Blog - First Page SEO Internet Marketing

How To Get Started With Google+

Some people don’t believe in big foot – others don’t believe that Google+ is a relevant social network. This post is for the latter.

Why Do I Need To Use Google+?

Google wants you to. Social networks are a multi-billion (trillion?) dollar a year industry, and Google wants in the action. The search engine is putting heavy emphasis on growing the network by allowing it to affect search results.

The power the network is having on search results can be summed up in the following scenario:

You own a crossfit gym and you’re looking for some marketing tips. So, like everyone else, you head to Google and search for ‘crossfit marketing’. If you aren’t in any of My Circles on Google+ you see the following results:

The article shows up in the third spot – not too bad.

However, if you’re in one of my ‘Circles’ on Google+, the same search would yield the following results:

Not only does the search result move up to #1, but a Google+ post I did shows up on the first page of results as well. This means that even if your blog post is completely un-optimized, your Google+ post will still show up on the first page of search results!

So now that I’ve sold you on Google+, let’s get started on setting up your profile.

Upload a Profile Picture

I always recommend using the same picture that you use for Facebook and Twitter accounts. Make sure the picture is a clear cut head shot, because it will show up as your Google Authorship photo in search results as well.

Fill Out Your Profile

What are you using Google+ for? Make sure that your profile does a good job encapsulating not only who you are as a person, but incorporates your business into it as well. Don’t go overboard and spam people with sales-e lines, but make sure that if someone were to stumble across your post that they could figure out how to get in touch with you.

Share an Update

I like to keep a 50/50 rule when sharing updates: 50% work related and 50% personal. I live in Miami so I like to post pictures of the beach, palm trees, etc. – anything to water down the rest of my posts.

You generally want to share with everyone – ‘Public’, ‘Your Circles’ and ‘Extended Circles’. Doing so ensures that your posts get shown to the maximum amount of people.

Create Some Circles

Building Circles can be a challenging feat to most Google+ beginners and this is where people usually exit the network and head back to Facebook. The problem with Google+ is it doesn’t have the same following as a Facebook, Twitter or Instagram – it’s kind of just there. This means that there are millions of people on the network, but no one really uses it.

What you will often see are skeleton profiles that were set up and abandoned. You’re probably not going to find your friends on Google+ and interact with them like you would on a Facebook or Twitter. The key is to find other active Google+ users and Circle them.

How do you find them? Circle shares. Simply go to the search and type in the hashtag #circleshare. What comes up is thousands of people who are looking to grow their Circles as well. Simply add them to your Circles and they will almost certainly add you back (as long as you keep your profile updated).

+1 Posts

+1, +1 +1!

Another great way to build a following is to +1 your own posts and others’. The best way to do so is to head to the search and type in a keyword related to your business. Realtors are very active on Google+ so I like to interact with them.

Simply type ‘realtors’ into the search and then click ‘communities’. Google+ Communities are a great way to interact with like-minded people, build your following and even solicit some services (ever so carefully). Go through the community and leave a +1 on posts and some scattered comments as well. Doing so will help drive traffic back to your profile and build active Circles.

Google+ Is Not Facebook

As I mentioned earlier, Google+ is not Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or even LinkedIn. As of right now the network is a weird combination of Facebook and LinkedIn – it’s full of people who understand the importance of the network, but don’t really get any enjoyment from using it.

I can’t promise that you’re going to enjoy using Google+ because honestly, I don’t. What I can promise you is that giving just 5 minutes of your attention each day will pay off in the long run for your business.

How Attorneys Can Build Their Client List With SEO

Attorney SEO

If you’re an attorney, you are already aware that networking is a tried and true way of increasing your client list. However, networking, especially after a long day at the office, can be just as exhausting as having a second full-time job – it can only be done for so long until you physically and mentally burn out.

While networking is important in obtaining clients, it shouldn’t be the only way of growing your client list. When it comes to acquiring new clients, you should ask yourself the following questions:

“How do you find your clients?”

“How do your clients find you?”

While I understand the importance of networking and participating in networking events in the process of landing clients, I can assure you, you won’t find me at one anytime soon. I’d rather spend time with my friends and family while my clients find me and my services.

Rather than going out and looking for clients, all I have to do is check my email – I no longer have to spend hours networking, and neither do you.

How? Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

When prospective clients are looking for an attorney, 21.9 percent of them start with a search engine (see Lawyernomics). Optimizing your website for keywords related to your business (or SEO) is critical in converting online searchers into prospective clients and is the easiest way of growing your law firm, as well as.

Think about it – when you go to a networking event you talk to every person in the room, analyze their situation, give your sales pitch (listen to theirs), then follow up and hope they’re interested. Think about how much effort you put in to generate just one lead!

On the other hand, when people go to a search engine they’re looking for your exact services. All you have to do is be present in the search results to capture that traffic and convert them to clients. You can generate dozens of targeted leads each day – all while enjoying a nice glass of wine in the comfort of your own home.

So how can your law firm take advantage of SEO?

1. Go local

If this article is a surprise to you, let me just blatantly state: SEO for attorneys delivers an astounding Return on Investment (ROI). This has inevitably made the ranking of legal keywords extremely competitive (in other words: expensive).

The best way to combat highly competitive verticals is to niche down to local. Let’s say you are a defense attorney in Miami, Florida. Instead of trying to use general global key words for your website such as “defense attorney,” you are going to want to target long-tail local keywords like:

“criminal defense attorney miami”
“Miami criminal defense law firm”
“dade county criminal defense law firm”

2. Google Places, Local, and Other Location Based Directories

Since law firms are a brick-and-mortar business you are going to want to make sure potential clients can find you. Optimizing online directories such as Foursquare, Google Local, Facebook, and Yelp (to name a few) will help search engines index your page in local listings.

Having these directories set up will not only help potential clients find your law firm’s website personally, but will also help in building an online presence and increase your website’s traffic. For example, the screenshot below is of the local listings for “boston law firm”. Of the results listed, which one are you most likely to click on?

attorney seo

The ones with the 5 star ratings, right? These websites are optimized in Google Local and are pulling reviews through to the listings. Doing so can increase clicks to your website up to 150 percent.

3. Analyze Your Website

Simply ranking first in Google is not enough–you want to make sure you are turning that traffic into opt-in leads. If your website is not configured with the information easily accessible, your website’s visitors will leave and head to the next website.

When planning your website, keep in mind the end goal. It should not just be an online business card; rather, you want your website to generate leads. There are two main things you want your website to do:

Large and clearly visible “call to” action with your phone number (i.e., CALL NOW!)
Large and clearly visible “lead form” to capture prospective clients’ information.

Undoubtedly, receiving a phone call right away is the ultimate goal. However, at the very least, we want to capture that person’s information (name and email) to re-market to them at a later time.

About Our Attorney SEO Service

We have worked with a number of law firms in helping build an online presence, as well as driving highly targeted traffic to their websites. If you are interested in finding out how we can help grow your law firm with SEO, please call us at (305) 450-4831 or email us directly at [email protected]

Does My Website Really Need A Blog?

YES!!!!

I can list cliche reasons like Google favors sites with fresh & relevant content or it gives you a chance to establish expertise with your customers (both of which are 100% true), but I want to tell you the real reason why your website needs a blog.

No, I want to show you.

If you get a chance, head to Google and type in “crossfit marketing“. What you will see is the same results as below:

The first result is an article from our company blog on simple ways to market your CrossFit gym.

Well, so what?

Ranking on the first page of search results for “Miami SEO company” is extremely difficult (even though we own TWO of those positions **shameless plug**). So instead we attack sub niches that are less competitive.

Instead of ranking our home page and having potential customers get innudated with information, we crafted a targeted blog post that:

1. Shows them we know what we’re talking about.
2. Generates interest in our services.

This post alone drives over 250 hits a month to our website. While that may not seem like a lot, think about the quality of that traffic. The chances are the person searching for “crossfit marketing” is a gym owner/employee seeking help. This blog post alone has generated over 30 high quality (and high coverting) leads in the past 45 days.

So how can you apply this to your business?

1. Niche down. The first mistake people make is trying to tackle overly competitive markets. If you’re a real estate agent, blog about hot neighboords or zip codes. If you’re a clothing store owner, blog about a popular or exclusive item that you feature.
2. Write, write, write. Blogs are a pain; they take time and patience. However, when done correctly they are a great way to boost your online business organically.

There is a little more that goes into ranking a blog post – if you’re interested to find out how or you have any questions please feel free to reach out directly:

[email protected]

Posted By Sam Lozano