Welcome to the Google Places SEO Citations blog at Tucson SEO Solutions.

This blog covers local SEO which is dominated by Google, Google Places and the need for citations. The blog also covers just about any thing related to Google search results and related topics. I hope that you might glean some useful resources while you are here.

Google plus Your World Seems Like A Social Joke

Well, I said it, “Google plus Search seems like a joke” to me. Well, that’s my impression so far. Just about everyone in the SEO world has written something about this topic so now it’s my turn. So what the heck are we all talking about. Well, Google wants to beat Facebook and this is its latest attempt. Below is an example of a search for this business.

The problem as I see it is that I already know about everything that is appearing here so I just don’t see the advantage. Now, let’s take a look at a search for Local SEO Services.

It’s hard to see from this image but nothing new is appearing in my search results except thumbnails of people that I am connected with. For me, I just don’t see the value in what Google is doing. And I am not alone with this opinion.

What say you?

Google Places SEO Citations Blog     Local SEO Services    Google Places SEO    Google Places Citations

Do you own a local small business in Tucson, Arizona or elsewhere and you need Google Places SEO or Places Citations services? Then please call Tucson SEO at 520-505-6024 or email me Now!

Tucson SEO… Solutions that create probabilities out of possibilities.

Tucson SEO Solution 814 N. Belvedere Ave. Tucson, AZ 85711 520-505-6024

Welcome to the Google Places SEO Citations blog at Tucson SEO Solutions.

This blog covers local SEO which is dominated by Google, Google Places and the need for citations. The blog also covers just about any thing related to Google search results and related topics. I hope that you might glean some useful resources while you are here.

An Old Friend Goes Away

Well, maybe old is the wrong expression here. You see the relationship that I am talking about is about my DIY SEO Training site, Google Places SEO Citations. After only a few months in existence it had to go away as it did not meet my needs. I actually started building links back in January 2011 for a site that I called Google Places SEO .us. I would later change that name and re-brand all of the links that I had already built to focus on the Google Places SEO Citations

Over the past year I poured my heart and soul into this site. I created about 110 videos and loaded them onto the site. It was only then that I discovered a major problem. I was using the Ning social media platform to build out the site. The problem is the software creates pages for these videos that could not be excluded from the public unless the whole site was made private. Well, as an SEO guy I needed my site to rank well to show that I was good at what I do.

Other problems pop-up with how their pay-wall works. I also could not set up an affiliate marketing program. Since this was going to be a huge part of the marketing process I had to find other options. The new site we be called the Local SEO Services Group.

This will require that I also remove all 110 videos and 15 or so pages of content. This is due to another problem with Ning. If you leave any content on a Ning website when closed they will offer it to all of your members first. I had this happen before and someone took over my site and content and I was not compensated.

It was the removing of this content that made me have a death and dying experience. I had spent 100 of hours building out this site and creating video content. It had become a friend to me. It also represented a sense of accomplishment. I had managed to take this site to number 1 in Google for several keyword phrases. But now it had to go. And this was a way more sad experience than I had expected.

I became so sad, as if a friend or family member had died. Yes, this site had become a central part of my life and now it was going away. Yes, my friend I had become attached to my website, my work had become a large art of my existence. It also kinda like getting that pink slip from a long time job. It becomes a huge part of our existence and its passing produces grief. I am ok with this now, but that night, the night that site went away was a long sad night indeed.

Google Places SEO Citations Blog     Local SEO Services    Google Places SEO    Google Places Citations

Do you own a local small business in Tucson, Arizona or elsewhere and you need Google Places SEO or Places Citations services? Then please call Tucson SEO at 520-505-6024 or email me Now!

Tucson SEO… Solutions that create probabilities out of possibilities.

Tucson SEO Solution 814 N. Belvedere Ave. Tucson, AZ 85711 520-505-6024

Google Places SEO Citations blog at Tucson SEO Solutions

Welcome to my blog. The blog covers all things Google, Google Places, Google Places Citations and other related marketing issues. My hope is that you will find the blog useful while you are here. I also encourage you to leave a useful comment.

SEO Google Places Services Training Citations And Reviews

If you need, want, or desire Google Places SEO Services or Training then you have come to the right website. I say this because local and Google Places SEO is all that this company has ever provided since February of 2007. Not only that, we have a 100% success rate at getting our client onto the first page of Google for multiple keyword phrases. Now, these are not obscure phrases, but ones that people really use.

I mention this because many companies will guarantee  that your business will rank on the first page of Google or you get your money back. They make that offer then they optimize for obscure keyword phrases that no one uses to fulfill their guarantee. At Tucson SEO Solutions we depend on research for our success. Once you know what the competition has done and is doing your can develop a game plan based on that information.

SEO is after all a competition that is played out everyday. Google and the other search engines want to reward websites and businesses that have effectively meet their current requirements better than their competitors. It really that simple and it all starts with doing research. Once you know what your competitors have done then you can develop an effective game plan.

Are you ready to approach the SEO process the right way?

What say you?

Google Places SEO Citations Blog     Local SEO Services    Google Places SEO    Google Places Citations

Do you own a local small business in Tucson, Arizona or elsewhere and you need Google Places SEO or Places Citations services? Then please call Tucson SEO at 520-505-6024 or email me Now!

Tucson SEO… Solutions that create probabilities out of possibilities.

Tucson SEO Solution 814 N. Belvedere Ave. Tucson, AZ 85711 520-505-6024

Welcome to the Google Places SEO Citations blog at Tucson SEO Solutions.

This blog covers local SEO which is dominated by Google, Google Places and the need for citations. The blog also covers just about any thing related to Google search results and related topics. I hope that you might glean some useful resources while you are here.

A December To Remember

This is my fifth December in business as Tucson SEO Solutions, and it has been a December to remember. My first December was as well. I was featured in the local daily newspaper, back when people still read the newspaper, and more specifically the business section. I was quoted extensively in a two page spread about successful local E-commerce websites. That article changed things forever.

At that time I had trying to make this a viable business while still running a housecleaning business. That article was read by a former boss who eventually signed my first full year contract. Not only was I doing SEO for an international manufacturer I would rebuild there website. This turned out to be the only none local SEO project as well as my only website development job. But it established the business and I have not looked back much since then.

This gig also allowed me to close that cleaning business and to focus completely on SEO. That too was a December To Remember. By the time December of 2008 rolled around things were looking very bleak in the economy. The phone didn’t ring once during that month. The whole month was spent planning and preparing for the launch of a marketing program called The 109 Day Link Building Explosion. But basically it wasn’t something to write home about, that’s for sure.

When December of 2009 rolled around Geri was more in the hospital than out. She was dying off a liver disease. And again, the phone never rank nor did we have any email inquiries. I was a zombie most of the time and compared to Geri I was in excellent shape. This is the kind of month that destroys you or makes you better. We both came out the other side for the better considering the gravity of the situation. Yes, it was a month to forget, but we never will.

By the time December of 2010 rolled around Geri decided that she wasn’t ready to die and had staged an incredible come back. And business wise we had survived and were developing a local SEO training website with a partner from Tennessee. Again December was a cruel month as the phone never rang nor did I get any email inquiries. There are lots of business cycles and for this business December has always been a down cycle for us.

December of 2011 was developing just like the previous years. I keep myself busy preparing for a seminar presented in Tucson on the 13th. There we managed to raise about about $250.00 for the Community Food Bank which was way cool. Then I few days later I starting getting inquiries by both phone and email and all from Tucson. I was also approached by other industry professionals to collaborate on projects as a complete SEO, Social Media, and Web Design team.

This is something that I have tried to establish several times previously. The difference here was that I was not the one initiating the idea. I quickly jumped on board. We are currently working on a redesign and upgrade to this site and another site to host my training videos. The platform that I had chosen wasn’t working out. I also learned that the site needed to be better focused on Local SEO services as opposed to Google Places SEO. Lesson learned, and now I’m moving onto a platform that meets all of my needs.

This was something that I was trying to develop with another of like minded individuals. But that plan feel apart in November, only to be resurrected in My December To Remember the 2011 version. Plus I ended up acquiring more leads and new clients this month then in any other previous month. I have essentially filled up my schedule for January of 2012. And to be real honest I didn’t see this coming.

And on the personal side of things Geri health continues to improve as well as her attitude in general. On a personal growth note we as a family have grown by leaps and bounds this month. I am a very fortunate man and I know it. I am blessed, supported, and loved!

So what about you?

What say you?

Google Places SEO Citations Blog     Local SEO Services    Google Places SEO    Google Places Citations

Do you own a local small business in Tucson, Arizona or elsewhere and you need Google Places SEO or Places Citations services? Then please call Tucson SEO at 520-505-6024 or email me Now!

Tucson SEO… Solutions that create probabilities out of possibilities.

Tucson SEO Solution 814 N. Belvedere Ave. Tucson, AZ 85711 520-505-6024

Google Places SEO Citations blog at Tucson SEO Solutions

Welcome to my blog. The blog covers all things Google, Google Places, Google Places Citations and other related marketing issues. My hope is that you will find the blog useful while you are here. I also encourage you to leave a useful comment.

The Three Faces OF Local SEO

Whenever you are considering SEO for local markets there are 3 distinct areas that you will need to address. They are the free organic results which I referred to as Local SEO. Then depending on your markets you will likely have to deal with the Google Places business listing. You will also need to address Social SEO which includes things like Facebook and the Google + 1 button and reviews.

Google changed its search results back in October of 2010 to focus on providing local search results. This new algorithm is called Places Search. Places search emphasizes its local business listing service called Google Places along with its free organic results. It is also referred to as blended search.

Google often will provide its Places listing first in the results followed by the organic results. Or it may provide a mix of organic and Places listings at the top of the results. This is driven by how competitive a market is. Google may show no Places results or up to 7. It is constantly testing to determine what works best.

It is now important to address both the organic or free results and the Places results when putting together a long term Local SEO marketing plan. Every keyword phrase is unique, and thou they may be very similar, Google may currently present the results differently based on many factors.

Depending on the keyword phrase targeted you will need to determine if you will be better served by targeting one or both forms of the search results. If Google is presenting only showing Places results first for your keyword phrase then the Places is what you will need to focus on.

Let’s be clear here about what SEO is. SEO is a competition between your website or business and other sites or businesses for your targeted keyword phrases. This is why I consider it a game. Except with this game the competition is ongoing and never ends.

It is important to develop a long term strategy for this very simple reason. Once this program is implemented your rankings will improve over time. As you rank higher in the search ranking your competition will begin to take notice. They will likely attempt to counter your success, especially when you start to take business away from them.

All SEO efforts should first focus on what changes need to be made to your website and or Places listing to optimize both. This is known as On Page or On Places SEO. It is the area that you have direct control over.

Then is the catch up portion of SEO and it represents work that is done off your site and on other websites. Is commonly known as Off Page SEO for the organic side and Off Places SEO for the Places side of things.

When discussing Off Page SEO we are basically considering the creation of backlinks. These are links on other websites that point to your website. When we are discussing Off Places SEO it is all about creating citations on other websites. A citation includes the following information the business name, location, and telephone number.

The best place to start is by locating the resources that your competitors have already used. Then it’s time to move onto the creation of backlinks or citations that your competition is not currently using.

This phase is easy but time consuming to implement. The downside is that little is hidden from your competitors when it comes to SEO. Just as I can locate where your competitions backlinks and citations are located your competition can just as easily find yours. This is why it is extremely difficult to out rank a competitor who is motivated and paying attention.

This is why the smart SEO says “SEO is never a one and done proposition.” You must be continuously adding backlinks, citations, or both to maintain your rankings. Reviews and + 1 votes can make or break a business in the Google search results.

You will also need to have a social presence on the internet by using sites like Facebook or Linked into address Social SEO. It is extremely difficult to judge the impact that Social SEO has on rankings. The general opinion is that its role is expected to increase overtime. This is especially true when you add the Google + 1 button onto the mix. It is extremely important that you learn how what you do offline can impact your online rankings. And this is where Social SEO becomes extremely important.

Also you need to be spending time on social sites that your customers are using. An example of this is LinkedIn. It is a great place to make B2B connections, but not so good for B2C connections. B2C works much better on Facebook.

What say you?

Google Places SEO Citations Blog     Local SEO Services    Google Places SEO    Google Places Citations

Do you own a local small business in Tucson, Arizona or elsewhere and you need Google Places SEO or Places Citations services? Then please call Tucson SEO at 520-505-6024 or email me Now!

Tucson SEO… Solutions that create probabilities out of possibilities.

Tucson SEO Solution 814 N. Belvedere Ave. Tucson, AZ 85711 520-505-6024

Welcome to the Google Places SEO Citations blog at Tucson SEO Solutions.

This blog covers local SEO which is dominated by Google, Google Places and the need for citations. The blog also covers just about any thing related to Google search results and related topics. I hope that you might glean some useful resources while you are here.

People Still Manage To Amaze Me

I just got off the phone with someone who was inquiry about my SEO Services and this person managed to amaze me. As often happens, these encounters become a blog post. Here is how this went down. I received a call early this morning but I could not take it. I had just gotten up for the day and I had not yet taken my sinus medication. So I was about to have a long sneezing session until the medication kicked in. So I waited before I returned his call.

Now, as it turns out, this man is selling a book that offers a cure for this sinus problem that I have. So I was very motivated to speak with him. Then I visited his website and this is what I found.

When I called I began to explain to him that his site was not worth doing any SEO on at this time. I further explained that I am in need of a cure and his book would be something that I might actually want. Then I explained that is website was so bad that had I discovered it and clicked on it that I would immediately left. I went to great lengths to explain that he must meet or exceed his users expectations.

I further explained that he would be wasting his money using an SEO service. The concept here is that it doesn’t make any sense to bring traffic to a website that is broken or ineffective. During the conversation he mentioned that he built the website using Intuit. I then suggest that he consider using WordPress but that anything was better than what he has.

I also offered to do an SEO Review to see how competitive his market is. The idea here is that it might not be worth the effort if it was very competitive. It’s impossible to make an accurate judgement about a keyword sector without knowing what the challenges are. I also suggested that their may be better options available that were more cost effective. I also offered to make available my SEO video training so that he could do it himself after he fixed his website.

I went to great length to explain that I was trying to save him money and to give him the best possible opportunity to succeed. I figured he would be better served to know what his challenges are. And that he could be learning about the SEO process so that he could do it himself. Then he could work on improving his website. I also explained that his website needed to be as good as if not better than his competitors if he wanted to get their attention.

This is a common mistake that many people make. They seem to think that all they have to do is get people to website and this automatically leads to sales, wrong!

I am at a point that I am not looking to take on any new long term clients. I have a full schedule, but I wanted to help him not to get taken. He had already told me that he had limited funds so I was attempting to provide him with the tools and training to do it himself while it works at improving his website.

We were about 20 minutes into this conversation when this comes up. He makes the statement that since he didn’t meet me he had no way of knowing if I was a schist-er. Wow, I thought, I have been bending over backwards to help this guy not get taken and he things I’m a low life. Thus, the I am amazed part of this story. I’m pointing out that his website needs to be fixed before he does any SEO. I’m offering to provide a clear picture of his market and offering training so that he can do it himself and he calls me a schist-er.

I asked myself, “was this guy listening to me at all?” Now, I can understand his reluctance, but it just seemed like he wasn’t paying attention. So yes, I was blown away buy this and quickly ended the conversation. I have seen this kind of behavior before and its motivated by fear, the fear of being taken. And all SEO’s should be looked at with a healthy dose of skepticism as there are so many bad ones doing business.

The guy ended up calling me back and apologizing, but my decision had already been made. I refused to consider him as a client. I have learned over the years that some clients are not worth the money that they bring into the business. When their are problems in the beginning they never seem to go away. They just seem to multiply over time.

I guess he didn’t believe me when I explained that I really am in need of a sinus cure, as I sniffled through the conversation. And that I would have immediately left his website because it was so poor and failed to meet my expectations. He is offering health solutions that require trust, but his site does nothing to assure you that this is a trustworthy website or product.

This kind of thing happens all to often, but I have never been called a schist-er previously. And yes, I was irritated. As I was looking to protect this guy and he could not see it. Now, having said all of this I am still an optimist at heart. I like making lemonade out of lemons. That is why I am blogging about this story. It helps me get ride of my frustration and it adds fresh content to the blog.

What Say you?

Google Places SEO Citations Blog     Local SEO Services    Google Places SEO    Google Places Citations

Do you own a local small business in Tucson, Arizona or elsewhere and you need Google Places SEO or Places Citations services? Then please call Tucson SEO at 520-505-6024 or email me Now!

Tucson SEO… Solutions that create probabilities out of possibilities.

Tucson SEO Solution 814 N. Belvedere Ave. Tucson, AZ 85711 520-505-6024