Category: Google+ Local

It’s been six months since the worldwide introduction of Google Websites, their free, single page web builder for Google My Business listings. Google has confirmed that the total number of websites created has surpassed 1 million some time in early November. The number of sites created is impressive and should give pause to companies that are … Continue reading Google Websites’ Uptake Accelerates as they Pass 1.1 Million Total →

Today Google has announced on their blog that the Google Assistant will now start helping you find local service providers. In the U.S., this feature will start rolling out over the coming week, so help is just around the corner. In many cities the Google Assistant will suggest providers that have been prescreened by Google … Continue reading Google Assistant Now Recommending Local Services – Particularly Their Own →

Google Q & A, periodically visible on the desktop, seems to be finally rolling out full force to both PCs and Macs. Earlier in the week, after the feature had largely gone missing even on mobile.  Danny Sullivan (now of Google) noted that it was but a temporary bug. It would seem that it was … Continue reading Google Q & A Rolling out to the Desktop →

Long asked for but not yet made public, a number of large Adwords resellers and IYPS seemingly now have the ability to auto-verify local listings via an API. I have spoken with a number of European and North American resellers that claim to have the functionality.  Although I have not yet seen it, its existence … Continue reading Google Testing Verification Whitelisting via API with Large Resellers & IYPs →

Google Q & A has been one of the most problematic recent introductions because the questions can so readily impact the reputation of a business. And even more problematic because there is not active notification of the business owner that a new question or answer exists and these questions are not yet visible on the … Continue reading Google Alerting Business Owners to Recent Questions in the New Search Dashboard on Mobile →

In one of a long line of recent (and approaching spammy) GMB related emails, Google has started sending out emails educating owners of verified businesses that they can now “Meet your new dashboard on Google Search” When clicking the email call to action it takes the user to interact with the new(ish) mini dashboard visible … Continue reading Google “Hustling” the Business Dashboard in Search →

LocalU Advanced is rapidly approaching. Its only a few weeks away and the seats are filling. It should be a great event with incredible speakers and sponsors. Speakers include Joy Hawkins, Darren Shaw, Joel Headley (ex Googler), Marissa Nordahl (Google) and myself amongst many others. We have 14 speakers overall. Sponsors include ZipSprout, Moz Local, … Continue reading LocalU Advanced Santa Monica Advance Pricing Ends Soon →

It’s beem a while since I have posted to the Google Spam Hall of Shame. It’s not that there is any less of it or that it is less obvious, its just that I have been busy on other projects. But I couldn’t resist this example of systemic name abuse occurring in the jewelry business … Continue reading Google Spam Hall of Shame →

Google has announced the release of V 4.0 of the Google My Business API. While there are a number of new  features, the most notable is the ability for 3rd Party platforms to now post Google Posts on for the businesses using the platform. The API currently supports posting for any business with fewer than 10 … Continue reading Google Releases My Business API V 4.0 With Ability to Add Posts →

It’s been a blast building GetFiveStars. One of the things that I love the most is the support I get for projects like this new ebook. As you probably know while I think its important to “optimize your review process” I think it’s even more important for you to “optimize your business”. Every process, not … Continue reading Ebook: Build a Better Business Using Customer Complaints →

Bedlam Coffee hit the news with a media frenzy over the owner ejecting Christian activists from his coffee shop. (To preview their Q & A on the desktop use this URL:  https://goo.gl/dkwi6h). With this event we have learned three things about Google Q & A: 1- It’s a $h!tstorm when a business gets into the … Continue reading Bedlam Breaks Out in Google Q & A →

From a management point of view, one of the more annoying attributes of the new Google Questions & Answers product is that it is only live on Android via Google Maps and  in mobile browsers on iOS and Android. There is a hack to allow you to see and respond to this feature via your … Continue reading Hack: Seeing Google Questions & Answers on the Desktop →

Earlier this week, Jack Thumser of August Ash in Bloomington, emailed me about an significant in Google Maps view uptick in a number of their Google  local listings. Michael Wallace of TallWave noted the same issue on Twitter today. Jack’s result were across Office furniture stores, grocery stores/grocery delivery service and a sheet metal fabricator The … Continue reading Google Local: What Happened on August 1st to Increase Views in Insights? →

Here are some of my other writings, videos etc around the web: Something Amazing Happened On The Way To A Google Review – Google’s Question and Answers is a scary thing but when you have a great business and are asking your customers from reviews, good things can happen. Video: Last Week in Local September … Continue reading Mike B Around The Web →

Local U Advanced is my favorite conference of the year. Not that I speak, or even that I contribute to the organization but because it’s a time and place where folks that are really interested in Local SEO and Local Marketing get together. And not just get together in a spirit of collegiality and sharing. … Continue reading LocaU Advanced Santa Monica →

Google provided me a comprehensive list of cities and the categories that are currently under the Home Service Ads & Advanced Verification banners in those cities. This program is hard enough to keep track of with it’s many changes and the recent increase in rollout that I thought the list would help you understand more about … Continue reading Which Cities & Cateogries Currently Have Google Home Service Ads & Advanced Verification →

The ability post video to a business listing or place listing was mentioned last week and appears to be released. H/T to Phillip Barnhart, Director of Marketing at Nehmedia in Austin, for pointing it out. For now the video can only be uploaded by Local Guides using Android Maps but the videos will be visible from … Continue reading Upload Video to Google Maps Listings – New Google Local Feature →

Here are other articles that I wrote this week that might be of interest: Google As the New Home Page – One Big Tactical Guide – This one had to percolate a long time and while I was writing Google kept changing the rules. Take a look and let me know what you think. Video … Continue reading Mike B Around the Web →

The top contributors met with Google and we were educated as to the changes that are taking place in both the Advanced Verification programs and the Home Service Ads program. Both are evolving from the model rolled out in San Diego which required all local listings to be advanced verified. One big change is that … Continue reading Google Advanced Verification & Home Services Ads – An Update →

Google Local’s Q & A feature is now rolling out to mobile browsers on the iPhone and Android. On the iPhone the feature is visible on both Safari and Chrome. Sergey Alekov, an SEO specialist in Toronto, was first to notice the products increased visibility. When Questions & Answers was released for local Knowledge Panels earlier … Continue reading Google Local Questions & Answers Rolling Out to Mobile Browsers →