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How To Get Google Reviews

Are Google Reviews Important?

Google has pretty much dominated the online search market, but how important are the reviews left on Google?

The answer is simple… extremely important! Google likes to use it’s own products to help in how well your business shows up in search. A great example would be Google Maps Listings.

Your Google Business Listing is directly attached to your Google Maps listing. This is were you appear in search locally. Don’t have a listing? We can help with Local SEO.

google map reviews, how to get google reviews

5 helpful Tips To Increase Google Reviews

Simply Ask – Ask and you shall receive, well sometimes. There is no shame in asking a happy customer to leave a review on Google.

Scan a QR code – Have a QR code created to go directly to your Google Review Page. Google requires a Gmail account in order to leave a review. Great thing about android users is they have to create a Gmail account in order to use apps. With android taking up 46% of the market, this is an easy way to get those users to leave a review.

Review Page – Have a page on your website with a link to your Google Reviews. This can showcase your excellent reviews as well as capture them. Don’t have a website? Laced Media can help. Get a web design quote

Email Marketing – Email blasting still exists so collecting customers information is still important. Follow-up emails, new products or newsletter. Don’t forget to ask in the email leave a review and provide a link to your Google Reviews Page makes it easy to do since a lot of people check their emails from their phones.

Friends and family – Asking your friends and family to leave a review is ok in the eyes of Google. Fake accounts can be detected and Google will know if they are fake and deem them as spam.

Build Your Google Business Listing

Google reviews tie into your Google Business Listings which show in organic search. Local business listing need optimization to be visible in search. Contact us to see how we can get your business visible.

Small Business: Are Local Marketing Companies Better Than Large Agencies?

Small Business: Are Local Marketing Companies Better Than Large Agencies?

When small business owners search the web to find a digital marketing company, the options are endless. It can be overwhelming for someone who is seeking advice, looking for a digital marketing plan, but not sure who to pick and trust. Here are some great tips on what to ask a Digital Marketing Company and what might be the best options for your business.

Already Have a Website - Ask For a Free SEO Audit

Many companies have software that can run a general overview of your online visibility. This report should include:

  • Current ranking of keywords
  • Keyword potential (the keywords you can show for)
  • Estimate organic traffic
  • Overall user experience (UX)
  • Technical SEO issues
  • Page loading test
  • Mobile-friendly test
  • Competitor Analysis
local online marketing company, online marketing

Local Marketing Companies Offer Individual Attention

Big marketing agencies may have tons of tools and employees at their disposal, but are they able to give you the attention you need? In my experience, client to employee ratio is so high, that many clients fall through the cracks. Choosing a smaller or local marketing agency can give you the individual attention for your business to show growth and progress.

A Digital Marketing Company should be able to do an SEO Audit for free. If not, they might not have the software and not be up to date on the current technology. After an SEO Audit, an in-depth analysis of your business marketing is done called a Digital Marketing Strategy Plan. This plan acts as a guide on how to improve your current digital marketing position. These are normally not free and can give you some great tips on how to improve your marketing efforts.

Choose Local Over Corporate Agencies

 

Corporate digital marketing agencies and big online digital marketing companies may have tempting offers — but how do you figure they can offer a service for so cheap? What kind of return on investment can you expect with a large marketing agency?  I can tell you first hand, you get what you pay for. 

Cheap SEO Plans

Some large companies can offer cheap SEO services because they automate processes or do the very basics. Others may employ people who aren’t qualified but are just there to read the numbers. The big problem is they act more like a “puppy mill” by using templated processes and way too many accounts to maintain. This typically means not enough time dedicated to your account for actual growth, which may not be the best strategy for your business. This can be a huge waste of your money and time with very little ROI (return on investment). 

Your Personal Marketer

Local Digital Marketing Companies can offer a strategy that tailors to your business. Since they are local, they have the advantage of knowing your target audience and geological target better than big corporations.

A Strategy That Works

Most local digital marketing agencies are small enough that you can get the attention needed to have a successful campaign. Typically local agencies will have the same type of software available to larger agencies and will have fewer clients. This actually works in your benefit since most local companies wont overextend and are selective in their clients workload, giving your business more attention and a better strategy plan.

What To Ask A Digital Marketer

What Extent of Information & Training

Not everyone knows how to do SEO or knows what digital marketing includes. That’s why you’re searching Google. Many agencies will tell you what needs to be done but the better agencies will tell you why. Knowledge is power and a powerful campaign comes from educated businesses. A marketing agency that is able and willing to educate you or your team about how things work is truly looking to improve your campaign. Now, they won’t share all their secrets. Providing some education will help make better decisions on the business end provided they understand the schematics of the data. 

How Much Does SEO Cost

Like any equipment needed to run your business, digital marketing is an investment. Keep in mind that cheaper doesn’t necessarily mean better. Ask about the budget required to implement the campaigns and if there is a contract. Most companies will charge a setup fee or initial fee to get the campaign going. Typical SEO setup fees vary from $500 to $3000 per website. SEO and Adwords usually have a high setup fee compared to social media account setups as they require a lot more work. While some companies will try to sell you every service they have, you may not have the budget nor the need for every service. Ask about different levels of aggressiveness for their suggested campaign.

marketing report. Local SEO services

How Will They Measure The Success of The Campaign

When talking with a prospective agency they should be able to support their recommendations with data. Ask about metrics and analytics that support their strategy and how often you’ll receive reports on these growths. Listen to their answers. It will soon tell you if they can provide the measurements you want to see that are relative to your business or just another “cookie-cutter campaign” that isn’t tailored to your marketing goals. Conversations with a prospective agency should be well explained in detail, not vague or leaving you confused. A great digital marketer will take the time to explain a suggested strategy, duration, how it can provide a return with data to back it up.

Speak With A Digital Marketing Expert

An SEO Specialist can provide maintenance to your website’s visibility, increase traffic, and gain more customers with measurable data!  Laced Media has professional SEO experts to get your business thriving. Schedule a free consultation call today.

digital marketing for small business, is digital marketing worth it

Common Concerns & Questions about Small Business Websites

small business websites, website for local business

Common Concerns and Questions About Small Business Websites

It’s natural to have questions and concerns about setting up a website. Cost is a huge factor. Beyond an up-front fee to design the website, the ongoing costs can be minimal. Considering the long-term benefits, a website will pay for itself. The cost to design a good website should be well worth it the money.

Why Do I Need a Website if I Don’t Sell Online?

Many questions I see often relate to a business not seeing the need for a website or that it wouldn’t sell goods online. The simple answer to this is a business website can provide so many more benefits. Establishing trust, strengthening your brand awareness, offering better customer relations, and getting the word out to the world you exist.

Website With No Content

Another common concern is that you don’t have any content or you don’t have time to blog. Yes, content is important, especially for SEO. Though more activity and fresh unique content can generate more traffic, any web presence is probably better than none. Once you have a basic website, you can always add to it, as your business and resources grow.

How Much Does Web Design Cost For a Small Business?

A Web Designer can easily help with getting a practical and functional website for your small business. Depending on the needs of your business on average, a Web Design can cost from $1200 and up for a basic design and launch. Some more complicated and customized web designs can excel well over 5 or 10 grand.

Not sure what you need or how much to spend on a website? We can help, contact us today.

Take Professional Looking Photos On Your Phone

How Do You Take Professional-looking Photos From Your Smartphone?

Anyone with a smartphone has the potential to take fantastic photos, right from their phone. Smartphone technology has quickly developed into an all-in-one compact computer equipped with cameras exceeding some professional gear like Canon and Nikon. Here are 5 easy tips for getting professional-quality photos from your phone.

1. Gridlines

Gridlines are like a blueprint for balancing out the photo. Gridlines are a series of lines that divide the shot into 9 sections. Don’t worry, your photos won’t end up with lines through them. The photo doesn’t capture the gridlines, they are simply a guide that shows up on the screen as you take your picture. When taking a photo, use the gridlines to take a straight photo, center it or balance the focus.

grid for taking photos on phone

How do I get the gridlines on an iPhone:

To turn on the Camera gridlines, open Settings and scroll down and Tap on Photos & Camera. Then scroll down to Grid. Tap the toggle for on and off.

How do I get the gridlines on an Android:

Open the camera, Tap Settings (gear cog icon) in the upper right corner, and scroll down to Gridlines. Tap to toggle on and off. *According to Softwares using Android 9.0 Pie*

2. Clean Your Lens

A clean and clear lens can make a huge difference when taking a photo on your phone. Many people forget to clean them but your fingers tend to touch the lens a lot especially if your phone has the finger scanner on the back, like mine. If your phone is in a protective case like OtterBox, you will get a cleaner image if you take your phone out of the case for the shot as well.

3. Get Different Angles

It’s all in perspective with photography. Try taking photos low to the ground while focusing on the background. Most camera phones will focus on the items you want by tapping on it. This will create a foreground, middle, and background so your viewer doesn’t get stuck on one single point of view in the photo. Always take multiple pictures, in case the phone shakes and you get a blurry picture.

4. Using Filters & HDR

You can get a great photo without using filters or HDR mode, but that can depend on lighting. Light is how photos are created so keep in mind lighting when taking a photo. Be careful of shadows, light beams, and reflective surfaces. If the lighting is low or creating dark shadows, try moving around or creating more light. After you take the photo, you can always add a filter later. If you take a photo with a filter, the filter cannot be removed and you’ll be stuck with it.

5. Keep It Simple

rofessional phone photos tend to look best if they are clean and simple. Take time to stage your photo by removing anything from the frame and background to keep it clutter free. If the photo is set up well at the time of the photo, photoshop time can seriously decrease. You can always crop your images to get rid of unwanted, excess areas.

There you go! 5 easy steps to help improve your photos taken on your phones to get a professional feel. Use them on social media, website, or print!  Customers want to see real photos of your business, products, or community presences.

Need help with Social Media?  Contact Us for Social Media Pricing.
professional phone camera pictures
taking photos on your phone
take spectacular photos with your phone

Do I Really Need a Website?

Yes, you do. Many small business owners report they simply lack the time, skills and money to build a website. While some businesses say they don’t need one. The fact is, you need a website if you plan to have a successful business in the future.

Your company’s website can be an effective marketing tool that can also be cost-efficient. Let’s take a look at the benefits.

Available 24/7 

The best part about a website is they are always available and ready to serve your customers. Whether its relaying information, collecting leads or sell a product. It will be there when you are closed.

Creates Exposure

People search for services and products before they get to the “buying stage”. If you don’t have a website, you essentially don’t exist because you won’t show up in their search. Statistics show a website can increase your business’s revenue by 25% just by exposing your services and products to more people. That’s a huge chunk of customers you’re ignoring.

Want to dip into that 25% of customers you’re missing out on? Let’s build your first website!

Builds Trust

Building trust with new clients can be difficult. Having a website can verify your business and give reassurance that you are who you say you are. 64% of customers will not use a business if they can’t research them first online.

Get Found on Google

In addition to getting a website, it’s best to incorporate SEO. Search Engine Optimization sets your website up to be found on Google. People who search for relevant keywords, services you offer, or products you sell are more likely to find you with SEO.

Sell your Products & Services

If you sell a product, share it with the world. There are unlimited opportunities to increase your revenue from an online store.  79% of U.S. consumers shop online on their phones according to Pew Research. That’s 8 out of 10 people who can’t see your products.

Services are fairly the same, the only difference is the viewer hasn’t given you the money yet. Though many consumers will research services in their area 3 times before making a decision, don’t be taken out of the running because you don’t have a website.

Convenient for your Customer

You may want your customers to call you. The facts is that 67% of consumers prefer email or text to talking on the phone. Having a website can funnel customers to communicate with you whenever it’s convenient for them.

Tips & Secrets for SEO

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Online Marketing is crucial to any type of business, big or small. If you are a fortune 500 company or a local dentist trying to get new patients, online marketing can take your company to a whole new level. Though there are many Types of Online Marketing, we will be focusing on SEO Tips, Search Engine Optimization.

Since every company is different, these tips for SEO may not work exactly for your business. For a complete evaluation of your company and how to improve your SEO, we offer Free SEO Evaluations.

Learn SEO – M.A.D.A.M.S.

Since there is so much involved in SEO, we will stick it to some of the basic. These SEO secrets can provide a great foundation for any starting website.

Metadata – Page Titles & Descriptions

Metadata is the text search engines use to index your page. Like categorizing a page about Poodle into the Dogs category. This is the place you can put relevant keywords targeting your page in order to be found in search. Titles are the most important element in the metadata. Metadata Titles influence the most when Google Indexes your website. Descriptions are supporting text to the page titles. It’s best to place some keywords here but make it readable so viewer know more clearly the subject of the page.

Architecture – Website Structure

Everything from your code to your content is crawled by search engines. Google looks at your website structure to determine what things are important and less important. Navigation hierarchy is a great example. Have a page listing in the top navigation indicates to Google it’s important to your website topic. Now if you had a page buried in sub navigations where people are less likely to find it, Google may take that as a less important page. Another great example of the proper structure is organization. Countless times I find website have these issues where rogue pages are out of place making it difficult for people to find them or even transition to other relative topics on your website. Which leads us into our next section, Creating a fluid User Experience.

Design – User Experience

Google takes User Experience seriously. From navigating the website to color contrast, Google crawls every bit of code and text on your website. When a website is not Mobile Friendly, more likely people are going to leave the website. On average, 46% of the population search using their phones. When they click on a site that does not display properly, chances are they will leave the site entirely. Every website has its own goal either gain leads, sell a product or educate. When building a website keep this in mind to serve your target audience better.

Need Help Building a Website? We build websites tailored for you. Your success is our success! Contact Us Today

Authority – Link building – Directories – Business Listing

Building authority for a website is not easy. The best way is to encourage Google to trust your website. Here’s how…

Directories are great since they act as another venue to discover a business through search. Though in many cases, the information can be inconsistent. Making sure the information is correct will help Google trust the information it finds on the web. Link building is much like building friendships. Creating a referral to the website in order to increase traffic and authority. Lastly, and the most important… Google Business Listing. If the business doesn’t have one, hasn’t claimed or verified it then they are already losing customers. Zero-clicks means people find the business before even entering the website, most times through a Knowledge Graph. We can help you create, optimize, claim & verify your business listing. Contact us about SEO Services.

Make it your own – Content – Relevant – Unique

In the SEO world, content is gold. Always create content that is written for your audience and is relevant. If the business is not able to provide content in their own words, SEO content writing is available.

Copying content from the internet or Web Design Marketing Agencies who use the same content for all their clients can seriously hurt a business’s website.

Site Speed – Loading

A fast loading website is a productive website. 56% of all online traffic is done through mobile phones. Which is why Google decided in 2018 to crawl mobile-friendly websites as ranking factors before the desktop version. Here is why site speed is important. 53% of mobile users abandoned a site if the mobile site takes longer than three seconds to load. Every one-second delay in site load time can decrease conversions by 12%.  Making sure the websites mobile load time is 3 seconds or less to prevent losing customer.

Hiring an SEO Company

Though you may feel confident to do SEO on your own, these are only a few tips in best practice SEO. Unfortunately, there is no “cookie cutter” way to SEO as every business is different and has different needs. When hiring an SEO Specialist or SEO Company makes sure the goals are realistic. I see countless companies promise “Rank 1 guarantee” when realistically there is no guarantee with SEO.

Get An SEO Expert

An SEO Specialist can provide maintenance to your website’s visibility, increase traffic, and gain more customers with measurable data!  Laced Media has the professional SEO experts to get your business thriving. Schedule a free consultation call today.

digital marketing for small business, is digital marketing worth it

Why is SEO Important in Santa Rosa

Santa Rosa, CA to some may be on the smaller size for a city, but it’s actually fairly large in competition.

When researching a cities competitive nature, a few things go into the equation:

  • Population
  • Competition
  • Consumer Behavior

Population 

With a large Population, the reach is much larger.  Imagine talking to an audience of over 100k people, without a microphone. The first few rows might be able to hear but anything beyond that probably won’t. Having a website without SEO in a larger city is like not having that microphone. You’ll reach some but will fall short after a certain point. Get SEO on your website to expand that reach.

Competition

Competition plays a factor since other businesses may offer the same services. Competition helps drive consumers to do research about products or services before purchasing and discover you online.

Don’t get stuck behind. We offer SEO Packages that can fit your business’s needs. Get SEO and back in the competition.

Consumer Behavior

Lastly, Consumer Behavior can be a large reason to get SEO. Statistics show consumers do research 3 times before they make a final purchase. This means a company can be searched for multiple times in order to close a sale. Where do people search? Google. What influences Google Search Ranking? SEO.

The Facts About Santa Rosa

Santa Rosa has a population of 175k people with 56% white, 30% Hispanic, and the rest make of Asian, Black, and mixed. This is your local reach in Santa Rosa. Building a marketing strategy that caters to these demographics is ideal since these are your potential customers. Demographic research is a huge part in Local SEO for Businesses in Santa Rosa. Find out how well you rank in your local market with a SEO Audit. It’s Free.

Is Your Website Secure?

How Do You Know If Your Website Is Secure?

As we launch ourselves into the 21st century with high-speed internet, mobile web searching, and tablet browsing. Have you ever thought that the information you enter on a website could be compromised? Is my website secure? Online security has become a huge priority within the last couple of years for websites that collect data, require a password, conduct purchases or have private information that some may want to keep confidential. Build trust with a secure website and give your customers the peace of mind to purchase, browse, and submit their information without the worry it will be shared. So how do I make my website secure? We will tell you here.

https, encrypted website, secure website

How Can I Make My Website Secure?

A secure website is marked with HTTPS at the beginning of the URL. Chrome has launched a new update this July to alert visitors if the website they’re visiting is secure or “Not Secure”. This can be scary for people looking to make a purchase on a website as identity theft is a real thing. How to get your website secure — you’ll need an HTTPS. You will need to contact your website hosting provider and get an SSL certificate. SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer and encrypts information passed through the internet like transmitting passwords, credit cards, or other personal information to and from your website’s server.

What Is HTTPS?

HTTPS stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure. Your website encrypts the data is transferred over a secure connection. … So, HTTPS does encryption of data between a client and a server, which protects against eavesdropping, forging of information and tampering of data.

How Does HTTPS Impact My Business?

Chrome dominates 59% of the market share of GlobalStats which leads into a recent consumer survey saying 82% would leave a website if it was not secure according to the HubSpot Research. This means 8 out of 10 people would leave your website because it wasn’t secure. Another way SSL impacts your business is Google has announced SSL is now a ranking factor in Google Search.

Do you need help getting your website secure? Get website services to secure your website and protect your customers’ information. Contact us about getting your website protected.

Page Speed, Waiting to Load

Waiting For A Website To Load

Have you ever sat staring at your phone waiting for a website to load? Clicking the refresh button in frustration. It’s not your WIFI, its the website. On average, a user will look at their phone a total of 5 hours a day! The way people use their phones now have seriously changed within the past 10 years and is the vessel of obtaining information.

So Why Does Having a Fast Website Matter?

Users tend to be impatient in a world of instant gratification. Web pages that take longer than 6 seconds to load are prone to loss their audience. 1 to 3 seconds could lose 30%, 3 to 5 seconds may lose 95%. If your website is taking longer than 6 seconds, you’ve more likely lost a potential customer.

70% of phone connections will be at 3G or slower thru 2020 (information provided by thinkwithgoogle.com)

Website Speed Test

Check your website for Desktop and Mobile PageSpeed: Google PageSpeed Tool

If your website is producing some low numbers, you may consider a website redesign. Laced Media offers many types of packages that are affordable and specific to your business goal.

Website Speed Test

Users tend to be impatient in a world of instant gratification. Web pages that take longer than 6 seconds to load are prone to loss their audience. 1 to 3 seconds could lose 30%, 3 to 5 seconds may lose 95%. If your website is taking longer than 6 seconds, you’ve more likely lost a potential customer.

70% of phone connections will be at 3G or slower thru 2020 (information provided by thinkwithgoogle.com)

Yelp’s Algorithm & Why Your Reviews Don’t Show

One of the biggest consumer review platforms online is filtering your reviews. Yelp developed its own algorithm in hopes to filter out fake or spam reviews in order to publish a more reliable customer review source. Unfortunately, some of those positive “legit” reviews are being filtered out as well.

Why Does Yelp Filter Reviews?

Yelp tries to filter reviews that it thinks are likely to be fake or spam. These could be reviews Yelp thinks are malicious, inside influenced, an individual who has never visited the business, or competitors attempting to damage the business’s reputation. Consumer Reviews are highly important to any business and can heavily influence a potential customer to choose you, or look elsewhere.

Yelp will filter out reviews good and bad based on some of these factors:

  • A reviewer with no photos, profile info, or profile picture
  • Lack of details in the review
  • A reviewer with only 1 review
  • Reviews from an account consisting of all 1 star or 5 stars
  • Frequency of reviews

How Do I Get My Yelp Reviews to Show?

A few recommendations you can try to help get those customer reviews to show on your Yelp listing:

  • Click the buttons: Cool, Useful or Funny for the 5 star reviews – normally located at the bottom of the review
  • Add the reviewer as a friend
  • Send a message to the reviewer
  • Respond to the review – I always recommend replying to your reviews, especially the harmful 1 star reviews

Interacting with the reviews and the Reviewers tell Yelp these are “legit” and hopefully sway them to start showing. You’ll want to focus on the 5-star reviews to interact with since this encourages visibility. The more people do this, the better. The customer can also increase the power of their opinion as well with the suggestions below.

yelp review for laced media, #1 digital marketing santa rosa

How to Show Yelp My Reviews are Legitimate

As a consumer, I would want my review I spent time writing to show. Here are a few recommendations to share with your customers to beat the Yelp Filter:

  • Write more reviews ( a lot more)
  • Fill out your profile and add photos
  • Connect with other members on Yelp
  • Write more details in your review
  • Leave “Tips” for the business you’re reviewing too
  • Become a part of Yelp Elite

Though doing these will never guarantee your reviews will show but it’s a step in the write (pun intended) direction!

Need some guidance with reviews and reputation management? Contact us to find out more on how we clean up an online reputation.