All types of shenanigans take place in the Reviews Sections of Google business listings, aka, Google Places pages. The example below will likely shock the leadership and management of brands with a local business model.

Google has avoided legal culpability for occurrences of calumny, slander, libel, copyright infringement and trademark abuse in their main search engine results because their application simply indexes and organizes the web pages of others on the world wide web–kind of like a library indexing and organizing the books of unaffiliated authors and publishers.

I mention this because I hear from companies and individuals all the time telling me they are going to sue Google for this or that displayed in Google’s SERP’s (search engine results pages).

In the past, Google has not been held responsible

Over and over, and over again, international courts have held that Google is not responsible for the content of others displayed in their search engine results, Google simply organizes and displays the content of others for reference.

If the owner(s) of a website does not want Google to display their content, they have the option to insert code (no index, no follow tags) into the web pages which will keep them out of Google’s index.

Because the courts have found that Google is not an “active participant” in the creation or publication of the content of other websites, plaintiffs must go directly after the websites hosting the questionable content.

Is Google responsible for the content created by Google users on a Google-published and hosted web page?

While doing research for an upcoming white paper regarding local business reviews, one of my staff members uncovered several alarming patterns taking place in the Reviews Sections of Google business listings.

One of these patterns includes the creation of multiple negative reviews; all featuring the exact same rating and content, all created on the same date, and published on multiple Places pages (different store locations) related to the same brand in a given market.

Let me expound upon this observation with the first screenshot, below:

The highlighted review, DO NOT GO TO MIDAS, was published on April 14th, 2009.  To see all of this user’s reviews, we click on the user name, Shell.  Here is what you will find:

There are nineteen reviews featuring the exact same content, written on the same date, and published on nineteen different Chicagoland Midas locations.

Are we to believe this customer visited nineteen different Midas locations on the same day and had the exact same experience at each location?  Assuming it is a real customer, we know that this happened at only one location and the reviewer has created fraudulent reviews on the other eighteen locations.

Do these actions not libel the Midas International brand and cause injury?  The cost for a company to build a brand is a massive expense—don’t the corporate stakeholders have the right to protect the Midas brand and police defamatory actions on Google-published and hosted web pages?

The expert’s take

I reached out to international digital forensic and internet litigation support expert Michael Roberts of Rexxfield, which is essentially an anonymous internet user bounty hunting firm based in USA, Finland, Malaysia and Australia.

Me: Michael, do the fake reviews I have highlighted damage the Midas brand, legally speaking?

Michael Roberts: Keep in mind that I am not an attorney, and therefore no one should act or refrain from acting on anything I say without first consulting a suitably qualified, and more importantly, experienced lawyer.

Midas is probably a copy book example of a company whose most valuable balance sheet assets are the brands and trademarks. I’m sure they have plenty of bricks and mortar, plant and machinery and other tangible assets, but all of these items can be insured. Whereas, goodwill, trademarks, and brand equity generally cannot be insured although they can be destroyed as thoroughly as a building fire by a relentless brand defamation campaign.

It would stand to reason that such a high-ranking search results, containing so many negative reviews will seriously impact Midas’ ability to obtain new business while retaining existing business customers who might stumble across these reviews. A discerning reader, in most cases, will probably call shenanigans on the basis of this obvious case of rant-spamming.  Unfortunately, the millions of people who believe everything Oprah says, and everything they read on the Internet might not be so forgiving; and their money is as green as the discerning folk. Although impossible to measure, there is no question that this malicious and vindictive individual has already cost Midas sales, and is continuing to affect business and revenues. It would probably be a relatively simple case to positively identify the individual who would then, no doubt, be liable for defamation.

Me: Does Google have any liability here?

Michael Roberts: This question never goes away! I don’t think there are any cases in the USA where Google or any other search engine has been found liable for this type of situation; at least in the legal sense. This is due to the Internet libel subsidy afforded by the U.S. Congress to Internet service providers who republish defamatory material. I call it a subsidy because if we were to transfer the exact circumstances to a different medium, such as a newspaper, then that publication would certainly be liable for defamation. Either way, from an ethical and moral perspective, I would submit that Google could be found to be deficient in its social responsibilities.

“Don’t be evil” is the informal corporate motto of Google.  Legend says that it was originally suggested by Google employees Paul Buchheit and Amit Patel at a meeting.  At face value, Google’s motto is noble.  However, the boldness of such a sweeping philosophical motto, uttered by such an influential global corporate citizen demands a test, and more importantly a verdict in order to determine the disposition of Google’s original intent.  Indeed, history offers some excellent benchmarks for such a test; one such benchmark is mentioned by name in the very law that immunizes Google from legal liability, namely “the Good Samaritan”.

Section 230(C). of the communications decency act (”CDA”) includes the following verbiage:

(c) Protection for “Good Samaritan” blocking and screening of offensive material

1.    Treatment of publisher or speaker
No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.

2.    Civil liability
No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be held liable on account of—

(A) any action voluntarily taken in good faith to restrict access to or availability of material that the provider or user considers to be obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable, whether or not such material is constitutionally protected; or

(B) any action taken to enable or make available to information content providers or others the technical means to restrict access to material described in paragraph (1).

I have a few innovative ideas as to how defamation attorneys could approach this Federal immunity issue; I’m sure that rabid, absolute free speech activists will try and shoot me down in flames, and the ideas I have are, by my own admission, quite grandiose. Notwithstanding, something’s got to give as people are literally committing suicide over this 21st Century pandemic.

It should be pointed out that the U.S. Congress added emphasis to the term “Good Samaritan” by framing the term with “inverted commas”; this is a clear indicator of the Law’s intent, particularly when the term is followed by the words “blocking and screening”.  Congressional intent notwithstanding, Google has two options available with respect to intercessory relief for a victim who requests removal of defamation which is republished by Google, or indexed on their search engine. These two options are:

Google’s first option:

(a)    Specifically provided for in §230(c)2.(A), which in plain English means that Google can remove the offensive materials at their discretion, even if such materials are permitted forms of free speech, without any fear of the author suing Google for interfering with his or her free speech privileges, or;

Google’s other option:

(b)    Specifically § 230(c)2.(B), which in plain English means that Google can  turn a blind eye to the pain, anguish, and injuries being caused to genuine victims of online defamation and leave that material on any Google services such as blogspot, YouTube etc; and more significantly their search index. This provision removes Google’s fear of the victims suing them for defamation as they could otherwise do and prevail, with any other form of mass media.

The tone of my words probably betrays my position on these issues; notwithstanding, my humility filter will not permit me to declare my views to be consistent as you would with consensus, the law, or common decency. This would be best left to each reader to determine for himself or herself. With that caveat out of the way I would respectfully submit the following:

Consensus: My presumption is that the average six-year-old and average discerning adult would apply the common meaning of the words used to outline the United States Congress’ intent for the matters outlined in the CDA.   In doing so consensus would indicate that Google should err on the side of caution and charity when an allegedly defamatory publication is propagated through their services. Ergo, as a corporate Good Samaritan Google should “[take] action voluntarily taken in good faith to restrict access to or availability of [the] [libelous] material [that is causing harm to the individual who is challenging the assertions published by the speaker/author]”

The Law: There are probably now hundreds of lawsuits in which Google and other Internet service providers have been given a get out of jail free card because of the libel subsidy and Congressional immunity afforded by §230(C). As I stated previously, I am not an attorney and I make no excuses for my un-artful layman’s legal assessment; respectful comments and criticisms are welcome. Notwithstanding, a common sense reading of this law led me to the conclusion that many attorneys are not earning their fees. My conclusion hinges on the use of the word “information” in CDA § 230(c)1. There are several definitions of the word but in this context I would submit that the following Webster’s dictionary definition applies:

“The attribute inherent in and communicated by one of two or more alternative sequences or arrangements of something that produce specific effects”

In a nutshell and in the context of § 230(c)1 I believe “information” means a series of alphabetical and numerical characters, which when viewed in their entirety and in the full context of the original author’s work, convey certain meanings, facts and in most instances conclusions. Whereas, when a victim of defamation has a tiny part of the information sampled by the Google search engine and displayed in position three of page one of search engine results for his or her name, no reasonable person would argue that this “Google snippet” is the same information as the original work because it is completely out of context.

Although it would be a tough battle, particularly against Google’s huge war chest and legal team, if I were an attorney for a client who has been demolished by Google’s ambivalence and refusal to remove libelous materials, then I would be arguing that Google is in fact the author and creator of NEW information about the victim and therefore liable for defamation.  Allow me to now bring in to the mix the scenario where a potential customer is searching for a specific vendor, who has been defamed. He or she is presented with numerous alternative vendors in the form of Google AdWords from which Google derives huge revenue streams. I believe that a talented litigation team could argue that this is in fact a “scheme” as defined by Title 18’s RICO racketeering provisions; i.e. Google, enters into a scheme with the victim’s competitor who buys keywords related to the victim’s business; and the two of them enter into a scheme with a third-party website administrator who displays the Google AdWords on the page that defames and injures the victim. In doing so, Google, the competitor, and the web administrator all benefit financially at the expense and burden of the victim of said libel. This is a stretch I know, but I think it is worth arguing nonetheless. And one should not forget that Congress asked for RICO to be liberally construed, while it gave no such admonition in the case of the CDA. Furthermore, an interesting provision in §230 is 230(e).  That part specifically exempts Title 18 (Federal criminal laws) from the restrictions of the rest of §230, including the exemption from liability for third party hosts (re-publishers) of Internet libel.

Furthermore, if Google was ordered to produce all the data (and information) they have collected with respect to user experiences within their search engine portal, I posit that there would be a significant indication that Google Snippets containing defamatory material will often cause users to seek out alternative vendors or consultants as a direct result of the said negative results. I believe that my hypothesis would be validated by the certain fact that Google has received thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of requests from individuals who have been injured by malicious Internet defamation in the billions of Google WebPages and search results. If true, then Google’s obligation and duty of care to individuals in the community grows exponentially. In fact, in some common law jurisdictions this might open up an ancient legal count of “Scienter”; the root being “science” as in knowledge, specifically prior knowledge. Scienter refers to intent or knowledge of wrongdoing. This means that an offending party, in this case Google, has knowledge of the “wrongness” of an act or event prior to committing it. In this case I submit that it is an act of omission on Google’s part as opposed to an act of commission. I.e. doing nothing to ease the emotional, financial, and social anguish of a defamed individual when thousands of similar complaints have been received is intrinsically evil. Scienter could be argued further if my theories on Google’s Humility Algorithm are accurate; in fact, this would take Google from an act of omission to an act of commission, but that is a discussion for another day.

Common Decency: The standard has been set time and time again — the law of charity is written in our hearts and I do not believe that Congress chose Jesus’ analogy of the Good Samaritan by coincidence. Which one of us will walk by if we see somebody lying bleeding in the gutter without helping him or her? Why then should Google not do the same? After all, defamation is considered by the law to be a personal injury. So much so that malicious libel is still a criminal act in 17 US States and most of Europe and Asia, just as it is for a victim of a hit-and-run.

Me: What options does the leadership of Midas have to protect their brand?

Michael Roberts: This is above my pay grade because I am not a brand management expert or search engine optimization practitioner; but common sense would dictate that Midas should at least:

1. Contact Google and point out the obvious shenanigans with respect to these reviews. The obvious first response would be to flag all of the comments as inappropriate. Google has provided for this with a simple link within Google business listings, but I would also follow through with direct contact with their legal compliance team as these postings violate Google’s Terms of Service.
2. Encourage happy customers to post reviews in the Google maps and street view databases;
3. Monitor their brand and trademarks online with tools like Cymfony, Trackur and Google Alerts (google.com/alerts) to watch out for these types of threats;
4. Engage Rexxfield to positively identify their antagonist in the full light of day (tongue in cheek shameless plug). In the past we have been able to obtain temporary restraining orders (“TRO”) compelling antagonists to remove similar postings, and I give kudos to Google for honoring those same orders as if they were specifically named therein, even if the antagonist does not comply.
5. Ask Midas’ general counsel (attorney) to earn their keep and act on this threat.

Me: Thank you, Michael!

Defamatory local business reviews are a rapidly growing issue online.  Interactive business listings that allow visitors to publish reviews in the search engines, interactive directories (like Yelp and Citysearch), and IYP’s (internet yellow pages) affect the reputation and market share of brands with a local business model.

Brands need to embrace local business review management; Monitoring, Taking Action/Responding To, and proactively Generating local business reviews.

Learn more in my industry article on iMedia, “How to protect your brand from bad business reviews.”

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Google is on a mission.  They are replacing the usefulness and popularity of a relic known as the “Yellow Pages.”

The name and concept of “Yellow Pages” came about in 1883, when a printer in Cheyenne, Wyoming, working on a regular telephone directory, ran out of white paper and used yellow paper instead. In 1886 Reuben H. Donnelley created the first official yellow pages directory, inventing an industry.

With Google’s replacement, your fingers are still doing the walking (or your voice can do the talking), but the amount of data you will find for each business listed will be mind-blowing, even for us “internet geeks.”

There are a number of updates coming to the functionality, and indexing of data for each Google business listing, known as Google Places pages.

The most recent is the ability for business owners or representatives to publicly respond to the reviews created on a Google business listing (Place page).

Here is an example:

Read the rest of this entry »

How can we get our Google business listing(s) to rank at the top of Google’s local business results for targeted searches in the city we do business in?

When it comes to optimizing your Google business listing for local search we are really talking about optimizing many of the  elements within your free local business listing, as well as elements we call off-page ranking factors.

The goal is to rank at the top of local business results for your brand ( i.e., Kramer Muffler Shop) and core non-branded keyword sets (i.e., Reno muffler repair, muffler replacement Reno NV, etc.)

Driven by the developments of Google, Local is the fastest growing segment of search marketing.  SMB’s  have taken note and are adopting strategies to connect with targeted customers.

Local search expert David Mihm released his third annual edition of “Local Search Ranking Factors,”  a comprehensive look at the tactics that can help, and in some cases, hurt your rankings in the local business results of Google, Yahoo, and Bing–with an emphasis on Google Places.

The 2010 results feature the responses of 34 prominent bloggers and search marketing practitioners.

This year’s insights and wrap-up:

Local Search Ranking Factors 2010
by Dev Basu

2010 Local Search Ranking Factors Released
by Aaron Weiche

David Mihm’s Annual Local Search Ranking Factor is now Online
by Mike Blumenthal

How Local Search Works in 2010
by Matt McGee

Do you need help with your Google business listings and local search marketing?  Contact me by email or phone at (623) 252-1780 and I will provide you with an easy-to-understand opportunity/obstacles assessment.

Accurate business listings in the search engines, internet yellow pages, and interactive business directories allow customers and important contacts to find you.

Local business listings optimized for targeted keyword sets are an incredible source of free local search traffic.

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CALL OR EMAIL NOW FOR YOUR
FREE REPORT (623) 252-1780

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Last year I wrote how important a Google business listing is to a locksmith company in Texas–85% of their new business emanates from their Google business listing.

Google is the directory of focus, but it is paramount to optimize your listings in several directories.

When it comes to managing your local business listings, you need to focus on three essential components:

1. Is your N-A-P accurate?

If your N-A-P, or Name, Address, and Phone Number are not accurate it will cost you customers and other problems, affecting your bottom line.  When Google sees accurate N-A-P’s for your business in other trusted directories and websites they deem your Google listing to be a trustworthy place.  The net affect is an increase in ranking in the local business results for targeted category searches.

2. Is your website address accurate?

One of the factors to outranking your competitors in the organic search results of Google is link popularity.  Google considers links from other trusted directories as votes for your website.  The net affect is an increased ranking in Google’s organic results for targeted searches.

3. Are your local business listings optimized for targeted searches?

Some attributes in your local business listings, such as categories, business description, service area, etc., empower you to outrank local competitors for your most precious keyword sets.  For an example of optimizing your local business listing for targeted local searches, download our white paper, Geotargeting.

Call us today at (623) 252-1780 for a free report, detailing the efficacy of your business listings.

This article is designed to arm SMB’s with insights that will better help them understand the local search marketing landscape on Google.

As a local online marketing consultant, it is important for me to point out that Google is the most important resource, online or offline, to market your small business.

This should not be a surprise to anybody, but I emphasize this fact because Google is where most local business marketing campaigns should begin.

Local search marketing revolves around a universe of keywords.  What keyword sets are important to your business?

For the purpose of this article I am going to use The Tuxedo Gallery, a tuxedo rental shop in Santa Rosa, CA as my example.  The Tuxedo Gallery not only rents, but sells designer formal wear for men–think homecomings, proms, weddings, and other special events.

Using the Google Keyword Tool, it is easy to get some quick insights as to how people search for tuxedos and formal wear for men:

Read the rest of this entry »

This weeks cover story on iMedia is my article “How to protect your brand from bad business reviews.”

The article explains what local business reviews are and why brands with several locations need a solution to manage local business reviews.

There are three fundamental elements of a local business review management strategy:

monitoring reviews, responding to reviews, and proactively generating reviews.

The article shares best practices, as well as important tools to manage reviews like Customer Lobby and the Marchex Reputation Management tool.

Local business reviews are important to national and regional brands for three primary reasons:

1. Local business reviews affect brand reputation and the actions of prospective customers.  As a result, negative reviews provide companies the opportunity to publicly engage dissatisfied customers and seek resolution to correct adverse customer experiences.  As a brand, demonstrating that you care about what customers have to say is a best practice.
2. Local business reviews inform brands about customer experiences and can provide actionable business intelligence regarding products, services, and policies.
3. Search engine visibility.  Simply having local business reviews increases your business listing rankings in the local business results of Google, Yahoo, and Bing.

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Download our white paper: Geotargeting: Local Seach Best Practices For Brands

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Read the rest of this entry »

Periodically we work with SMB’s that provide services nationally but still require a local business listing because they do a large amount of business in their region.  One example is Fairway Auto Transport.

With 25 years of experience, they provide auto transport services nationally but serve a lot of customers in Florida, so it is important for them to establish local visibility online.

It is a best practice for Fairway Auto Transport to ensure their NAP (name, address, phone number) is consistent across all business data providers, business directories, their website, and even their auto transport blog.

Data providers include InfoUSA and Localeze.  Business directories include search engines, internet yellow pages (IYP’s), interactive directories (like Kudzu & Citysearch), local business directories, and industry directories.  An example of an industry directory for Fairway Auto Transport would be Transport Reviews.

Catalyzed by Yelp’s success with local business reviews (29 million monthly unique visitors and 9 million reviews), Yellowbook.com has been running a contest for nearly a month that compensates individuals for writing reviews: 

What would you do with $10,000? Make your dreams a reality with Yellowbook’s Imagine What You Can Do Review & Win Contest. Two $10,000 Grand Prize packages will be awarded to the Top Reviewer (most points) and the person with the Best Individual Review posted on yellowbook.com. And that’s not all - TEN lucky winners will each receive a $500 American Express Gift Card in our weekly sweepstakes (one winner per week).

It’s as easy as writing a review. Share your experiences to WIN! Get started now. The contest clock starts ticking January 18, 2010 and keeps going until March 31, 2010.

The current leader has 5,478 entries.  How does this compensation impact the integrity and accuracy of the contributions?

It appears they did.  Kyle Kazak points out that the Local Listing Ads web page (Google.com/help/lbc/listingads/) has been removed by Google and buzz has discontinued.

In a recent article I pointed out that Google could not afford to get rid of AdWords in lieu of Local Listing Ads because the ad revenue is very limited with Local Listing Ads.

It appears that net revenue created by a combination of AdWords/Local Listing Ads could not compete with the AdWords model flying solo.

In addition, I pined that Google couldn’t replace the 7-Pack with Local Listing Ads.  But what if they offered an advertising enhancement to local business listings–something to make your listing “pop” within the 7-Pack and Google Maps results?

They have done just that.  Google Enhanced Listings allow a business to stand out with an “enhanced” presence on the 7-Pack or in the map-related listings on the SERP.

Local businesses can call attention to something it wants to highlight to customers and/or prospects: a menu, a coupon, a video, for example.

The cost is $25 per month and the business can choose from one of seven types of enhancements, drawn from content in the Local Business Center.

The available categories of enhancements include the following:

• photos
• videos
• website
• coupons
• directions
• menu
• reservations

Will this offering, at a cost of $300/year, per location, create a return on investment?

A couple weeks ago the Nifty Marketing blog highlighted Google’s offline marketing initiative to engage local business owners with a $100 AdWords offer ($100 offer ends January 31, 2010).

The promotional offer applies to local businesses that have verified their local  listing(s).

“I got a letter from Google today with $100 worth of free advertising.

The letter is being sent out to businesses with claimed LBC listings and starts out saying “You already use Google’s Local Business Center to help customers discover your business online when they search locally on Google or Google Maps.

Then goes on to explain the effectiveness of search advertising.

I have included an image of the letter for your enjoyment.”

Nifty’s article goes on to ask the question, “…why would Google be promoting AdWords to LBC users if they are planning to launch local listing ads any time soon?”

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On Friday, local search expert David Mihm announced the launch of GetListed.org University:

“Back in 2008, when Pat Sexton and I were brainstorming the ideas that would eventually turn into GetListed.org, one of our very first long-term goals was to put together a low-cost, non-profit seminar series that would introduce business owners to the world of online marketing.  It pleases us greatly to announce a major step towards that goal: the very first GetListed.org Local University event in Spokane, WA on February 4th.”

David has assembled an all-star cast of local search marketing consultants to present the intensive sessions including Matt McGee, Mike Blumenthal, Mary Bowling, and Ed Reese. 

Here is a look at the Agenda:

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There are a number of opportunities but what caught my eye this morning was a screenshot in an article by Aaron Wall, Google’s Youtube Caught Cloaking to Spam Google Users & Increase Ad Revenues.

Aaron makes an important point regarding Google’s lack of ethics–how Google is abusing their universal search results to spam searchers with YouTube results.  He goes on to make the case that Google could repeat this type of behavior with additional acquisitions such as Yelp, stating:

“…as soon as Google gets a market dominant position, you can bet on them locking it down to enhance ad revenues. The secret search relevancy algorithms, AdWords ad quality score, using AdWords rebates to push Google Checkout, always-on search personalization (even when logged out), mystery meat payout rates to AdSense publishing partners, universal search algorithms that allow them to arbitrarily promote their own websites, YouTube cloaking, etc etc etc”

Aaron then points out that Google jumped the gun on Yelp by integrating Yelp reviews in their AdWords ads before the acquisition was finalized:

I was not aware Google was testing this.  It is certainly a great way to leverage the Yelp brand if Google was able to acquire them.  Follow Greg Sterling’s updates on Google-Yelp developments here, here, here, here, and here.

Aaron also addresses the Mahalo hypocrisy here and here.

Free local business listings on search engines, internet yellow pages (IYP’s), interactive business directories, local business directories, and vertical directories are the foundation of a comprehensive local search marketing campaign for your small business.

Four Reasons To Optimize Your Free Business Listings Now

There are four primary reasons why you need to be proactive and optimize your business listings for local search in multiple, trusted directories.

First, each directory has their own audience/sphere of influence to bring visibility to your local business listings.

Second, many of the listing and category pages of these directories appear in the organic results of search engines and mobile search.

Third, many of the directories listed below publish local business reviews that are displayed in Google local business listings.

Fourth, when Google finds your business listing in a trusted directory through a web crawl, they often cite the web page featuring your business within your Google local business listing, also known as your Place Page.

Here is an example:

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Maybe.  According to Google Trends, Yelp gets more unique daily visitors than SuperPages & Dex combined:

Yellowpages is right behind Yelp and if AT&T Interactive were to act on Greg Sterling’s insight, they could create quite a powerhouse.

Citysearch and SuperPages are neck and neck.  Is the Google Trends data accurate?  This data doesn’t measure flush with the recent TMPDM/comScore study of Local Search Market Share.  Is it apples and oranges?  Do TMP and their study bias IYP’s?  Here’s a look:

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The inspiration for this article emanates from emails and phone calls I have received from a few local businesses.  They want to know how they can remove sponsored listing ads from their Google business listings (Google Place Pages).

While it may be wrong for Google to charge local businesses a fee to remove sponsored ads from their listings (a la Merchant Circle), common good business sense should compel Google to remove the ads from the business listing of any business subscribed to their new Local Listing Ads.

If you’re not familiar with Local Listing Ads, it is a new local online advertising service Google has currently rolled out to the markets of San Diego and San Francisco for testing:

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Prospective customers expect a certain level of professional design, usability, and navigation when they visit local, small business websites.  And then there is content—the information your customers are searching for; the reason they are looking for you online.

The content you present to search engines and prospective customers can make or break opportunities to generate local business online, especially if the prospect has never heard of you before (brand awareness = trust).

The right way to build a small business website, designed to produce local customers, is to present the content your prospective customers are searching for.  I brand this reflexive content.

Through years of keyword research and access to search analytics for well-known brands (with thousands of locations), I can share how people generally search for local businesses.

Reflexive Content

Let’s say you own a chain of dry cleaning stores in Scottsdale, Arizona.   The image below illustrates the pages of website content, and is followed by specific descriptions of each content category listed:

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Last week Peter Krasilovsky at Local Onliner summed up data from the recent TMP/comScore study:

The report notes that Google has overtaken online business directories in both IYP/local searches, where it has a 26 percent share, and in local portal searches, where it has a 45 percent share. But that doesn’t mean that the Yellow Pages industry is on the ropes.

While Yellow Pages usage is down three percent and now comprises 28 percent of local search, Internet Yellow Pages have jumped from 19 percent in 2008 to 21 percent of all searches. In certain categories, such as home services, IYP account for nearly half of all searches.

“By adapting to the world of online search, the Yellow Pages are proving to be a competitive and effective cross-platform reference,” notes the report. But local search remains very low on the totem pole for certain categories.  

In another example of adapting to the world of online search, R.H. Donnelley property Dex has recently been shooting up all over Google local searches.  Dex places advertisements with co-branded landing pages (powered by Dex) on Google for a number of categorical searches for local businesses.

I did see something similar to this on behalf of YellowPages.com last year with local automotive and professional services searches but they seemed to have dropped off.

I don’t know if this is just a short-term, introductory promotion (Google promo?), or if they are truly getting traction with local businesses advertising on Google AdWords–and this is part of the local online advertising mix.

What Caught My Eye

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The Google Local Business Center sent out their third newsletter last Friday.  Instead of pointing out changes to prohibit spam in the Business Listing Quality Guidelines (Mike Blumenthal chart comparison, Matt McGee recap), the newsletter reflects on the features of Google Place Pages:

When Google and Google Maps users click to learn more about your business listing, they’ll now see a new layout, with new information that we think will make it easier for them to learn about - and decide to purchase from - your business.

We’re calling this new feature Place Pages for Google Maps, and it allows people to view your basic business information, ratings, reviews, related maps, nearby transit and even a look at your business on Street View in Google Maps - all in one snap shot view. Previously, users had to click through several tabs to get a good view at everything about your business.

With this enhanced page, we expect even more potential customers to be viewing these pages, so it’s especially important to make sure that your basic information is accurate, and that you’ve added enhanced content like coupons, photos, and hours (hint: it’s free to do all of this). We’ve made a short video featuring the Place Page of Kasa Indian Restaurant in San Francisco, to give you a closer look at what this means to your business.

To make sure your business’ Place Page looks as good as it can, update your content in your account at https://www.google.com/local/add.

Why the new layout?

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While the yellow pages are creating a reputation as the fastest recycled paper product in America, Google is driving the evolution of local business marketing online with a blistering pace of updates to local search, local business listings, and local online advertising in 2009.

Google Displays “Reputation Trend” In Local Business Listings

Inside the Details section of the new Google Maps business listings, also called Google Place Pages, you may see a field called “Reputation Trend.”

Let’s say you’re looking for a hair salon in Seattle:

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The success of your ability to convert desired actions (phone call, registration form submission, pdf download, directions search, coupon download, gift certificate purchase, etc.) and generate local business online will hinge on a handful of factors—here are three:

1.    Creating a professional web presence

2.    Establishing online visibility where your local market searches

3.    Providing reflexive content—the exact information your customers are looking for

However, being seen and heard online by prospective customers will not be enough in the future.  By 2012, the majority of small businesses will be following many of the same local online marketing principles, then what?

What is your competitive edge?

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Get a step-up on your local competitors with a proactive strategy for local online business reviews.

Online interactivity has changed the landscape of local business marketing.  The stage is rapidly moving online and the consumer plays a supporting role.

Local brand marketers and small businesses need to understand and embrace this reality to remain competitive.

Local online business reviews (and ratings) featured on search engines and business directories impact consumer impressions and actions.

Here’s what you need to know to form a proactive strategy:

1. Simply having business reviews on the search engines or interactive directories like Yelp, InsiderPages, Citysearch, Yellowbot, Openlist, Kudzu, CityVoter, JudysBook, SuperPages, Dex Knows, Yellow Book, and Yellow Pages boosts your local search ranking in Yahoo and Google.

 

2. Interactive directories like Yelp allow you to join the online conversation about your business—you can address complaints publicly (and directly) and thank customers privately through the Yelp interface. Yelp is growing faster than the internet yellow pages (IYP’s) and has become the industry model.

 

3. Online reviews inform you about customer experiences and provide actionable business intelligence.

 

4. Leverage raving reviews in web assets like your website or social media profiles. For example, Carpet Dry Cleaning Inc of Raleigh, N.C. has 1,282 customer reviews presented in their Google Maps business listing! How did they do it? On the homepage of their website they actively promote the fact that they are rated #1 on Citysearch with 1,562 online reviews, 1,366 of which are rated Five Stars.

 

5. Offer customers an incentive in the form of a discount for creating a review if they are happy with your service. This tactic tends to generate positive customer reviews due to the quid pro quo nature of the transaction.

 

6. Entice customers to write online reviews by automatically enrolling them in a giveaway or drawing.

 

7. If your Google Maps business listing only has a handful of reviews and they are all negative, encourage loyal customers to write online reviews to dilute the negative-only impression.

 

8. Two important realities to understand about online customer reviews; 1) You can’t remove negative reviews, 2) You might not be able to find out who the review is from.

 

9. Having positive reviews ONLY is a negative. Negative reviews do not hurt a product/service as long as there are also positive reviews associated with it.

 

10. Negative reviews are good for business.

 

11. DO NOT create your own online business reviews. Posting fake reviews of your own business is a quick way to lose your listing and destroy your business reputation online. One New York company was forced to pay $300,000 for fake online reviews.

 

12. A negative business review provides you the opportunity to engage an unsatisfied customer and correct the problem. Turning nasty in response to negative reviews just reflects poorly on your business and does nothing to convince people to trust you above the negative reviewer.

 

13. Encouraging customers to share their experiences in online reviews builds trust and loyalty. Ask your customers for reviews in a follow-up email or online newsletter. Link to your business listing’s review section in a specific directory or search engine listing.

 

14. Politely ask your customers for reviews in company stationary or documentation—including invoices, receipts, and thank you cards. Direct them to a specific URL(s). Use a URL shortener if appropriate.

 

15. Google displays citations from consumer protection websites like Ripoffreport.com within Google Maps’ business listings. If you find your business in this predicament, file a rebuttal on the Rip Off Report article and engage the complainant directly.

 

16. Your company and product/service perception is not what you say it is anymore, but what Google says it is.

 

17. If you suspect a competitor has posted a negative review on Google Maps, encourage loyal customers to simply flag the questionable review as inappropriate, stating the reasons why, and then encourage them to post their own positive experience. What if your ex-wife is posting fictitious reviews?

 

18. Monitor your online reviews by subscribing to Google Alerts or the new reputation management tool by Marchex, featuring “every blurb, blog, comment, critique and glowing review about your business.”

This hilarious video about online customer reviews sums it up (h/t, Get Elastic):

Not every business is as glamorous as Tiffany & Co. or as admirable as Apple. Most businesses require an exceptional commitment to customer service in order to increase market share and out-market local competitors.

Get a step-up on your local competitors with a proactive strategy for local online business reviews.

Greg Sterling has articulated the details of Google’s new program to help local online marketers with a simple, easy to deploy advertising platform.  The new platform is called Local Listing Ads and the offering is currently available in only San Francisco and San Diego.

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I am seeing a lot of local business listings by brands that are teeming with keyword spam and violate the Google Business Listing Quality Guidelines.

Here is an example of brands that stuff their local business listing with a geographic modifier in order to rank in the Google 10-pack:

Google really needs to address the issue of local business listing spam for all businesses involved.  Currently, this wild west atmosphere puts local business marketers (including local internet marketing consultants and agencies) behind the 8-ball.

Are we to advocate keyword stuffing for clients in order to compete?

Should my business strategy consulting include a recommendation to officially change the name of an insurance client’s entity to something like this: Cheap Auto Insurance Chicago, LLC?  With the accompanying website, CheapAutoInsuranceChicago.com?

If Google doesn’t start addressing the junky, spammy local business listings soon they will lose market share for local search.  Spammy results are the main reason Google became the search engine of choice over Yahoo and especially MSN earlier this decade.

So what is the answer? 

For starters, remove the weighting of relevance currently applied to business names in the algorithm.  Any other ideas?

Many local online marketers and small business owners are seeing this message from the Google Local Business Center:

Account Suspended!
Your Local Business Center account has been suspended. Please see the Business Listing Quality Guidelines for more information.

This appears to be replacing the “System Error” message that previously was used by the Google LBC to notify an account owner that their access had been blocked, and their listing removed.

The most disturbing aspect to the “Account Suspended” status is that the account owner is unable to access their account and correct violations—leaving the account owner to beg for help and guidance on Google’s help forum.

Personally, I believe there are just as many account owners that don’t know that they are doing anything wrong as there are spammers.  When a small business owner that has little or no experience with local search marketing sees all the spammy listings currently published, they just assume that keyword stuffing is the right way to go.

To avoid having your Google Maps local business listing suspended or flagged, adhere to the following standards:

Company/Organization

Google Quality Guidelines:  Represent your business exactly as it appears in the offline world. The name on Google Maps should match the business name, as should the address, phone number and website.  Do not attempt to manipulate search results by adding extraneous keywords into the title field, and do not include phone numbers or URLs in the title along with your proper business name.

Best Practices:  The best practice, at least currently, is to include your core service keywords but not locations or other descriptions in the name of a business listing.  Below is an example:

Anamorphics Graphic Design

Instead of:

Anamorphics Inc, Phoenix Graphic and Web Design

Google Maps relies on community policing, and it is only a matter of time before this listing is reported by a competitor and suspended.   The Google LBC includes a “Description” field to describe your company/organization with keyword-rich copy, offering 200 characters of space.

Business Categories

Google Quality Guidelines:  When entering categories, use only those that directly describe your business.  Do not submit related categories that do not define your business.  For example, a taxi company might properly categorize itself as “Airport Transportation,” but it would be inaccurate to also use the category “Airport.”  Also, please use each category field to enter a single category.  Do not list multiple categories or keywords in one field.

Best Practices:  The best practice is to create specific, accurate, keyword-rich Category descriptions (you can create up to five unique terms or phrases).  Do not use a geographic modifier such as your city or state in the Category fields.  Do not use multiple, unique phrases/keywords in one Category field.

Business Reviews

Google Quality Guidelines:  Don’t spam or post fake reviews intended to boost or lower ratings.

Best Practices:  Posting fake reviews of your own business is a quick way to lose your listing and destroy your business reputation online.  The best practice is to encourage customers to post their positive experiences as they happen.

Do not encourage customers to publish all their reviews on the same day of the year—it appears unnatural to Google (and prospective customers) if all your reviews occurred within a five day window, right?

Here is a particularly egregious example, also implying that handicapped customers receive a discount for being handicapped.  Hmmm…

What if a competitor is publishing negative reviews to your business listing?

Google Quality Guidelines:  The reviews themselves are not created by Google.  If you feel that a particular review of your business is inaccurate, we recommend that you express your concerns to the webmaster of the site on which this review was posted. If you’re concerned about a review that was submitted through Google Maps, click the Flag as inappropriate link found under the review, and submit a report. If the review is in violation of our Google Maps policies, we’ll remove it.

Best Practices:  If you suspect a competitor has posted a negative review, the best practice is to actively encourage your customers to post honest reviews about your business.  This will serve to dilute the effect of the questionable review.

Ideally, you would like to have loyal customers simply flag the questionable review as inappropriate, stating the reasons why, and then going on to post their own positive experience.

Andy at Local SEO Inc. recommends this strategy with the endorsement of Google Support team member Linda Chau on the Google Maps Help Forum.

If the negative review emanates from a business listing in a directory like Yelp, create your free Yelp business account and engage the reviewer publicly and directly.  This is key to joining the online conversation about your business and managing your online reputation.

Engaging unsatisfied customers builds trust within Yelp’s community.  If the Yelp’er then edits their negative review, because you met or exceeded their expectations, it will also impact the accompanying review published in your Google business listing as well.

Multiple Business Listings

Google Quality Guidelines:  Create only one listing for each physical location of your business. Do not create more than one listing for each business location, either in a single account or multiple accounts. Service area businesses, for example, should not create a listing for every town they service. Likewise, law firms or doctors should not create multiple listings to cover all of their specialties.

Best Practices:  Common sense—creating multiple listings will eventually get you suspended.  Below is a typical example.

Local search marketing in Google is a rapidly evolving industry.  Best practices today may be wrong or obsolete tomorrow.  The main thing to remember, especially with regard to Google, is to use common sense.  Do not do anything that is obviously spammy or would appear unnatural.

Read my story about small businesses participating in local cause marketing programs.  This is a great opportunity to out-market your local competitors!

From Sarah Kerkian, Senior Insights Associate at brand strategy and communications agency, Cone:

“American consumers continue to have high expectations of companies to support important causes, even amid the recession, and they are quite supportive of cause marketing.  In fact, Cone’s research found that a full 85 percent say it’s acceptable for a company to involve a cause in its marketing.  Now is not the time to be humble.  It’s the time to build authentic and lasting relationships with important organizations and causes and to engage consumers and employees in your efforts.”

I have had the pleasure of working alongside Cone with a national client and am very impressed with their competencies and insights.  They know how to build value for frequently searched brands.

Download Cone’s PDF, Cause in the Marketplace: Current Trends Spring-Summer 2009.

Here are three tips for small businesses to convert local business online by participating in a cause marketing program:

1. Include the cause’s logo on the home page of your small business website.
2. Link the logo to another page on your website that explains your involvement and how you have helped others participating in the cause.  Include a call to action.
3. Write and submit an online press release announcing your involvement with the cause, how you are specifically helping, and how your customers can participate (if applicable). Don’t forget to link the press release to your small business website, and to the website of the cause marketing program.

Here are some research insights from a Cone 2007 survey of over 1,000 US adults:

• Over 66% of Americans consider a company’s business practices when deciding what to buy.
• 92% state they have a more positive image of a company that supports a cause they care about.
• 87% are likely to switch from one brand to another if quality and pricing is the same, but the other brand is associated with a good cause.
• 30% have recommended a product or company after hearing about a company’s commitment to social issues.
• 22% have used the Internet or other technologies to engage in grassroots activism.
• 66% look at what a company is doing in the community when deciding where to invest.