local seo

people loathe us on yelp - what to do about bad yelp reviews for your business

Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Yelp?

Reputation Management

If I had a dime for every time a business owner tore into Yelp, I’d already be retired.

It turns out that the internet’s most popular business review site, at over 100 million registered users, still isn’t popular with everyone. Many business owners, users, and bipeds in general tend to hate Yelp’s lack of transparency, aggressive sales staff, and the amount of power that they give to relatively anonymous users. If you don’t believe me, just check out Yelp-Sucks.com, a few recent horror stories from small businesses, or Yelp’s laughable 3/5 star rating on their own website.

Today, we’ll talk about how much Yelp can suck, we’ll take a look at some of the biggest complaints about Yelp, and then we’ll see what we can do about them.Read More »Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Yelp?

How to Get More Google+ Reviews for Your Business

Reputation Management

Every time you look at a search results page on Google, there is a good chance that you may see something new. It wasn’t too long ago that videos, images, author profiles, links to Google plus reviews, and maps weren’t all shown on the same screen. Many people who depend on Google for their livelihoods spend a lot of time and energy trying to predict which additions will be next, but nobody really knows for sure.

While there are many changes happening right now to the way Google displays listings for small businesses, Google has made it crystal clear that business reviews will play a huge role in the future. We’ve been able to see business reviews on Yelp, out of five stars, from Google’s search results for a few years, and we’ve already seen Google+ play a more serious role.

If you’re the kind of business owner who wants to stay ahead of the curve, one of the biggest things you can do for your business, right now, is to start earning Google+ reviews.

What the New Google+ Mobile App Additions Mean to Small Business Owners

Social Media

Keep Calm and Plus One - the G+ mobile updates just made it much easier to use for small business owners Google+ just won’t sit still. If you haven’t taken advantage of the platform yet, now is definitely a good time to start. With today’s relaunch of the Google+ mobile apps for iPhone and Android, it’s gotten even easier to let customers and clients keep tabs on your day to day, and give them a glimpse of the faces that make your company work.

While the redesigned apps actually cover a lot of ground, there are four updates in particular that Google wants to you know about. Here’s what they mean for you.

Photo editing within the Google+ app itself just got a lot easier. With instagram style options, plus basic crop, rotate and contrast tools, it’s easy to turn a quick snapshot into something worth sharing.

New photo editing options
So what?

Encourage your employees to ‘brag’ in pictures about their accomplishments, even if it takes a minute out of the workflow. If your electricians replace an electrical panel, turn it into a before & after. If your chef comes up with an awesome special of the day, get a picture online. If you take pride in your work, let it show.Read More »What the New Google+ Mobile App Additions Mean to Small Business Owners

Mockup of a mobile website for Stellar Plumbing

Why Your Business Presence Has To Be Mobile Ready

Web Design

No one is going to argue that the internet hasn’t fundamentally changed the way that people experience the world. Ten years ago, they might have, but not anymore. Now, mobile technology is doing it again. The smartphone has taken the internet and made it available to anyone, anywhere, at anytime. The way in which today’s consumer uses the internet is fundamentally different than it was even five years ago.

So, when you first put up your website it was geared for the Internet user of 2010, 2008, or even earlier. If you are a local business owner looking to connect with customers in your home town, the internet user of 2010 is no longer the target that your business is after. That’s because, for the first time in history, over half of all local searches are done from a smartphone or tablet. There are three main reasons people do mobile searches on these devices: to find entertainment, to engage others on a social network, and to find an immediate solution to a problem.

Mobile Market Watch, an industry leader in mobile tracking, estimates that 94% of the U.S. population between the ages of 18 and 44 own, and use, at least one mobile internet

device, like a smartphone or tablet. Of these users, 39% use them to contact businesses for more information about their products and 11% shop directly from them. This is only going to get bigger with the addition of more entry-level android devices, cheaper iPads, mobile Windows 8 devices, and many other mobile options. According to a research study of the leading search indicators by Morgan Stanley, mobile internet searches will surpass traditional desktop and laptop searches by 2015. Other estimates say it may happen even sooner, perhaps even by early summer in 2014.