PoseTek Service Technician

The story I’m about to tell you is true. The names have remained the same so that you can evaluate the truth for yourself.

Joe and Victoria Pose

“Once we get a new customer (that’s the hard part), they become a customer for life. So when I tell you that you’re responsible for PoseTek getting 6 New (Out-of-Warranty) Customers today, you can imagine what that means to us in terms of dollars and additional service calls. And we’re getting new customers at an accelerated rate.

Promise me that you won’t teach any other appliance service company in Ft. Myers what you taught me. Please?”

Joe Pose - PoseTek Appliance Service LLC
17030 Alico Commerce Ct. Ste 314 / Fort Myers, FL 33967 / (239)-200-6669‎

As long as you don’t own appliance repair company or a rental car business in Southwest Florida, feel free to call either Joe Pose (239) 200-6669 or Tom Kindelan (239) 566-3643 to hear their story first hand.

Want to put this same strategy that transformed Joe’s business to work for your local business? Give me a call here in Hawaii at 808-891-0449 today.

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Who’s Your Daddy?

I don’t know what the numbers are, but I have to believe that many, many more people look on Google for a local service provider than look on Angie’s List. If anyone has access to the data, please post them below. That being said, it’s important to note that many of the good and great businesses listed on Angie’s List are ecstatic with the results … especially if they have great reviews. Here’s the problem.

Business owners get great reviews on Angie’s List. Their great reviews encourage others with a paid subscription to Angie’s List to hire them. They do a great job and ask their customer to review their service on Angie’s List for others with paid subscriptions to see. More great reviews on Angie’s List generate more business from subscribers to Angie’s List and cycle goes on and on. So where’s the problem?

But Wait, There’s More

Did you know that customers can review local service providers on Google and dozens of other review sites too? And did you know that Google aggregates the reviews from those other sites and shows them on their local search page? Problem is, Angie’s List charges their customers to see their reviews and does not allow Google to post their Angie’s List reviews on Google. If they did, no one would pay to see the reviews on Angie’s List.
Because of that, the local service providers who generate great reviews on Angie’s List aren’t able to share those reviews with the people who are looking for their service on Google. Without knowing any better, these local business  owners are becoming a big fish in the smaller Angie’s List pond, when they could become a big fish in the ocean of Google customers.

Solution

If you’re a local service provider who’s generating great reviews on Angie’s List, consider that those same great reviews could just as easily be posted on Google. Ask your customers to post their reviews on Google too, where other potential customers are looking for the service you offer. You can even ask them to write a similar review on one of the many other review sites … (which Google will eventually show in their results and I’m sure they would be happy to do for you.

Get Your Business On Angie’s List

If your business is not on Angie’s List, by all means, please sign up. You want your business on as many sites as possible, and Angie’s List might be one of the best places for you to be seen.

Just go to www.Company.Angieslist.Com and click on the “Register Now” button. They will walk you through the sign-up process and educate you on Angie’s List along the way. You definitely want to be seen here. As I mentioned earlier, Angie’s List is one of my favorite sites, but …

Google is the 800 pound guerrilla when it comes to local search. If you want to attract many more customers, let me encourage you to spend time with the guerrilla. No disrespect to Angie’s List, I’m a huge fan, but it’s hard to ignore Google when their results are front and center on every search result.

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Now you can instantly see if your business shows up in the most highly search local sites on the Internet for the most popular keywords and phrases your customers use to find you.  Our new Business Listing Ranking tool will not only save you a ton of time, but it will show you which of your competitors are garnering all the new business from the Internet … and what you can do to take it back.

Notice on the far right column of every page there’s a category entitled “Industry” where you can quickly see how you rank for your keywords in your community. (We’re adding new industries every day.) You can either do the search by city and state or zip code. If you live in a small to medium sized community, do the search by city and state. If you live in a large urban community, use the zip code feature as well, because this is a common way people in large cities search for local business services.

Where Do Your Customers Look For You?

The tool will show you how you rank on sites including Google, Yahoo!, Bing, Merchant Circle, Yelp, Super Pages, Local and Yellow Book. It will also show you how you rank for the top 6-8 keywords people use to find the services you offer in your industry. (If your industry is not listed, please go to the comment section below and make a request.)

For example, if you’re in the appliance repair business you can see how your business ranks for the following terms.

• Appliance Repair
• Refrigerator Repair
• Washer Repair
• Dryer Repair
• Dishwasher Repair
• Oven Repair
• GE Repair
• Maytag Repair

Search Trends Rock

We also added another feature that will help you promote your business. You can see the search trends for each term to help you decide the very best months of the year to get the most out of your advertising and marketing efforts.

Give it a try.

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There are three primary ways you can get your business listed on these GPS devices. I encourage you to do all three.

InfoUSA is a data aggregation company … among other things. They acquire business data from multiple sources and then make that data available to the world. Just go to InfoUSA and add your business information. If it’s already there, check for accuracy and allow them between one and three months to get the information out to the GPS manufacturers and mapping software companies.

It’s important to remember that once a GPS device is installed in a car, it’s up to the cars owner to update the data file. This does not happen automatically. All future devices will/should include your updated location information however.

My next stop would be the NAVTEQ Map Reporter site. Actually, if my only concern was getting on GPS devices, this would be my first stop.

Navteq provides their information to Garmin and other sites. They also make this information available directly to the consumer who wants to pay for and update their mapping software.

Go to NAVTEQ and follow their three easy steps. They will even keep you informed of when your POI (Point of Interest) location, your business, has been included in their software update.

My third and final stop would be TeleAtlas. They make it very easy for you to add a new business location or point of interest. Again, go to TeleAtlas and add your information. The process is quick and painless.

All of these sites will do research to insure that the information you provided is accurate. Expect a call from InfoUSA and a delay before hearing from TeleAtlas and NAVTEQ … if you hear from them at all.

If you provide your business location and information to all three sites, there is a very good chance you will start to show up on GPS devices within a few months. And as you know, visibility translates into profitability. Do it today.

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You Get A Gold Star

There is a really cool thing that happens on Google Maps when you generate 5 reviews. Once you reach that magic number, Google shows little gold stars next to your business listing. It’s another way reviews help you stand out in the crowd.

Look at this example for the term “Event Photographer Maui.” Notice how Nancy Nelson Photography stands out. It doesn’t hurt that she’s in the top spot either, but honestly, even if her business was in the last spot on the map, I would still be more likely to click on it first.

I Like What I’m Reading

Standing out is not just about generating lots and lots of reviews. You must have as many 5-star reviews as possible. The better the reviews, the more likely people will be to contact and hire you. I encourage you to read my article on “5 Star Business Reviews: How To Get Them” before you get started.

If you have a bad review on Google or on another site, there are a few things you can do to get them removed from your listing. Please read my article on “Getting Bad Reviews Removed” if this is an issue for you.

Get Their Attention

One of our customers is Regal Car Rental in Ft. Myers Florida. The owner knows the importance of getting great reviews and he does a wonderful job of generating them. To date, all of his reviews are 5-star reviews.

Regal Car Rental is in the number one spot for the term “Cheap Car Rentals Ft. Myers FL,” not because Tom rents cheap cars, but because this is a highly searched term and he wants to get in front of the people looking for inexpensive rentals.

Recently Tom received a review on Google that was titled in all capital letters: THERE IS NOTHING CHEAP ABOUT THE SERVICE. Even though this review was a five star review, it caught my attention because I thought it might be a customer complaint. The review went on to read as follows. “The one and only place to rent a car in Ft. Myers. Friendly service good selection and willing to go the extra mile.‎”

After seeing this review, it gave me a wonderful idea. People tend to look for bad reviews first to insure that they don’t get ripped off.  A great way to give these people what they’re looking for is to encourage one of your happy customers to title their review in such a way that the reader doesn’t know what to expect … but is delighted once they read the review.

I Contacted You After Reading Your Reviews

I can’t tell you how often we hear this from our customers. Once you generate a significant number of positive reviews, you will hear this from your customers on a frequent basis. It’s my top reason for selecting a service provider and it’s the decision making process used by millions of others too.

Get To Work

If you’ve been putting off generating positive reviews from your customers, don’t delay any longer. Reviews may or may not help you get top placement in Google or any of the other highly searched sites, but there’s no question that great reviews will convert lookers to buyers.

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Pondering Morality

A few nights ago I laid in bed thinking about all the different ways I’ve seen unethical local search marketing companies take advantage of uninformed business owners; I even wrote a very passionate article about it the very next day. While laying there, the thought occurred to me that as a professional local search marketing researcher and speaker, I was teaching business owners how to do the exact same thing; take advantage of their uninformed competitors. Was that the right thing to do?

Marketing Is Not Selling

Local Search Marketing is not selling. Salespeople actively promote their products and services to people who may not be in the process of considering a purchase. They often times generate the sale of a product or service that would not have happened without their involvement.  A good example would be that of a siding salesman who persuades a homeowner to improve the value of his or her home by installing siding on their house.

On the other hand, local search marketing targets people who are ready to buy. They don’t need to be persuaded or encouraged to make a buying decision, they’ve already made it. This is where I have a moral dilemma with local search marketing.

Who’s Getting The Business Now And Why?

As things are now, Google and the rest of the search engines show certain businesses on the first page of results for different products and services in each community. They generally show a map along with up to seven business listings. The businesses that are on those maps, and especially the businesses that are at the top of those maps with multiple reviews are getting the lions share of the sales.

These companies base their compensation, employment and future goals in part based on the business they receive from their placement on those sites.  Most are generating business from local search and they have no idea how or why it’s happening. And then we come along with our fancy local search marketing techniques and we show their competitors how to take the top spots (at their expense) and bam! we screw everything up. Let me explain.

Rental Car Company – 60 new Customers/Month

I recently helped a rental car company in Southwest Florida improve their ranking for a highly searched keyword on multiple sites where people look to rent cars. In a matter of days, this company went from “just getting by,” to renting two additional cars/day or an additional 700 cars/year, and we’re just getting started with their marketing. For a small rental car company, 700 additional car rentals/year is the difference between making payrole and earning a sweat living.

Wellness Center – 3 New Customers/Month

We have another customer here on Maui who runs a wellness center. She’s picking up an average of one new customer every week based on the placement of her local business listing on just Google. Again, the people who contact her don’t need to be sold on their wellness, they’re ready to buy.  It just so happens that now they’re purchasing this service from her instead of her competition due to her placement on Google Maps.

Bed And Breakfast – Zero Advertising Costs

One of the most amazing success stories is the Eva Villa Bed and Breakfast on Maui that uses local search to book their rooms without spending a dime on advertising. This is probably the only Bed and Breakfast in the world that generates 100% of their business on the Internet using Local Search Marketing. They went from struggling to generate business to a full house after their bed and breakfast showed up on Google Maps for the term “Villa Rental Maui” and “Bed and Breakfast Maui.” This new business came at the expense of the bed and breakfast that used to show up in that spot.

So What’s The Problem?

Here’s the moral issue. Every single car that is rented and every new wellness customer came to these businesses at the expense of one or more of their competitors. This new business is just being redistributed to the new king of the hill; to the company that gets their business listed at the top of the local search sites in their community. Is this right? Is this fair?

And The Winner Is

The prize does not go the the biggest or the oldest or to the company that stands at the front of the alphabet line, but rather to the company that understands and takes advantage of local search marketing.

The issue really has to do with scarcity. There are only so many spots where your customers are going to look to find the products and services you offer. If you’re in one or more of those spot, you win the prize. If you’re not in one of those spots, someone else is going to make the sale.

With 97% of all customers looking on the Internet to find a product or service that they intend to purchase locally, you can’t afford to avoid this medium any longer. Problem is, you’re doing it at the expense of your competition.

And here’s the real kicker, if you just happen to be in one or more of those prime spots today, there’s a very good chance that you won’t be tomorrow. Business owners are getting smarter and smarter when it comes to local search marketing and if you don’t secure your position as the dominant competitor in your community, someone else is going to take that spot from you. You are not the only person reading this article.

Take Advantage Of This Information

Here’s what you need to do. Search for the products and services you offer and see who is providing those services in your community. Note that the company in the top spot is getting an unproportional share of the business and that company could be your company very soon.

Then, take the time to learn how local search marketing works and get crackin’. Success does not happen overnight and with a little consistent effort you will see results that you can only imagine.

Local search marketing is not really a moral issue, it’s more of a knowledge and effort issue. Once you acquire the knowledge and make the effort to optimize and publicize your business listing, you will see results that far exceed your expectations and you will see those results for a long time to come.

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Results

We’ve been researching, testing and tweaking local business listings on the most searched sites on the Internet and the results have been nothing short of amazing. If you doubt us, read the testimonials provided by the people who have told us how their business has been transformed by local search marketing.

Here’s what we discovered.

• There is nothing in the newspaper that you can’t find at a better value online.
• There is nothing in a magazine that you can’t find at a better value online.
• There is nothing in the Yellow Pages that you can’t find at a better value online.
• There is nothing on the radio that you can’t find at a better value online.
• There is nothing on television that you can’t find at a better value online.
• There is nothing on a billboard that you can’t find at a better value online.
• There is nothing in the mail that you can’t find at a better value online.
• There is nothing offered by a telemarketer that you can’t find at a better value online.

And it’s important to note that “better value” does not mean cheap. Value represents everything you get in return for the money you invest including convenience, service, reliability, ease of use etc.

And that’s why

90% of customers who want to make a local purchase look online for the products and services you offer first before deciding if they want to contact you.

Today, if you’re company is not visible on the Internet, you won’t even be considered for the majority of purchases made by your customers.

Super Cool!

But here’s the really cool thing about local search marketing. You don’t need a website and you don’t need to spend money to attract the attention of highly interested customers when they’re ready to make a purchase. All you need to do is be where you’re customers are looking and it’s not that hard to do. This entire website exists to show you how it’s done.

If you’re a skeptic like I tend to be, do a search for the products and services you offer (just like 90% of the population does) and see what they see.

• Did you find your business?
• Was it the most prominent business listing?
• Was it the most compelling business listing?
• Did you find on all of the 7.8 sites (on average) where people look?

Watch the 10 minute video we created on Local Search Marketing and tell me if this isn’t the most exciting marketing concept you’ve ever seen. Just click on the video icon with my photo (which you will find at the top of the second column on every page) and be amazed.

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Not Everyone Is Dishonorable

To start, it’s important to understand that there are some very legitimate local search marketing companies who can help you generate tons of leads for your business. These people are generally in high demand and don’t go out soliciting new business on the telephone.

It’s also important to note that there are people in the local search marketing community who claim to be experts when in fact, they’re not. Some are just working with limited knowledge, while others are professional scammers. You want to avoid both and here’s why.

Do No Harm

If someone does not know what they’re doing, they can unintentionally destroy your reputation with the search engines by doing things that are not in accordance with their terms of service. Some of these things include adding keywords to your business name, placing your business in multiple locations where your business does not exist, keyword stuffing your category selections, using one telephone number at multiple locations and more. If the search engines catch you doing any of these things, they will remove your listing from their database forever. That can be a very, very costly mistake.

Scammers can do the same damage to your business listing but they do it with the full knowledge of the consequences. They will bend and break every rule in order to get you a couple of quick hits before the search engines discover what they’ve done. By then, you will have paid them and they will be long gone.

1. Givers Or Takers?

A good Local Search Marketing company is willing to show you exactly what they’re going to do to generate leads for your business. They know how much effort goes into doing local search properly and they know what their expertise is worth.

The very best Local Search Marketing companies will provide you with a Do-It-Yourself Guide on their site and give you the tools necessary to accomplish some, most, or all of the work depending on your ability. Look for a company that wants to help you understand the process first before trying to take your hard earned money.

2. Price Negotiations

The cost of having your business optimized and publicized on the Internet can range from a one-time fee of $100 to $1,000. Fees are based on the quality of the service and the extent your listing will be publicized on the Internet. Do your homework, compare pricing and know what you’re getting for the money.

Scammers will generally start high and continue to reduce their price until you agree to their terms. This is one of the most common pricing techniques used by scammers. If someone is willing to reduce his or her price quickly or give you a one time special offer, watch out. Their goal is to make you think you’re getting a great deal when the truth is; you don’t have a clue as to what you’re getting.

3. Monthly Maintenance Fee?

Local Search Marketing is a one-time event. Once your business is optimized and publicized, the only thing left to do is to generate local business citations and customer reviews. This is something a local search marketing company is not going to do for you because they don’t have access to your customers.

If a company wants to charge you a monthly service fee, make sure you find out what it’s for. Unless they’re going to generate additional local business citations, it’s a waste of money.

4. Check Their References

A reputable company should be delighted to showcase their work. Look for a list of their customers along with addresses and telephone numbers. If they can’t or won’t provide that information, hang up the telephone and put them on call blocking.

You can also check with the BBB and see if they have any outstanding complaints. Do a search for “their company name” + the word “scam.” If anything comes up, read the article and see what others have to say about the company on the Internet. It’s hard to hide from a bad review.

5. Don’t Provide Your Account Information

If the company you’re considering to do your local search marketing passes muster and you decide to hire them, there is one more thing to consider and it’s important.

In order to do Local Search Marketing correctly, you must have an account (user name and password) with all of the major search engines. The search engines need this information before allowing you or someone on your behalf to claim your business. Sometimes scammers will ask for your information, and sometimes they won’t. They can scam you either way.

Oftentimes scammers will claim your business using a fake account. It’s not only easier for them to access your business listing without your consent, but it gives them complete control over what goes on your listing. Don’t let this happen. There is nothing worse than to discover a scammer holding you hostage by threatening to destroy or remove your business listing unless you continue to pay them.

If you give a scammer access to your account information, they can also do major damage to your reputation and your pocketbook. If you have a Google Adwords account for example, your credit card is on file and easily accessible to the scammer giving them the ability to use your credit to promote their business at your expense. They can also upload any content they want under your name and abuse your email list if they choose to do so. The hurt can go on forever. Don’t give your account information to anyone you don’t trust.

A professional will explain the advantages and disadvantages of both and will suggest that they provide you with the optimized content for your business listing and show you how to upload that information to your account. This is by far the safest method.

Conclusion

Scammers go to great extent to hide their intentions. Follow these five simple rules and pay attention to what your gut is telling you.

Giving someone you don’t trust access to your credit card information can be troubling. Giving them access to your business listing can be devastating.

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