segey Alakov, a Toronto SEO, the new … Continue reading Google Rolling Out New Business Listing Image Display Carousel →

Kiran C Kumar spotted this option to verify a business listing via email when the GMB account is using the domain email. It is not clear if it is just a test or more widespread or if it also requires that the domain have a Search Console account. It is not yet mentioned in the … Continue reading Google MyBusiness Adding Email Verification? →

First reported several days ago by 9 to 5 Google and highlighted again by Local SEO Brian Barwig on Twitter, Google is now showing average times spent at different businesses. It can report either a specific time or a range of times and only appears to be showing on businesses that have a lot of traffic. … Continue reading Google Mobile Knowledge Panels Now Showing Time “People Typically Spend” →

At GetFiveStars I have just published:    Yelp Implements Active Cleanup Alerts When a Business Hits the News – Tituss Burgess Vs Frank’s Express   (h/t to Local SEO Gerry Foster) Yelp has started implementing active monitoring of businesses that become the target of political reviews due to having their story go viral. While I think that … Continue reading Yelp Implements Active Cleanup Alerts →

Google has yet to make any announcements vis a vis providing business photos to the Knowledge Panel via Image Search rather than from the GMB and Google Maps. Whether the change is permanent or “just a test” we do not know. It is very widespread though and appears to be the new normal. Google’s new … Continue reading 5 Reasons Why the New Google Business Photos Image Search Sucks →

Google, never particularly transparent about how to get the photos that you want to show in your Knowledge Panel, seems to be throwing another curve ball to local businesses (h/t to Lance Moore at Uptick marketing in Birmingham and Destin). While the image that you chose as a profile photo might show, now when you … Continue reading New Google Knowledge Panel Business Photo Shenanigans →

Google Local Inventory Ads have been around for several years. They have traditionally appeared as ad units delivered in response to product searches. Nicolai Helling, a senior consultant at UDG United Digital Group, points out a new format, perhaps in testing, that embeds the inventory search function directly into the Knowledge Panel and Map listing … Continue reading Google Showing New Local Inventory Ad Entry Points →

Updated 11:21 Note the 404’s issues were mine Updated: 11:30 It does work on Android Google has added a new help page Create a link for customers to write reviews which explains in detail how to use the Google Maps API to generate a URL that can be used to solicit reviews. The page is … Continue reading New Google Help Page – To Create a Link for Customers to Write Reviews →

Local Guides will be able to have photos that they are taking of local businesses “automagically matched” and added to the business listings from their Google Photos collection. The feature, first released on Android but soon available on iOS, only requires you to “turn on the back up and location features in Google Photos to have your photos of places appear in the Contribute tab of … Continue reading Google Releases Brilliant (& Creepy) New Feature to Crowd Source Business Photos →

I have been involved in local search marketing and local seo for much of the last 16 years. I love local seo and would never declare it dead. It has lots of life. But it has never been harder, once you have nailed the basics, to get an appropriate ROI.  The many changes at Google … Continue reading Local Search Ain’t What It Used to Be… →