Local SEO
-
Would like to read articles on local SEO that have been recently published in the past few months. Has anyone come across good articles on this topic?
-
Hi Brett,
To be honest I think I learned most by really taking the time to read through David Mihm's "Local Search Ranking Factors" for 2011 and 2012.
This information compiles the industry's expertise, resulting in quite a good hypothesis as to what one should do in order to rank with guidelines as to your website, Google+ Local page (even though introduced after the 2012 survey), citations, link-building, etc.Lock yourself away for an hour or two... an open plan office is not ideal to chew through all the info
http://www.davidmihm.com/local-search-ranking-factors.shtml
http://www.davidmihm.com/local-search-ranking-factors-2011.shtml
Hope this helps?
Cheers
Greg
-
We're looking a Local SEO expert who can assist us.
Please feel free to get in touch.
-
My pleasure, Brett. Happy reading!
-
thanks Miriam, a great list
-
Hi Brett,
You've gotten some excellent replies here. Let me give you a list of my go-to sources for excellent reportage on this topic, some of which have already been mentioned. Put these in your feedreader and you will have a blow by blow account of the constant changes going on daily in Local:
Mike Blumenthal's Blog
Mike is considered by most Local SEOs to be the godfather of the industry. He is also a Google Top Contributor (in the Google and Your Business Forum). If you read nothing else, read Mike's blog religiously.
Nyagoslav Zhekov's Blog
http://www.ngsmarketing.com/blog/
Also a Google Top Contributor. Extremely smart guy with very important, factual blog posts.
Linda Buquet's Blog
http://marketing-blog.catalystemarketing.com/
Another Google TC. Linda's blog is very active and she is also now running her Local Search Forum. Expect lots of breaking news here.
David Mihm's Blog
http://www.davidmihm.com/blog/
David doesn't blog as often as the above 3 bloggers, but when he does, his stuff is must-read. Also, as the founder of GetListed.org and the annual Local Search Ranking Factors report, David is definitely and industry leader...as well as being a really nice guy!
Greg Sterling's Blog
An extremely intellectual man who gives best-in-industry commentary on industry news in Local (who just bought who, what is this new technology, etc.). Greg brings a unique perspective to Local.
Matt McGee's Blog
http://www.smallbusinesssem.com/
Matt is a marketing veteran and is the Executive News Editor at Search Engine Land and Marketing Land. He often blogs about local issues and I always really enjoy his commentary on the review aspect of Local. Matt's writing style is truly lay-person-friendly and I value his voice.
Andrew Shotland's Blog
Andrew is a no-nonsense local blogger with a gift for irony and a ton of experience. He's very respected in Local and while his blog isn't updated daily, what he writes is well worth reading. Another very smart fellow.
Search Engine Land
http://www.searchengineland.com
Regularly publishes good local news, often from some of the bloggers listed above.
Google and Your Business Blog
http://googleandyourbusiness.blogspot.com/
This is where Google tends to make most of their announcements about Local issues, so definitely be aware of this.
We also publish some great Local articles here at SEOmoz from time to time, and in our YouMoz section as well. You're welcome to check out my blog at http://www.solaswebdesign.net/wordpress/ but I confess that, of late, being busy has kept me from blogging half as much as I'd like to. There are many other talented bloggers in Local, but what I've listed here are my most-visited sources.
I hope these resources will be just what you're looking for, Brett!
Miriam
-
Andrew Shotland is my local info go-to guy - http://www.localseoguide.com
-
thanks Marie. An interesting forum and lots of changes at the local search level
-
Linda Buquet who is well know in the Local SEO field just started a thriving new forum: http://localsearchforum.catalystemarketing.com/
-
thanks Gyi
-
thanks Roberto. A great resource and it also answered an unrelated question on google place pages
-
Not specific articles, but some great local search sources:
-
This is the guys I follow. He is very informative and always on top of any changes. I highly recommend him. http://blumenthals.com/blog/
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Updating Over 100 Local Listings - Cleaning Local Profile and Upload Questions
Hello. I'm currently updating over 100 places in Google Local Listings They have approximately 300 listings already in the account, with approx. 100 of them already verified. The amount of 'True' locations is around 130. In order to provide maximum, appropriate NAP data, I need to update the 100 as well. So, my question is in multiple parts - 1. How do I override and update the current locations in bulk? It doesn't appear that there's a way. Every time I upload a datafeed, it gets a new listing. 2. Because of all the listings in various states of verification, (Over 200), is there an easy way just to clear them out that's NOT manual? 3. Is there a way to export all CURRENT locations? The datafeed download only contains items which are trying to be updated..there doesn't appear to be a way to export all current data. Thanks for any help you can provide about a project of this size is appreciated.
Image & Video Optimization | | WebTalent0 -
Youtube Channel, Video SEO
I am providing some SEO consulting for a friend's company. They are an Investment Research and Portfolio Management firm. They started a blog about a year ago with most of their posts being short Youtube videos between 3 to 10 minutes in length, providing their take on what is going on in with the markets at the moment. Additionally, they've created a youtube channel which has a little over 1,500 subscribers. The videos do fairly decent getting between 1,500 to 20,000 views (the later happens when a big financial blog links to them) but they are not taking full advantage of this great content in my opinion i.e hosting videos with a 3rd party like Wistia. I think they should begin using Wistia or Vimeo Pro to maximize the SEO benefits as well as gather analytics about views. Then after they've milked them all they can put them on their youtube channel and target them for different keywords. My question is, should they go back and switch out the videos on the old posts with videos hosted by a 3rd party, submit sitemaps, etc. or should they just leave them the way they are and only host new videos with a 3rd party? I think they should switch out the old youtube videos but am not sure if this could cause any negative repercussions.
Image & Video Optimization | | TVI0 -
Google Places Local Submission
Hello We're going to upload a bulklisting to Google Places for multiple locations. However, there are existing Google places listings for these locations. The bulklisting is being used to undertake a refresh of all the existing data. How do we go about updating the existing data i.e. do we have to delete the existing information prior to submitting the bulkload, or does a new submission over write the existing data. In addition, how does Google Places verify a bulkload submission i.e. do they make contact with the designated business owner. How long does such a process actually take (roughly!). I know some of this is touched on in the Goolge Places help section, but it is not clear and I don't want to get this wrong for obvious reasons. Thanks in advance for your assistance. Rgds Neil
Image & Video Optimization | | mccormackmorrison0 -
Local SEO - our company is in 2 very different locations
Hi, Our company nlpca.com is in 2 locations. It's doing really well in San Francisco, California But we've opened a 2nd location in Salt Lake City, Utah The problem is that our site is all about San Francisco, California. Utah is just as important as San Francisco to us and we need to start tailoring to both. People from Utah say they are confused because our site is so tailored to California. Even our domain name is the keyword "NLP" combined with the state initial "CA" for California. A new domain is not an option. One thing we are thinking of doing is changing our header to say "The NLP and Coaching Institute and the NLP Institute of California". It would say both of our company names and hopefully the first would catch the Utah people. But I don't think it's just our banner. Can you take a look at our site and tell us how to tailor to both locations and keep our current working optimization for San Francisco, California? Thanks!
Image & Video Optimization | | BobGW0 -
Local SEO: What is the largest Google Places bulk upload you have ever done?
Hi All, One of my clients recently requested my team at our agency to do a bulk up load of business locations. We did the bulk upload and it came to around 652 or so locations in the form. I have done some serious bulk uploads in the past around 500 locations but never this high. My question is to SEO moz what is the largest bulk upload or single upload you have done on Google Places?
Image & Video Optimization | | JamesNorquay0 -
Has anyone created a top (Insert # Here) list of local business listing sites?
Has anyone created a top (Insert # Here) list of local business listing sites we should manually submit to? I have around 20 or so but I was wondering if someone could give me a list to cross reference. I have quite a few local business that I work with and I want to make sure I'm hitting all of the main local listings. I also spend time searching for niche listing sites too for each client, so if you have any suggestions on easier ways to find these as well, I'm game. If you have created a list and its out in the wild somewhere I will be happy to link to it from my site. I'm always open to giving some LL to helpful people. Who's up for building a tool that will search through X number of local directories and report back to you if you are listed or not. (Not getlisted.org) You can select a checklist of sites that you want to check. (; Thanks Aaron
Image & Video Optimization | | Shipyard_Agency0 -
What is inside the SEO Training Videos?
Hi, I have read the book "art of seo", now I found that there is a SEO training videos " Ultimate Advanced SEO Bundle: Tips, Tricks & Tactics Volumes 1 & 2 URL: http://www.seomoz.org/store/4 What is the content inside? is it worth to buy even if I already read the book "art of seo"? please advise. Thanks -David
Image & Video Optimization | | David6800 -
Are centralized local information management services like Unified Business Listings a helpful tool or unreliable?
As we work with more local businesses, I'm looking for an efficient way to manage their information across all of the different local databases. site is www.ubl.org
Image & Video Optimization | | ScottFasser590