Do you have a Google Android phone? If so you probably noticed after a recent update Google has been notifying you of your distance and time from a previously visited or searched for businesses with traffic updates. The traffic updates are based on how fast other Android phones are moving which is something we originally saw from Microsoft. Your business location in Google has never been more important. It’s not enough to just have your site on Google anymore. The search verticals which include everything from videos to location and special schema.org code something we’ve pushed for years is starting to impact search in a really big way. I’ve often been reminded of business locations I’ve been to recently with predictive information about roughly how long it will take me to get there. In a sense for local SEO (Search Engine Optimization) this is remarketing and an extra opportunity to touch base with your clients. The above image is Google Location history SEO of Edmonton and Sherwood Park area. It shows my driving history and commutes all around. It’s on by default and is recording all sorts of information about consumers all over the world. It’s a real opportunity for marketers to harness and like most opportunities it’s especially there for those who take advantage first.
Search marketing science data shows year-over-year growth of about 20%+ of the visitors to sites is mobile and when we initially started seeing this years ago we started moving towards all responsive design sites to adjust to the shift in screen resolution size from mobile phones to big screens. Mobile apps are nice but a simple browser visit without having to download a mobile app is what people are expecting. Simple additions of schema.org code and other rel=author code makes your site stand out in search to show your picture etc. Bottom line, if your site is not optimized for local SEO with a responsive website design to accommodate a majority of business professionals and consumers on mobile then you’re missing out on a lot of free business leads. Is your business and reputation management up to par with today’s economy? Is your content targeted for both local, broad and mobile users? The reality is your Google Business location and citations are becoming an inevitable part of online consumer perception. People are doing their research online and if your business looks like a dinosaur and isn’t found eventually people are going to be looking at the other companies that are being proactive about their image. Because if you don’t care then why should they?
Curious about where you’ve been over the past 30 days according to your phone? I simply logged in with one of my Google Gmail ID’s and it showed me the Google Location History. Here’s the link to see for yourself https://maps.google.com/locationhistory/b/0 . If you don’t like Google stalking you then here’s how to turn it off https://lifehacker.com/psa-your-phone-logs-everywhere-you-go-heres-how-to-t-1486085759
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” – Charles Darwin
In 2014 lets be the change we want to see in the world and salute change by advancing with the information people are looking for by providing people with a better experience. Your reputation management is counting on it and without it someone else will be owning your market brand. After all, if you’re not talking about your business you can guarantee someone else is talking about your service product offering no matter how big or small your business is.
