So what’s the “big favor” you can do for your business? You can create a local (web search) business listing on the “big three” search engines and roughly 18 other online directories.
Why do you want to do this? Hmmm…let’s see. Well, for one thing it’s FREE advertising! Then there’s the fact that the majority of shoppers, for all kinds of local goods and services, are turning to the Internet first to find what they’re looking for and whom to purchase it from. I know that was a long sentence, but if it didn’t get your attention, then you probably shouldn’t read further.
Are you still with me? Great! Let’s take a look at what listings you should create first and what’s involved. The place to start is with the most important search engines, Google, Yahoo and Bing.
The most important and comprehensive of these is Google. Google used to call their service “Local Business Center”, but has since changed the name to Google Places—a shorter name that doesn’t really tell you much. Good marketing? Maybe not so much….
Google Is the Most Important Local Listing
If you only create a single local listing, this is the one. There are four major reasons for this:
- Google has, by far, the most search traffic and will give you the best return for your efforts.
- They offer the (no cost) option of providing the most detail about your business. Your listing can contain almost every relevant detail you can think of plus photos, videos, promotional coupons, map location and driving directions. It even provides “street views” — photos of your business location superimposed on maps to help customers find you in a busy or crowded neighborhood. This last may not be available for your location yet, but probably will be before long.
- There is almost no delay in making your listing available online (if you choose phone verification) and you can edit it at any time. Once created, it’s completely under your control.
- You can get up-to-date statistics on how many people are finding and viewing your listing with the “dashboard” feature—very useful information to keep track of.
To get started with Google, you’ll first need a Google account. This is usually a Gmail (Google mail) account. If you don’t already have one, you can create one easily while on the Google Places page. To get started, go to Google Places and just follow the instructions. It really is that simple, but there is one thing you might want prepare beforehand. Create (and save) a clear, concise description of your goods or services offerings that’s no more than 200 characters long. You’re right, that’s not much room, but it’s also good practice in creating an “elevator pitch” for your business.
Other Places to Create Your Local Listings
Your next two stops should be Bing and Yahoo. In both cases the setup procedure will be similar to Google. Again, you’ll need to create accounts with both — for Bing it will be a Windows Live ID and for Yahoo, you’ll need a Yahoo account. As with Google, just follow the steps in each to complete your listings. It’s important to make sure all of the business information you enter is the same for all three listings (and any other online listings you may create).
The following is partial list of additional online directories where you may want to creating listings—the more the better— but if your time is limited, start with Google and then move on to Bing and Yahoo. Creating free listings in the directories listed below isn’t quite as straightforward as in the search engines. Look for a link that says “advertise with us” or something similar. When you get to creating your listing, be sure to select a free listing—don’t get drawn into the other options—they can get expensive quickly with little to show for your expenditures.
- SuperPages.com
- Yellow.com
- MerchantCircle.com
- Yelp.com
- Localpages.com
I hope this was helpful. Here’s one last thought… if you can’t find time to do this yourself or are put off by the process, then get a professional to do it for you. It isn’t that expensive and it really is that important.
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