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What NOT To Do On Local Business Websites
There’s lots of advice out there for what to do in optimizing websites for local businesses, yet day after day, we see some of the same bad practices continue to be perpetuated in bad web designs. So, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, here’s a reminder of some basic things NOT to do […]
Court Says No, You Can’t Sue Google For Bad Walking Directions
Remember the woman in Utah who used Google Maps’ walking directions, was hit by a car and sued? The case is Rosenberg v. Harwood and Google was successful in getting almost all the claims against the company dismissed last week. When last we left our story the plaintiff, Lauren Rosenberg, was walking from 96 Daly […]
Friday Fun: A Street View Car Made Of LEGOs … And It Works!
From the you-knew-it-would-happen-at-some-point department: a “street view” photography car made out of LEGOs that actually works! The car/toy (frankly, I’m not sure what to call it) is the work of Mark Crosbie, a software architect based in Dublin, Ireland and self-described “big LEGO kid by night.” It uses Lego’s NXT (a programmable robotics system), a […]
Two Mobile Location Privacy Bills Introduced In Congress
Two mobile-location privacy bills have been simultaneously introduced in Congress. Both are intended to regulate when location on mobile devices can be accessed and provide penalties for failure to obtain proper consent or authorization. The first of the two bills is from Democratic Senators Al Franken and Richard Blumenthal and would require Google, Apple, app […]
Google Gathers Your Map Activity Under “My Places” Tab
While Google.com can store your search history, Google Maps is now storing and offering what you might call “map history” under a new tab called “My Places.” It’s a convenient way to access the different types of activity you might’ve had inside Google Maps:
Google City Sites May Compete With Yelp, Online Yellow Pages
Yesterday David Mihm was pointing out on Twitter that Google had created a number of new city sites or portals. They appear to be the phoenix rising out of the ashes of Hotpot. As I wrote yesterday on my own blog, this is Google’s effort to bring a number of initiatives together in a single […]
Google Adds Business Characteristics To Maps Listings
Searchers looking for local businesses on Google Maps can now see brief, descriptive characteristics as part of the primary business listing. And they’ll be seeing the same things soon on Google.com, Places search and Google Maps for mobile, too. Google’s announcement explains that the terms come from “sources all across the web, such as reviews, […]
Google “Offer Ads” — Not Google Offers — In The Wild
I innocently searched on “webhosting” this afternoon and saw this result, with an ad unit I’d never seen before: a coupon embedded in the ad copy. I knew that Google was testing “Offer Ads,” not to be confused with Google Offers, but I’d never seen one myself. If you click “view offer” you get the […]
Nifty Hard Core Local SEO Tactics From SMX Advanced
The panelists at last week’s “HardCore Local SEO” panel at SMX Advanced, Mike Ramsey of Nifty Marketing, Will Scott of Search Influence and David Mihm of GetListed, presented some excellent data on various tactical approaches to improving Google Place Page rankings. For today’s column, I thought it would be helpful to excerpt some of the […]
Search Market Share Static, 2.2 Billion Local Queries On Google
ComScore released its May 2011 search market share rankings this afternoon. The data essentially show no change from last month in terms of percentage distribution. Google gains a fraction of a point at Ask’s expense, while everyone else stays put. While share was largely unchanged query volumes were up roughly 5 percent across the board in May. […]
Google: Product Extension Ads Now Available For Mobile
This morning Google announced two new ad formats for mobile — or rather the extension of two PC ad types to smartphones — Product Extension Ads and Product Local Ads. Basically these two mobile formats allow marketers to include product images and related data in ads showing on mobile devices (like PC-based AdWords). Further, if […]
Groupon Files For IPO While Google Offers Could Be Its “Next Billion Dollar Business”
Google took its first daily deal baby steps yesterday with the launch of its first Google Offer in Portland. It was reportedly a hit for the business owner and a success for Google. According to CNET and ClickZ the first customer hit Floyd’s Coffee Shop within about 10 minutes of the offer going live. Overall, […]
Apple Renews Maps Deal With Google — What’s Up With That?
Last night Danny posted about Eric Schmidt’s on-stage interview at the D9 conference in Southern California. Among the many things Schmidt discussed was a renewal of Apple’s deal to use Google Search and Maps on iOS devices. Although this was first reported last week, it still comes as a something of a surprise — at least […]
Official: Google Offers Goes Live, First Portland Offer Arrives
[As promised below in our post from late Tuesday night, the first Google Offer just arrived minutes ago in my Gmail inbox. Here’s a screenshot, followed by the remainder of Tuesday night’s post about it.] Sometime in the next several hours, presumably thousands of Google users in the Portland, Ore., area will get an email […]
Bing Maps Tweaks Streetside, But Silverlight Still Needed For Best Experience
Bing Maps has added what it’s calling a “significant enhancement” to its Streetside product, but the best version remains the one that’s only available with Microsoft’s Silverlight plugin installed. According to today’s announcement, the Streetside upgrades are both structural and functional. On the structural side, Bing has eliminated what it calls “bubbles” of street-level views […]
Google Tiptoes Into India With Street View
Google launched Street View on Thursday in India, the second most-populous country on earth. But “launch” may be a bit of an overstatement because, in a country that’s also the seventh biggest in square mileage, Google is only taking photographs in one city: Bangalore. Google announced that it’s using both cars and trikes to photographs […]
How Yelp Crushed Citysearch & Yahoo Local … & Why Google Is Stealing Yelp’s Playbook
A fascinating study published last year compares the reviews and reviewers at three local business websites: Yelp, Citysearch and Yahoo Local. And, in explaining how Yelp overtook the other two, it also hints — in my opinion — at how Google is trying to beat Yelp by using Yelp’s own playbook. Citysearch and Yahoo Local […]
Google Ireland Greeting A Google Street View Car
Wouldn’t it be cool to know when a Google Street View car was planning on taking pictures of your office or home? Most of us do not have that luxury, but if you are Google, you are privy to that information. All of Google Ireland’s staff stood outside cheering, holding signs, balloons and other items […]
10 Unorthodox Ideas For Local Citations & Links
Obtaining citations and links for a local business are important components of local search engine optimization. Yet, many businesses struggle with how to get links and mentions of their place. Here are 10 unorthodox ideas that could help you nab a few more valuable links. As you may know, citations can be instances where people mention your […]
Google Maps Vs. Bing Maps: Summer Vacation Planning Showdown
Wouldn’t it be great if there was one mapping service that offers everything you need to plan a trip to somewhere you’ve never been? Sure, map sites are generally pretty similar. You can see maps, find business listings, get driving directions, see images and stuff like that. But it’s actually more complicated than that. At […]
Google Adds Zip Code Outlines To Map One Box
Google has added a new feature to the maps one box on the search results. If you search for a zip code or postal code, Google will display a map with an outline around the area of that zip code or postal code. This feature does not currently work on Google Maps itself but does […]
Confessions Of A Yellow Pages User
Hi. My name is Andrew Shotland and I am a print yellow pages user. I know, I am one of those cutting edge online guys who makes his living off the “yellow pages are dead” thing. But, then, a main water pipe to the house started to leak and flooded my lawn. I ran to […]
Bing Maps To Be Powered (Replaced) By Nokia?
I had a chance lunch with a person with close connections to Nokia about a week ago. Naturally we began talking about the outlook for the Microsoft-Nokia Windows Phone deal. He was hopeful but mindful of the risks for both companies. Our conversation eventually turned to a discussion of Nokia’s mapping division Navteq and what […]
The Importance Of Measuring Mobile Impact On Offline Conversions For Small Businesses
How often do you perform a mobile phone or Internet search for a business and immediately call that business? I’m betting fairly often. You are not alone – your customers do this all the time! At Marchex, we specialize in digital advertising solutions for small businesses. Over the years, we have learned a lot about […]
Google Threatens To Pull Street View From Switzerland; Will Launch In Poland
Google has appealed a recent Swiss court decision that requires the company to guarantee 100% anonymity of faces and license plates in its Street View imagery, and says it may cut the service altogether in Switzerland if the ruling isn’t changed. According to the Wall Street Journal, Google attorney Peter Fleischer told reporters, “We simply […]
Skyhook-Google Litigation Playing Out In Public
There’s growing interest in and visibility for the case of Skyhook v. Google. Part of the interest is in the public record and the revelation of some of Google’s internal communications. However, so far there are no “smoking guns.” Last week I wrote that Skyhook had survived a procedural motion to dismiss and/or for summary […]
Google Announces Local “Business Photos”
Today at the Social-Loco conference in San Francisco Google’s Doyenne of Local Marissa Mayer formally announced Google Business Photos. This is not a new product but the formalization of an offering that has been available in a more limited way since last year. Google is inviting local businesses in a few cities in the US, […]
Police Raid Google’s Korean Office Over Location Data
Police apparently raided Google’s Korean offices in Seoul “on suspicion its mobile advertising unit AdMob had illegally collected location data without consent,” according to a Bloomberg report. This is the most extreme action taken by any government in the growing controversy over smartphone location data — essentially criminalizing data collection. In the US Apple and […]
6 Key Takeaways From The Local Search Association’s Inaugural Conference
Over the course of four jam-packed days last month, local search professionals from across the country and around the world gathered in Las Vegas for the inaugural Local Search Association annual conference, “Search Starts Here.” As the theme suggests, the goal of this year’s conference was to explore how local search companies are leveraging new […]
Google Instant Provides A Hint For Local & Mobile Optimization
Undoubtedly, you may have seen Google’s Instant Preview interface which provides glimpses for webpages listed in SERPs. What you may not be aware of is that they’ve added sophisticated code to make it unique on mobile devices. These Instant Previews provide compelling evidence that mobile optimization continues to be important. Google rolled out Instant Previews in November 2010, […]
Austria Ends Ban On Google Street View; Google Unmoved
Austrian officials have lifted an almost year-long ban on Google Street View, but Google says it has no current plans to offer the service there, anyway. According to the Austrian Independent, Austria’s Data Protection Commission (DSK) announced on Thursday that it was ending the ban that started in May 2010; that’s when Google admitted that […]
Priceline.com Founder Sues Google Over Offers Service
Although Google Offers hasn’t formally launched yet, the service is already facing its first lawsuit. Walker Digital, a private R&D lab that created and launched Priceline.com in the late 1990s, is suing Google for allegedly violating four of the company’s patents. The lawsuit, which asks the court for a jury trial, seeks unspecified damages and […]
Belgium Launches Investigation Of Google WiFi Data Collection
While some countries have already completed their investigations, Belgium is just now launching a probe into Google’s collection of Wifi data over unsecured WiFi networks. According to the Flemish newspaper De Morgen, Belgian data protection officials believe Google is guilty of a “flagrant violation of privacy protection laws.” A Bloomberg report says the Belgian privacy […]
Google Offers Taking Signups In New York City, Bay Area & Portland
Google Offers, the company’s not-so-secret coupon program, is taking signups in three areas: New York City, San Francisco/Oakland and Portland, Oregon. Users can subscribe to get discounts via email in any or all of those available cities. After signing up, Google’s confirmation promises “regular emails” — which sounds like not necessarily “daily” — with discounts […]
Dutch Agency Orders Google To Remove Data About Citizens’ WiFi Routers
Dutch data officials have ordered Google to give the country’s residents a way to remove data that Google has about where their WiFi routers are located. It’s part of the ongoing dispute over Google’s collection of personal information via unencrypted wifi networks — something the company has said all along was accidental. According to the […]
Groupon Signals Possible Future Plans With Pelago / Whrrl Buy
Groupon’s purchase of Pelago, the parent company of Whrrl, offers an interesting glimpse into what the local daily deals powerhouse might be up to next. With the acquisition, which was for an undisclosed amount, Groupon gets a team that’s been focused on consumer check-ins at local businesses and offering relevant suggestions — similar to the […]
Google Map Maker Now Open To US Users
Google’s Map Maker has been available since 2008 and is now in more than 180 countries and regions all around the world. For the first time, that list includes the U.S. Google has just announced that Map Maker is (finally) open in the U.S. It’s a tool that lets citizen cartographers update or correct Google […]
Survey: 60% Of Consumers More Likely To Consider Or Contact Businesses With Images In Local Search Results
UK based SEO firm BrightLocal reported the results of two online surveys about local consumer behavior and local SEO. The surveys were conducted in Q1 2011. There were more than 600 SEO survey respondents and 1,250 US consumer survey respondents respectively. The findings are not a surprise. Google dominates as a traffic source to local […]
SEMPO: Google Dominates But Social Now Widely Used For PPC
Yesterday SEMPO and Econsultancy released the 2011 “State of Search Marketing Report” featuring attitudes and spending behaviors of 920 survey respondents (agencies, advertisers) from more than 60 countries. The full report is over 130 pages. The report came out on the same day that the IAB released its full-year 2010 online ad revenue figures. Interestingly, […]
6 Reasons Why Local Data Will Rule In 2011
Whether you are a mom and pop outfit, Main Street USA type of SMB, or you’re more on the medium end of the small to medium-sized business scale (100-1000 employees), or even if you’re a multi-national Fortune 500, there is local business information about you on the Web. As the use of mobile and social […]