MKT 420 Book Review Post 4

Other Types of Optimization

Local Search – Local search allows someone to search for stores, restaurants, any business that is in their geographical area. By adding a piece of location data to the search (movie theater Boston) will help the search engines find all the movie theaters in your area. Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft all have their own local search sites. It works just like a regular search but you have to add your location data into the search. A map will come up showing exactly where each place is in your location and a link to their website where you can find more information. Optimizing your site for local search is much like SEO but with location data. Provide as much information as you can in your keywords, content on the site, and in the META tags (Miller). Be specific down to the actual address of the business. Any Nicknames that the business has should be included as well. The more information on location that you have the better local search you will get.

Mobile Devices – With the rise of smartphones more people are getting internet access where ever they are. It is very important that mobile devices are able to view your webpage especially when combined with local search. “Mobile search = local search” (Miller). People use their smartphone to see what is in there area and if your site is not apart of that search you could potentially lose customers. Searching on a smartphone is very similar to searching with a computer. To optimize your site for mobile devices you must first make a mobile friendly site. Then once you have the mobile site the steps are identical for your traditional site: keyword placement, content, local information, don’t forget about your META tags, and create a site map of the mobile site to submit to search engines.

Social Media – If your company is engaging with social networking then it is a must to have that linked to your site. Provide a “follow me” button for your Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Provide all the information about your social media presence on your site. This will create better SEO because the search engines will index your social media profiles in your company’s name. The more information there is out there the better because it will provide more information for the spiders to look for. (Miller)

These three channels, local search, mobile devices, and social media, are channels that often get overlooked when considering SEO. It is important that you optimize your site as much as possible to receive the best possible organic search.