{"id":19841,"date":"2016-09-26T07:26:11","date_gmt":"2016-09-26T11:26:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blumenthals.com\/blog\/?p=19841"},"modified":"2016-09-26T09:16:04","modified_gmt":"2016-09-26T13:16:04","slug":"10-years-ago-today-the-7-steps-for-local-listing-success-at-google-yahoo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blumenthals.com\/blog\/2016\/09\/26\/10-years-ago-today-the-7-steps-for-local-listing-success-at-google-yahoo\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Years Ago Today -The 7 Steps for Local Listing Success at Google (& Yahoo)"},"content":{"rendered":"
A Google Local result from September 26, 2006<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This week, 10 years ago, I published my first post<\/a>. My blogging has directly led to 3 new careers1<\/sup> and a bevy of new and wonderful friends.\u00a0\u00a0 During that time I have written\u00a0over\u00a02100 posts here, at \u00a0LocalU<\/a> and now at\u00a0GetFivestars<\/a>. Early and trusted friendships with Matt McGee, Bill Slawski and David Mihm helped me learn a lot and “earned”\u00a0me my first link<\/a>. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Despite all that I have learned from the many people that I have come to love and respect over the years, it strikes me how my third\u00a0post2<\/sup>,\u00a0\u00a0dated September 27th, 2006\u00a0and named3<\/sup>\u00a0\u00a0The Basics of Listing for Success<\/a>, demonstrates how the more things change the more they stay the same.<\/p>\n

Google may cancel business programs faster than I can change underwear but at least in terms of the Google Local algo \u00a0they NEVER throw anything away,<\/p>\n

******************<\/p>\n

\u00a0The Basics of Listing for Success<\/a><\/h2>\n

Here is a simple list of what is I have discovered is necessary to start improving your ranking at Google Maps and Yahoo Local.<\/p>\n

As I have worked with local listings over the past year I created this small check list for achieving some measure of success. These points may be self evident or they may require additional clarification which I will be attempting to provide over the next several days. They all need testing and examination.<\/p>\n

1)Be sure to edit the local listing and include the relevant business categories<\/p>\n

2)Enhance the title of the Business to include the key phrase(s)<\/p>\n

2a)Craft the categories and the description to reinforce the key phrase(s)<\/p>\n

3)Get lots of web references (these are like links but not as rigidly defined) that reference the main key phrase and location of the business<\/p>\n

4)Be sure that your own site has lots of references to your local address and key phrase<\/p>\n

5)Join the Better Business Bureau\/Mobile Travel Guide\/Talking Phone Book etc. etc. that Google uses to provide details<\/p>\n

6)Be sure to get some good reviews from the reviewing services that Google & Yahoo uses<\/p>\n

Unlike optimization for organic search, optimization for local search at the major engines is in a much less developed state. It seems to have many fewer people poking, prodding and testing the hypothesis of local search and coming up with a definitive set of best practices. This is list is an attempt to create that model that we can all test. Have a go and let me know.<\/p>\n

****<\/p>\n

Please let me know what you think.
\n<\/p>\n

1\u00a0Interestingly I didn’t really get my first “real” local seo job until 2011 and it wasn’t until 2012 that it\u00a0became a full time endeavor.\u00a0<\/sub><\/p>\n

2 Clearly I was briefer and more succinct then<\/sub><\/p>\n

3 No reason I can’t change the title and make it a little more search engine friendly. \ud83d\ude42<\/sub><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This week, 10 years ago, I published my first post. My blogging has directly led to 3 new careers1 and a bevy of new and wonderful friends.\u00a0\u00a0 During that time I have written\u00a0over\u00a02100 posts here, at \u00a0LocalU and now at\u00a0GetFivestars. Early and trusted friendships with Matt McGee, Bill Slawski and David Mihm helped me learn …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":262,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19841","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-google-plus"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t