Tag Archives: Google

Trusted Back Links For Your Site after Penguin

Trusted Back Links For Your Site after Penguin.

If you have been following this blog, and many of the better SEO sites on line, you know by now that with the recent (and not so recent changes) in the Google ranking systems that the more “trusted Sites” you have linking to your site, the better your site authority is going to be. There is nothing new in this, except that on August 10th  2012, Google made additional changes in its algorithm that in essence gave what they consider “trusted Sites” an even higher boast in Authority.

PageRanks-Example.svg
PageRanks-Example.svg (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I’d like to introduce some sites that I consider “trusted”.  If you use them for your site, you will find they fall into the SEO philosophy we try to practice, that being, if you would want to add your site or get a link on a site even if Google didn’t exist, it’s probably a good idea to do so, and will meet the Google guidelines on quality links.

A few other considerations for a back link opportunity (and these all help in considering a web site or page trusted).

  • Will this web site provide additional traffic to your site, and will it be quality traffic. This principle in itself will knock out about 95% of the “directories” on line. Many, if not most were set up for SEO purposes.  We have been tracking 100 + directories over the last 12 months to see what effect the Google Algorithm changes would have.  The most basic research method is to look at the sites Page Rank in the past, and see if it has dropped or disappeared.  Many of the directories once used in abundance by web masters and some a SEO’s have lost some or all of the Google page rank once reported. A sure sign the site is considered low quality by Google.
  • Would you be embarrassed if someone judged your business by it’s presence on this site. Or perhaps a better way to put it, would you be pleased to be found on the site. Now I know, most of the low value places you can list your site will never be seen by any of your customers, so this question is really an internal thought process, and it goes with the first point exactly.
  • Is it easy to add your site?   There is a direct correlation between the ease of adding your site or information to a web site, and the value it offers your business.
  • Does this site relate to your business? Trust me, this is important, and it goes to the point number 1 again. Why are you adding your information to a site in a foreign country that has no relationship to your business?
  • Does this site have follow links? Who cares? You shouldn’t. Follow, no follow makes no difference if you are following the principle of using a site for great traffic or visibility.
    Image of Google & Yahoo offices in Haifa. Both...
    Image of Google & Yahoo offices in Haifa. Both located in the same building (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

     

There are more principles I will blog about later, for now I am due on a webinar.  Let me give you a couple of sites we think you should be on, and you tell me if they make sense. I would also be interested in your thoughts on these simple principles.

We can start with some simple listing sites, and later we will go into directories, Social sites, forums and blogs.  I want to give you what may seem to be obvious (or not) and some that are a little off the beaten track.

Site One:  Google Plus for Business. http://www.google.com/+/business/

Site Two:  http://www.ikarma.com/

I think you will find both sites fall into the parameters.  I could pontificate on the reasons and the research, traffic and results from these sites, but I’d rather hear your thoughts, as well as your suggestions.

 

 

 

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Using Anchor Text for SEO is Stupid

Using Anchor Text is Stupid.

As a Denver based Search Engine Optimization Company we can clearly say that using unnatural Anchor Text to help your sites ranking is stupid, and always has been. SEO’s have been using it as a measurement and tool since the beginning of time and with the recent changes at Google many are suffering the consequences, and more accurately their former or current clients are suffering the rankings drop.

Google Chrome
Google Chrome (Photo credit: thms.nl)

One of the principles Google speaks to in SEO is taking actions as if Google didn’t exist. Great SEO starts with that premise. So unnatural Anchor Text is a CLEAR violation of that principle, and can be easily identified by a search engine.

I do not think that on Site basics apply to this principle.  Your site must be as clear and specific as possible about its content. That’s not gaming the system, it’s just common sense. Most of the tactics Google seems to hate are off site and in your sites link profile.

Let’s go to the basics. In order of importance for making sure Google and other search engines can index and understand what your site is about (or your sites pages).

  1. Your URL.  This seems simple.  If your site URL or page URL says Dentist, well, Google will have a strong clue that you’re a Dentist.  I know about the Google patent on exact match domains, but as of now we haven’t seen much evidence that there have been any changes in actual rankings.

Here is the logic:  If Google didn’t exist, I would want a domain that clearly defines what I am. So yes, I would use a domain like Dentist.com  or Dentist in Detroit , or Pretty smile dentist….   To me that stands’ up to the principle that great web visibility starts with acting like Google doesn’t exist.

2.)    Your Meta Title:  Next to the domain name, this is how any search engine figures out what your site is about. Remember, these are robots, not English majors reading the Title of a page.  So if you are a Dentist in Chicago, I would use Dentist in Chicago in the first few words.

3.)    Content:  I don’t really give a hoot about percentage of keywords in your copy, or even your H1, H2 tags…what we should care about is that when someone reads the page, that it is very clear what the page is about.  If that leads to a natural paragraph heading that includes the words in your title tag, so be it. If it doesn’t, that’s fine to.

4.)    And… remember… content and rankings are by page not site. It would be very confusing if Meta tags were the only information a person looking for your site could see, and every page on your site had the same Meta title.  80 pages of Dentist in Chicago. Looks sloppy. And then which page would they click on?  Confusing.

And then to the off site:

English: The three biggest web search engines
English: The three biggest web search engines (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There are times when you can use Anchor Text to point to your site. But the reality is not many. And if you are lucky enough to get a link on a good quality site, Google will already know what the page is about that the link is pointing to because it’s clear in the Meta title and copy on the page. Why add Anchor text? Really?  You don’t think Google or others have the page Indexed?  Then that’s another issue.  And then if you use the same Anchor Text to different pages on your site that have different subjects, will, you get the picture.

Using Anchor Text always has been stupid (in most cases).

I know that the vast majority of SEO tips and principles are really just opinions, so if you disagree I completely understand and respect that. SEO or web visibility is a complex field, and you always have to look at correlation versus causation and do a bunch of research and study to really feel confident.  Or, you can produce really stellar content and give clear and precise information on your site and pages, and then actively become part of the Internet communities to promote your business.  In the now and the future we feel (even in its simplified summary) that the later will win the day.

Don’t hesitate to call us if we can help you. 303 500 3053 ext 1.  (Mike)

 

 

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Google Places (Google Plus for Business) now showing competitors Zagat ratings.

Google Places ( Google Plus for Business) now showing competitors Zagat ratings.

Google Plus for Business and Google Places listings are now showing not only the similar places information on listings, but are now also showing the review scores of some of those similar places (or you might say competitors).

You can scroll down to the screen shots at the bottom to see several examples.  I started this blog to see what other review sites the Google places listings show for some top ranked (in Maps)  listings. The basis was just to update and see if anything had changed. Doesn’t look like it has. You can see the usually suspects below. These are sites you should actively seek reviews from your customers on.  All are based in a top 20 market  ( Okay it’s Denver)/

Top Ranked Local Sites and review mentions:

Chiropractor:  Reviews from around the web: insiderpages.com (7)yahoo.com (3)citysearch.com (1)

Chiropractor 2: Reviews from around the web: citysearch.com (54)dexknows.com (20)insiderpages.com (3)

Denver Dentist 2: demandforce.com (28)citysearch.com (2)dentalelements.com (68)

Denver Custom Home Builder: Reviews from around the web: kudzu.com (1)

Denver Remodeling:

judysbook.com (1)

But here is what really caught my eye:  Under similar places for a basement finishing company Google is now showing the scores for the competitor’s listings.  That’s new for me, and another good reason to monitor your business reputation, and ask your customers for reviews.

It also should be noted that the main reason I was going through this exercise was based on the issues Google seems to be having even getting real reviews from your real customers posted. Our clients are reporting reviews not showing up after posted. It just doesn’t get any better than that. But in all things Google Plus (Places) patience is the main attribute needed to maintain one’s sanity.

Here are some screen shots.

From a Basement Finishing Search and Google places page: https://plus.google.com/109113884867743336579/about?hl=en

 

From A Search For Top Rated Dentists:

I could add more, but you get the picture. Let me know what you see and we will continue to keep our eyes on how the new world of Google Plus for Business may affect your Internet reputation and marketing.

 

Mike: 303 500 3053 ext 1

How To Choose A SEO Company

Unicorn Display’s and How to Choose an SEO company.

( Quick Note on reading this Blog. When you see the word really, that thought is really important.)

Choosing a search engine optimization company isn’t all the different than selecting a contractor to build your home addition.

Let’s say you want to build a new 1000 square foot home addition for your rare collection of pictures of your favorite breed of unicorn. ( we all have our favorites). Because you have a specific purpose, you will have some ideas on the design.  A space for displaying pictures of unicorns is going to look and feel different than building an exercise room (something I would know nothing about).

Cover of "Unicorns (Troubador Color and S...

So, the first step is going to be to find a contractor who has:

  • Experience in building home additions in your area.
  • Even better if they have in fact built an addition to display rare pictures of actual Unicorns in the past.
  • Has excellent and current references. The current part is very important. Building codes change, and a companies performance will change over time as well. You don’t want to see references from last year.
  • Is not the cheapest. Let’s face it; this is a pretty complication and specialized area. You don’t want someone faking it as they build your space.  Of all the horror stories you have heard about hiring contractors, I would wager the vast majority started out with the purchaser choosing the lowest price. Same goes for SEO.  Really. Don’t trust me? Let me know how that $49.00 a month program works for you.  Really.
    BELIZE CITY, BELIZE - MARCH 02:  Prince Harry ...
    BELIZE CITY, BELIZE – MARCH 02: Prince Harry greets Governor General Sir Coleville Young as he arrives at Philip Goldson International Airport on March 2, 2012 in Belize City, Belize. The Prince is visiting Belize as part of a Diamond Jubilee tour where he will be visiting Belize, the Bahamas, Jamaica and Brazil as a representative of Queen Elizabeth II. Belize is a Commonwealth realm with a population of around 350,000 and boasts the second longest barrier reef in the world. With much of the country covered in tropical jungle and a diversity of wildlife, Belize relies heavily on tourism. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

     

  • Communication with the contractor during the proposal process. You are going to live with these people for a few months at least. View it as if you were dating this company. At the end of the relationship you want to say it was beautiful… and fulfilling and really meant something good. You don’t want nor need an ugly break up.  It’s all about communication and chemistry.  If it’s not there in the proposal process it won’t be there in the building process. Make sure you speak with the actual person who will be the “lead” on the project, not the sales representative.

Okay… so you see the correlation? Of course you do.  I am talking correlation not causation here. (SEO joke).

Pick an SEO who has experience in YOUR type business. If you are an Attorney, you want an SEO who has proven results with… Attorneys.  Just because they got your brother in laws restaurant rated number two on Google Plus for business (places) for Belizean family restaurants in Greeley Colorado, does not mean they will have any clue how to help a law firm.  Now.. if you own a Belizean family restaurant…  you are on the right path!

Pick an SEO with Current references. Really.  SEO changes from nanosecond to nanosecond (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanosecond ) . Last years rankings and results don’t mean much. What does is the last 6 months of programs. Really. Ask for the clients they are working with currently and started less than 7 months ago.  Oh…  and call them.  Really. Call them.

If the price seems really low, check those references again.

And, make sure you feel completely comfortable with their style of communication. Let’s face it, the last thing you need is a failure to communicate. Remember what happened to cool hand Luke? Me either, but that is where that line came from…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Add Pay Per Click to Your SEO Campaigns?

Time to Add Pay Per Click to Your Denver SEO Campaigns? The Answer is yes.

Google has done a masterful job of slowly, yet consistently diminishing the visibility of the local maps on search engine results over the last 18 months.

Let me give you an example.  Here are the results from a search for Mold Removal Denver about 2 years ago.

Here they are now (June 2012)

Here’s another example of Electrician Northglenn CO. from a few years ago.

Here are the results today:

For a great overview and infographic on this read and view the David Mihm web design and Local SEO blog at   http://www.davidmihm.com/blog/google/world/

It’s pretty clear… for great Internet visibility for your site, working on Google Maps (now Google Plus Local) is only part of the strategy. Not long ago it could provide the vast majority of your traffic. Today, it’s only a piece.

I have been involved very recently in two conversations where clients are under the impression that people don’t click on the Pay Per Click ads. This is very understandable from someone who knows something about how Google serves search results, because we all know someone just paid to be there. As I pointed out in each conversation, it is somewhat amazing to me how many Denver business owners are NOT aware that the top three results (in many cases) are in fact paid advertising.  And the more recent research seems to indicate that generically, about 15% of clicks are on Pay Per Click Ad’s. Hey… that’s as good as being in a top 3 position!

And, it’s not all that different than the days when consumer’s used the yellow pages to find local services. The biggest ads where (and are) listed first, and they receive the vast majority of the calls. People understand that they were paid advertising, and didn’t page back to find the smaller or line ads, because the company didn’t pay for that listing.

So a complete SEO program needs to take in to account three different areas, those being, organic search, local results , and Pay per Click advertising. And it should be designed to take into account the four different methods a person may use to conduct a local search:

Keyword + Suburb

Keyword

Keyword+ Major City

Keyword + zip

Each serves up different results.

Another big advantage of using the Google Ad words program is you can see great traffic statistics for key words that have become unavailable since Google stopped providing this information on many searches.

So to answer the original question, should you be using Pay Per Click?  Yes, but,  Ad words has become increasing difficult for a novice to navigate. It’s easy to waste a lot of money if you are not trained and familiar with keyword types (exact match, Phrase match, Broad Match, Negative match and others) as well as the location targeted, quality scores and types of bidding available.

Our suggestion is at least have a Internet Marketing firm who has experience in PPC set up and monitor your ad words (and any other PPC services) for you.  We have lot’s of clients getting strong return on investment using PPC.

Please feel free to call me at 303-500-3053 ext 1 if you want some help.  I may not pick up, as I get several calls a day from this blog, and have lots of other phone calls and meetings to be on or in, but I will call you back! Or feel free to email me as well at mike@myonecall.com

 

 

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Search Engine and Social Media Marketing in Denver

SEO and Social Media in Denver

Social Media is hard for many small businesses to understand. I’m not talking about how it works, or what it is, I am talking about its value as a business tool. Search Engine Optimization on the other hand, is pretty straight forward. If your site is ranked higher on Google, more people will call you.

White hat seo symbolizes good ethic techniques...
White hat seo symbolizes good ethic techniques in search engine marketing (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The reason we have a love hate relationship with social media is it’s not advertising, and we are use to thinking in terms of return on investment when we promote our services. I would use the term branding when it comes to using social media, and branding, up until recently has been the domain of the largest of large companies.  Branding also has traditional had a very high price tag.

I recently was reading a research study on how new prospects actually found a business. The premise was very few new customers just make a keyword search, click on your site and call.  The vast majority of people had  contact or visibility into the company they ultimately bought from in 3 or more places.  The search was just the last place.

It’s nothing new. Marketing your business is not done through one path. The most successful small and medium businesses understand this, and use every option available for there budget. Social media, with out a question falls into this.  It’s not expensive, and you can laser target your prospects. You want a  potential customer to see you every where they look!

One of our clients is currently one of the fastest growing B2C services in the state, if not country.  We never use one path, we use a minimum of four at all times.

So what ‘Paths” should you use to reach new clients or customers?

Here is a list. What you pick depends on your industry, but first, always start with a very well thought out targeted prospect list!  Who are your prospects, where are your prospects, how do they find companies like yours?

  • Search Engine Marketing (Includes SEO, Local SEO, and PPC programs)
  • Customer referral programs
  • Direct mail ( To very specific targeted prospects)
  • Radio and TV
  • Trade Shows

    First page of a 1928 direct mail marketing adv...
    First page of a 1928 direct mail marketing advertisement for seafood products from Frank E. Davis Fish Company. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
  • Cross selling
  • Yard and truck signs (B2C)
  • Networking (B2B)
  • Awards
  • Print advertising

And many more. I assume some of you are saying and thinking you have tried many of these and they “don’t work”. Well, you’re right, unless they have been exceptionally well thought out, and targeted, then they probably won’t work.  A branding campaign needs a great deal of thought, experience and great execution, and nothing replaces experience, nothing.  That’s one of the reasons we constantly survey and review what advertising and promotion does work for our clients and other businesses across the country.

If you need help with your companies branding, we have the experience to safely navigate the way.  Call us for a free consultation at 303 500 3053 Ext 1.

 

 

 

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Did Google Change Exact Match Domain Rankings?

Exact match domain Ranking changes.

Google filed a patient in 2003 describing how they might handle the issue of exact match domains getting better rankings in the search engine results compared to other sites. That patient was just approved.

Here is a great article about it by  of SEO By the Sea http://www.seobythesea.com/ 2011/10/googles-exact-match- domain-name-patent-detecting- commercial-queries/

Image representing Google as depicted in Crunc...

There appears to be some strong evidence (at least at the local organic level) that Google has already started making changes in the SER based on discounting the value of a domain with an exact match domain name.  We have several sites that have exact match keywords in the domain that we built more than 6 years ago. In the last few days, one fell from the first position for its exact match keyword, to the 11th position. This is a local site. None of our customer domains are using this strategy, just sites we built throughout the years for one reason or another.

We also have seen our non domain exact match sites move up, and in some cases significantly. This blog is a great example, as two days ago it was ranked number 11 under SEO in Denver, and today it is third. It should be noted we don’t do any specific SEO program to our site; we are just active on the Internet in natural places. No one spends 8 hours a week or month or year doing SEO work for the site.

Architecture of a Web crawler.
Architecture of a Web crawler. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I would love to hear if you are seeing a change in your site based on exact match domain names.  The fact that Google has made two major changes in the last two weeks that have also had a large effect on many local rankings will make this a little more difficult to figure out the old causation versus correlation of a change.

It also appears that this change has had no effect on the Google Maps results. It wouldn’t surprise me if we see the Maps rankings change some based on this as well, but the Google Maps listings have a tendency to follow organic changes after a period of time.

Mike

http://www.salesjumpstart.net

303 500 3053

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Local SEO in 90 Minutes

Local SEO in 90 Minutes a Week.

I run into so many small and medium businesses that are taking on their own local Search engine optimization programs these days. Generally the strategy is to list their site in as many directories as possible, and hope for the best.  That strategy wasn’t all that terrible 4 years ago, but today there is a good chance that they will be competing against other web sites that have hired a professional web optimization company.

Ensure Website Visibility With Search Engine O...
Ensure Website Visibility With Search Engine Optimization Slide9 (Photo credit: hongxing128)

Since I want to give some unique ideas here I am not going to cover in any detail the basics that are published in a billion other places.  I do want to give you a quick list of those just in case you don’t have them, and you can find a good how to SEO for local video and transcript at http://www.seomoz.org/blog/the-basics-of-local-seo-whiteboard-friday.  I would also suggest you start at www.getlisted.org  a wonderful free resource for local business owners and managers.

Great, now you have the basics just like the 10 or 50 other competitors for your key words. What next? To be really successful in the Local SEO field, you really need to become unique. You need to stand out both with your on site content and your “link profile”.   So here are my top tips for doing just that.

  • Write a blog every week (or more). Google likes fresh content. Make sure it’s related to your service/ product, and don’t worry about being a “great writer”. Just do it.  Make sure this blog is part of your domain! There are so many businesses who just can not write blogs, that I would suggest you hire a writer to do it. It can be that important. You can find them at our local college, and all over the Internet. Just Google it. And don’t be afraid to hire an editor for your blogs. It’s about the same cost, but will sound far more authentic.
  • Write a testimonial for a local company every week. Send it to them in a digital format. And let them know its fine to post it on line. Make sure you have a small paragraph of about you on the blog, with your web site.  Give the business instructions on how to use it…Dear vendor,  Feel free to have your web master post this on your testimonial pages… or use the first paragraph on the first page of your site.
  • Get involved in local forums on your topic, even if that topic is generic business. Participate weekly. Make sure you fill out the profile and include your web site.  You can find them by doing a Google search like this, “Business Forum + Your City.
  • Post your blogs on your companies Facebook.  Most business face book pages have a life span of 4-6 months before the owners give up. This gives you new content to post weekly. Search engines like you to have social sites, and they like your stuff to be shared.  Posting your blogs takes 1 minute.
  • Comment on the respected Local blogs once a week. Make sure you are interested in the topic, and that the blog is well respected. News Media blogs are always good for this.  Stay away from the controversies… your prospects don’t need to know your politics. Just sayin…
  • Have an SEO do a one time on site assessment of your home page and site structure. This will cost you, but I have seen more good done in this one move than all of the linking you can do in a year. You may already have a bunch of quality links, and it’s just your title tags are messed up, or you have duplicate descriptions on some pages, or a friend who knows SEO told you to use your keyword a lot and now your page looks spammy, or they told you to hide some keywords or cities on your home page through font color.  Who knows?  I would just suggest that SEO has changed a lot in the last year, and if you do not have the on site stuff, you can waste a lot of time on every thing else.

So start with:

A blog (30 minutes a week)

A testimonial written and sent (25 minutes a week)

Join and participate in a few local forums. (15 minutes a week)

Post your new Blog on your face book, Twitter and Linked In. (5 minutes)

Comment on Local respected Blogs (10 minutes a week)

And have a trusted SEO do a one time on Site assessment (Do this every 12 to 18 months)

There you have it. 90 minutes a week to build your web sites popularity. Will this get you to the top of the search results? Maybe, but it will make you more visible every week. And that’s what you want, more visibility and traffic to your web page.

If we can help you feel free to call us at 303 500 3053 ext 1.

 

 

 

 

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In Search, Location and Local Intent Matter

Image of Google & Yahoo offices in Haifa. Both...

In Search, Location and Local Intent Matter

I was just reviewing another SEO’s report to a client. Wow. Looking at the report you would think that they were dominating the local search for their keywords.  But, and here we go again, they are only tracking one of the four type search queries a prospect might use to find their type company when it comes to a local intent search.

The report notes rankings for the following queries:

Suburb of city plus Keyword.

Search Engine Optimisation. Search Engine Opti...

Example, if you were a plumber in Kansas City would be

Riverside MO. Plumber.

But the reality is, that prospect might use any of the following queries, and depending on where (the location) that Google thinks they are in, the results will be different.

They are just as likely to use

“Plumber” with no local intent.

In this case Google is going to serve the results based on their information as to where the search is being conducted.  Most likely you will see a Map’s listings.  Very different than the search the SEO is tracking.

Or, they may use the main city in the search

Plumber Kansas City.

This can bring up blended results, with possible Map’s listings and organic.

Or, they may use a zip code (Less likely, but it happens more than you may think) Plumber 90123

blended and different results.

So the reality of the SEO ranking report is they are only viewing a minority of search queries for this customer. Frankly, intentionally or not, they are putting the best foot forward, and hiding the other foot.

Local search engine optimization is a different process than national or generic optimization. In each keyword, a good local SEO knows to focus on having the client rank in all 4 of these type queries.  That’s great SEO.

If we can help you with your local SEO  or Internet marketing, give me a call for a free assessment of what it might take.

Mike Bayes, 303 500 3053 ext 1

 

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Local Search Ranking Results and Factors 2012

If you run reports for Local search engine rankings you may be in for a big surprise.

For every keyword you are looking at you need to run four different queries, because Google will serve the results in three different ways with different results for each. Local searches may use one of the following type searches. Let’s use Basement Finishing as an example.

1.)  Just the term Basement Finishing

This will bring up results Google thinks are relevant to what location you are searching from. I assume they use the IP from your Internet provider, which may or may not be in the actual town/city/zip you are sitting in as you search. This result (and I will add pictures later) will have the strongest organic listings for the major metro area you are (of you are ) part of.  Followed by the Maps listings.(Generally)

2.) You may search with your city name in the query, like “basement Finishing Broomfield”

This brings up the Maps first.  A big difference than a search with no city.

 

3.) You may use the zip code, like “basement Finishing 80020”

This brings up different organic results in the first two positions than the non city term search and then the maps.

 

4.) You may just use the generic metro city name, like “Basement Finishing Denver”.

Completely different results from all of the above.

Four commonly used search structures for local, one keyword. This is one reason that using a non local SEO for a local business can be a mistake. Few understand, or work on the entire set of query types, and may be sending you reports with just one type query, when you are missing 75%  of the opportunities.

Here is a quick copy of examples:

 

Basement Finishing Browser set to 80020

Basement Finishing:

Basement Finishing Broomfield

Give us a call any time for a free assessment of how your site ranks in all of these local query types. 303 500 3053 ext 1.

 

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