Tag Archives: Google Places

The WordPress Plugin that will change your business

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Okay, I have to admit I believe that my transformation from muscle head to tech geek is completed 🙂 How do I know this to be true? Well, last Friday I purchased a WordPress Plugin that is going to change everything when it comes to online and local marketing. When I bought this plugin I was so kiddy I dreamed all weekend long about sharing this with you today. If that is not a ture testament of my transformation then I don’t know what it is that will tell you I am know a tech geek. Anyway, I will tell you more about the plugin in a minute but first I need to put some context together for everyone to see why this WordPress Plugin is going to be so great!

Several months ago I wrote a post about Google Places being King when it comes to local search and the importance of having your local business grab the free web listing that Google is providing to help you rank high in local search. Well, the company that I was following that taught me about combining local search with mobile phones came up with a WordPress Plugin to help create mobile landing pages.

Here are some stats to think about when it comes to mobile and local search:

There are 5 billion plus cell phone users versus only 1.8 billion Internet users. This market is already almost 300% larger than the internet.

With over 50% of all social media posts being made from a mobile device you can see the potential.

This is possibly the biggest fundamental shift in how people communicate. There is a huge opportunity for marketers and brands.

Don’t be Left Behind

In 1999, most people were just starting to get the Internet. Twelve years later there are many who missed out on that huge opportunity.
In 2011, the next big area for growth is mobile. You can either be a part of it or be left in the dust while your competitors take advantage of this.

Mobile LPS
The name of the WordPress plugin is called Mobile LPS. Without getting into too much of the technical details of the plugin, which might be a future post the main benefit and beauty of this plugin is that it allows you to make custom landing pages that show up perfectly on your mobile device. It also let’s you integrate your Aweber or auto responder into the screen to capture leads. Also, what I love is that the average person can create these mobile landing pages in just a few minutes. These are just a few of the great benefits to having this plugin.

Now, I know most people are visual learners so stay tuned for tomorrow as I have put together a video tutorial of how simple and easy it is to use the Mobile WordPress plugin.

Before I go let this survey sink in that was recently conducted. “94% of North Americans would purchase from their smart phones if they knew it was secure to buy.”

I am telling you don’t miss out on mobile marketing!

Coach Dave

Google Places Is King when it comes to Local Online Search

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Are you still doing the same old traditional advertising and marketing? Sure, I still believe you need to use several differnet mediums to connect to your target market but I am about to tell you a new way that is going to change how you market to your clients. Have you heard of Google Places? I know most of you have heard of Google, but Google Places is still unknown to most businesses. Most of us realize that about 80% of our business comes from a radius of 7 miles, which means local search is king. You see, Google realized that as well and they went out and created 50 million listings that range from all sorts of businesses. Have you claimed yours yet? My guess is probably not because as of this writing my research concludes that only 2% of U.S. listings have been claimed.

Now what exactly is Google Places and why should you care? Well, let’s answer the first question about what is Google Places. Google Places essentially is a local search engine run by Google. For instance, let’s say you were looking for a gym in Dallas TX and you go to Google and type in the search box “Gyms in Dallas TX.” Google then realizes that you are doing a local search and based on your current zip code that they have on file for you, Google then displays results for gyms in the Dallas area that are listed. You may have recognized this by the little tear drop and letter associated with the exact spot on the map. Now, I know what your thinking, “Okay, but so what, nothing too spectacular there.” Well ,it gets better I promise, which now leads me to why you should care.

Google Places is King and here is why you should care:

  • Place search results will automatically start showing when google predicts you searching for local
  • More information than typical organic results
  • Sometimes have pictures or videos
  • They show reviews
  • Linked to directions and maps
  • In many cases the search results are above organic rankings
  • Maps drive sales
  • Maps are the new “Yellow Pages”
  • Maps are mobile
  • To be effective in the future you will need to fuse mobile and search

And that is just the start of local search and Google Places. More and more people are using local search and social media to decide where they want to spend there dollars. Where else could you go and find reviews, pictures, and videos. Sure, you can have a website but people will need to know to typ in your URL or maybe you will be lucky to be on the first page of search, however, if you are listed in Google Places you show up regardless.

Now this is just the start like I said there is much more to be discussed and I plan on doing so in future posts. So, what are you waiting for, go claim your Google Places listing and start using local search to drive your business.

If you want to learn more how I can help you with your local search you can contact me here or sign up for my services where I can do it for you.

To your success,
Coach Dave