Branded Local Search Results: Google Vs. Bing

With the rollout of Google Search Plus Your World, there has been a great deal of discussion about whether Google’s actions are a basis for antitrust. I tend to agree with internet lawyer Eric Goldman’s assessment: From a legal standpoint, I don’t think Search Plus Your World adds very much to the antitrust complaints against …

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Google Places Descriptor Snippets

One of the changes in the rollout of the new Places Page last month was the inclusion of short descriptor snippets high on the page between the review count and the business description. The descriptor snippets, besides recently changing from a light grey to black in color, have seemed to improve somewhat over the last month. In the case …

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Places Blackhat Playground – Reported To Be Closed

It seems that the newest blackhat playground of user generated input annoyance is the “Place is permanently closed” radio button in Google Places. I have been receiving an increasing number of complaints from readers that are seeing the flag. In fact Barbara Oliver Jewelry and Andrews Jewelers both experienced the dreaded yellow highlight on their Places …

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Review Management: 7 Tips on Avoiding Bad Reviews

In my presentation at Getlisted’s Local University seminars for SMBs, I note that there are three simple elements to a review management plan: Provide Great customer service Ask for reviews Avoid Negative reviews It used to be said that an unhappy customer would tell 10 people. Today an unhappy customer can influence hundreds if not …

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Hit by Competitor Spam Reviews: The Plot Thickens

I seem to be mired in competitor spam reviews these days. The second bad review in as many weeks showed up this weekend on Barbara Oliver & Co. Jewelry’s Place Page. At first glance it appeared legit. The complaint, that it is pretentious to require appointments, is untrue and probably comes from a misreading of Barbara’s …

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Hit by Competitor Spam Review – How to Respond?

On July 22, my client Barbara Oliver & Co. Jewelry’s Google Place page was hit with what appears to be a competitor spam review. The review is rather bizarre with racial innuendo and unfounded accusations. It would appear that the reviewer had not ever visited the store. The timing of the spam review is interesting. There have …

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hReview Testimonials from SMB Sites Starting to Show in Places

Since last October when Google noted in their FAQ that Rich Snippet testimonials might flow into a Place Page, many webmasters took the time to mark up their client’s sites in hReview. As Andrew Shotland has recently noted and my observations have confirmed, these marked up reviews have slowly been making their way onto Places …

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