Is Google Places gone?

Why is optimizing for local search results important? We need to understand the basics first. Optimizers got into the habit of optimizing websites for search engines. Good work, we need visibility, top ranking and free web traffic. Yes, we got the fruits of SEO. In this effort we missed out on few important things, we forgot the visitors, we forgot our target market, and we forgot the business prospects that would be searching for the products we are selling.

We understood the fact quiet late, that we have to target the local customers first, as these are people who would be interested to buy locally first, instead of ordering pizza from Japan. The global village is still spread on thousands of miles and not easily reachable for pizza delivery or even for a plumbing job.

Locals must find local businesses. IF we are not there to support their cause, and if we are not there to tell them that we have the answer to their quest for products and services, the local customers would look else where. Google Maps and Google places web search results were the best places to prove our local web presence.

Google now integrates the Google Places with the Google+, thus taking benefits of its strengths and send the world of customers reeling to the business places; they need to be in contact with.

Yell.com’s author Ahtisham Hussain cleverly puts this scenario in the following words, “Google are at it again and recently changed the name over to Google+ Local.  Yes, they have linked up Places with Google+ their social networking platform.

Most business owners who are serious about local SEO will have claimed their Places listing and updated with content including images, video, categories and location targeting preference.  The algorithm is not so straightforward to understand when it comes to placement of these ‘pin’ listings but now has a further twist.”

Google Plus is still there but with a new set up. We must take notes and get ready for the ride with Google+ local and give out our best presence performance for the viewers, to impress them and make them act on impulse.

Why is Local SEO important?

Here we go again talking about SEO. This time we will turn toward local search engine optimization. Why is it important? To answer this let me ask one more question – Where would you look for if you need to hire a lawyer? Locally off-course! You wouldn't like to go and hire an attorney from China to fight your legal battle in New York.

This is why local SEO is important. Most of look us for stuff, that is, products and services available locally within our town or city. We can venture out to another state to buy stuff if we don’t get it in our town but we prefer to remain within our country or the region we live in. 

We used to scan through Yellow pages to find services and products. Now people conduct an internet search, even to scan through the yellow pages, we prefer to scan through the online yellow pages to find a local service provider. Surely, the days of physical yellow pages are gone and for the sake of our consumers we must optimize our sites for local search. If not, we will be missing tons of local customers who are standing right at our doorsteps, waiting for us to lead them to our business place.

Small business owners are essentially local business operators who can thrive using the right approach. Being visible to the local customer’s eyes is the key towards their online marketing game. 

We need to:

• Research local keywords – Long tail ends will help
• Start building a local network – your Facebook account will help you here.
• Embed your physical local address, detail out your location.
• Get your website listed in the local business directories on-line
• Use your “Customer attitude” to perceive what your customers will be searching for
• Use your local phone number on the web. This will help attracting local customers

Internet has grown too big overtime. We were and many of us still are into the rat race of getting the top search engine rankings for global searches, paying hands full of money to the SEOs but if we stop and think, aren't we wasting our time for optimizing for over crowded web sphere. Optimizing for local searches will give us some breathing space and get the local customers some good quality search results, and give us more customers.