A customer calls up to ask for help and is told that you’re too busy. He asks you a question and you ask if he’s deaf. He pulls out his phone, searches “your business” and writes exactly what he thinks of you and your business in brilliantly brutal and concise words for the entire World to stumble upon. This is definitely more effective than picketing. Firstly because it’s sadly no longer the 1980’s and I’m no longer a member of the National Graphical Association trade union. But perhaps more importantly, because this statement is directed at people that can hurt your business most, that’s potential new customers and existing customers. 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations, and that isn’t the only reason you should be working on your customer service!
2014 was a year of change for Google. We’ve seen ‘Penguin’, ‘Pirate’, ‘Panda’, and ‘Pay Day Loan’ algorithm updates all come in to effect. So what does this mean for search ranking and what can we expect in 2015? Google is beginning to interpret our search rather than just trawl through keywords. It’s no longer enough to have a website packed full of the right keywords. Searches are being ranked on ‘relevance’ instead of “exact matching”. So if your rivals are outnumbering you on reviews, even if they’re not necessarily better reviews, then they could be outnumbering you in the search results.
If your site is static, no testimonials being posted, no new images, no blog, well then you’re becoming less relevant and unless you change that you could soon be forgotten. Don’t misunderstand me, without SEO most businesses couldn’t dream of growing their organic visitor sessions. And of course there are still lots of the old techniques that are valid. But if you really want to take the star prize your business has to become a meaningful brand. That involves engaging with your customers. Your business needs to interact and be accessible.
If you’re wondering how the website monkey should best dance to please Google’s animal police then the best guidelines we have found are here – http://themoralconcept.net/
1. Having a high quality ranking or trust factor for your business url.
2. Long-standing and regularly updated domain name.
3. Having a site that satisfies the user.
4. Strongly consistent with business information.
5. Optimised site design.
But the article also outlines the recently developing guidelines that involve a business’s duty to maintain their internet presence and consistently interact with the web. So the best plan of attack for you and your business is to consider a mixture of these, or contact us to do it for you.
