If you are a small business owner, you have probably heard this line a thousand times: “Are you utilizing social media yet?” If you’re not, you probably roll your eyes, wondering why there is so much emphasis on it these days. After all, it has been difficult to actually quantify its effectiveness. I recently found an article on SocialMediaExaminer.com that just may shed some light on why you need to be looking into using social media if you aren’t already doing so. Here are some of the current social media trends:

1. The benefits are continually on the rise. As business owners and marketers have continued to increasingly use social media, the benefits have become increasingly clear. Rather than counting on it for lead generation, marketers and businesses are seeing it as a way to create brand awareness. While it is not easy to quantify the ROI on this, brand awareness is no less crucial to a business.
2. More businesses are investing in their social media marketing. This means that you risk being left behind. The good news is, however, that many businesses are not using it as effectively as they could, which means that you still have time to get in and leapfrog your competition.
3. Businesses and marketing agencies view the value of social media differently. As I’ve mentioned above, it is typically quite difficult to measure ROI. However, marketers are finding an increased correlation between social media engagement and getting found online. With more and more people using Google instead of the Yellowpages to find businesses, it is easy to see how important it is to be found online.
4. Having an integrated social media plan will make you more money. Several surveys have found that there are still a lot of businesses that have not fully integrated social media into their marketing plans. However, the ones that do are seeing a greater financial reward for their efforts. In short, it pays to engage your potential customers.

While I won’t come close to saying that social media is the great panacea for your business’ marketing woes, I will say that it is a very important cog in the machine. When evaluating your marketing budget, take the time to see how social media can fit into your overall plan. You won’t regret it.

In this final part of my conversation with Taylor Hill, we discuss the ROI of SEO, and what type of questions companies should ask when shopping for SEO services.

Jonathan Sanders: Why do you think people or companies have a tendency to cut costs in web/SEO work?

Taylor Hill: It’s human nature to not pursue what you don’t understand.  Most people understand getting traffic, but they don’t get the work that has to be done or understand why it’s not an instant solution. SEO is no different then any other part of a business plan, it takes work and commitment to the process to see the change.  Companies will spend big bucks to get 1 to 2% ROI (return on investment) with traditional marketing because they know what to expect and can count on the return pretty much every time.  With the Internet, knowing search engines change the algorithms every time you turn around, you can be on top today (on the front page of an organic search) and 10 pages into the search tomorrow.  I think this frustrates many companies and they either toughen up and pay for SEO, pay to learn it or they will eventually give up.

JS: What are some suggestions you have for people or companies who are about to look into SEO? What questions do they need to ask?

TH: Well, the very first question I would ask is this; can you tell me if anyone is looking for what I do?  You would be amazed at how many people are trying to get business from areas that have little or no potential in the first place.  If people aren’t looking for you or what you do, you are in trouble and no matter how much money you sink into the site it will be an uphill battle.  Now I say this as a general rule as there are times when something brand new comes along and it breaks through.

I can also tell you what not to ask; is there a guarantee that this will put me on the front page?  I could truthfully answer this question both yes and no.  I can get people on the front page of Google in no time at all for keywords and phrases that will bring in some (little or no) traffic.  I’ve actually seen SEO companies market phrases that they can get you to the front page.  The problem with this is it’s smoke and mirrors.  These are very low search phrases.  You can read enough free SEO forums to do that yourself because it’s relatively easy.  However, companies want returns on investment (ROI).  If a company pays thousands and all they get are a couple of front page listings for a couple of long tail phrases, they will be disappointed.  When you go for valued (high searched) keywords, normally, you are in a battle for position and it takes a lot of effort and time to get on the front page of an organic search.  That translates into money or time or both, if you learn SEO yourself.  Because it’s a battle, there are no guarantees for the main keywords and phrases.  And that’s before you add in the unknown, which is the algorithm changes from the search engines. There is no way anyone can really give a guarantee for that.

What I believe to be the most valued question that every company or individual should ask is: do you understand ROI and if so, can you show me what SEO can do for my company’s ROI?  If a company is not on the Internet to boost their ROI, why are are they spending money here?  The first thing I would want to see from a SEO person or company is an analysis of my business on the web.  A projection of sorts showing me what the potential is for my business model, whether that be ecommerce, leads or simply branding.  You show me potential (or lack thereof) so I can make a good decision and I’ll always remember you!  On my end, if you remember me as the guy who either saved you money by telling you it was a bad idea or helped you make money by showing you the potential; I’m either working for you now or will be soon.

I was speaking with a friend the other day, and an interesting question came up: how does someone get started in SEO/SEM (Search Engine Optimization/Search Engine Marketing)? I figured the best person to ask would be our very own SEO guru, Taylor Hill. If you are familiar with Taylor, you will know that he is a man of many interests and talents. Taylor recently sat down with me to answer some questions about SEO.

Jonathan Sanders: How did you get started? Was it necessity or interest?

Taylor Hill: I created a website for a business I was in and paid a lot of money for the template to build the site.  There was some SEO associated with the site and when I got started doing the things that were recommended, I saw a little movement but not much.  It was after that experience I thought there has to be something else because I see where other’s are getting on the front page of Google.  It was after that thought that I jumped down the rabbit hole.

JS: What are common misunderstandings about SEO work?

TH: I think the most common misunderstanding still today is that if you build a pretty, expensive website, people will eventually find you.  It’s not that you shouldn’t build a website, but you will need to either learn or find a good SEO person or company to help build it (or modify it, if already built) to make sure it has the elements to get picked up by the search engine spiders on the site itself.  This is called on-page SEO.  There is a lot of off-page work that will need to be done, but if the on-page work is not correct, it doesn’t matter what you do off page.  The other thing I would say people should know, if they are paying attention, is your site will need good original content.  If you don’t want to create it or pay someone to create it… well, it will sit there looking pretty.

JS: Why do companies need SEO?

TH: That’s easy – traffic.  The Internet is no different than a brick and mortar store, location is key.  The location is the front page of a search engine after someone does an organic search.  The goal is the front page of Google since it’s the dominant search engine today.

I have more with Taylor in my next post. Stay tuned!

News flash! If you were relying on Yelp, Angie’s List and InsiderPages to get extra reviews on your Google Place pages, you won’t be anymore. Google, under a torrent of criticism, has stopped scrapping those sites’ reviews. 3rd party sites have long complained that Google was using their content, or content generated on their sites, to boost it’s own review service, Google Places. Yelp has been particularly vocal with their displeasure.

This has created a bit of a quandary for small business owners that benefited from having reviews of their businesses aggregated in one place. Now, if you go to a company’s Place Page, it might look a little bare. Only reviews from registered Google users will appear there.

The winners in this scenario are clearly the 3rd party sites. Google will no longer be able to piggyback off of their hard work to bolster it’s own review site. Plus, I think Google will really have to improve their user review process. The losers are users of Google’s search. It will be a bit more time consuming to do research on the companies they are looking into. I don’t think Google is affected in any particularly large way. Their place page results are still going to appear at the top of the SERP’s (Search Engine Results Pages).

What does this mean for business owners? It means that they are going to have to send their satisfied customers to multiple places to post their reviews. I don’t think this is a bad thing, though. For the time being, more people are engaging sites like Yelp and Angie’s List. However, do not ignore Google Places. Not only does it appear at the top of the SERP’s, but it is also gaining traction in the mobile app world. In other words, if you diversify your online presence, you won’t have anything to worry about.

In our culture we often push the limits to be # 1. However, when it comes to the internet and search; beware of the # 1 pitch. Any company that tells you they can get you to the number 1 position on any search engine, map or place page should be thoroughly investigated before hiring. This is because all most all of the top SEO (Search Engine Optimization) companies never promise position. What they promise is to get you the very best position based on your budget and time commitment. After all, what you are paying for is their time to implement their SEO expertise within your timeframe and the time it takes to do it.

You aren’t paying for a silver bullet that takes you to the top to only have you disappear over time into oblivion. This is what happens when black or gray hat methods are used to get you to the top of the heap. You may stay there for awhile and even make a little money but eventually you will get found out.  Then you will have to make another decision; give it up or start over. Be #1 in the long run. Remember; do it the right way and stay.

With the advent of Google turning so much attention to local search I see many companies turning from traditional search engine optimization and chasing the local directories, maps, etc. What you need to know is the same principles behind organic listings are behind local listings so it is smart to make sure your website is search engine ready; even when chasing local listings.

Google turned their attention to local when they discovered that over 70% of searches are done with local intention. However, if you’ve noticed, Google actually gives you the results it thinks you are looking for. An example of this would be to type in something like, “dentist Nashville” as opposed to, “dental information”, as opposed to, “dentist”. The first search will give you listings of dentists in Nashville, which is local. The second will give you the best sites for dental information, which is all organic while the third search has a mixture because it doesn’t know exactly what you mean with the broad term “dentist”.

What you don’t see is that the sites that rise to the top in any of these searches have very good back links as well as reviews and citations. This simply means that at this time you should not abandon your linking tactic, even if you are strictly a local business.

I’m sure those in my age group (30′s) once used the phone book to find listings for people and businesses. Many in the older age groups still do. However, people are increasingly using Google to find out about their immediate surroundings. The web has become more than just a giant encyclopedia, and businesses need to adjust.

As I have said before, the smartphone age has brought mobile search light-years ahead in a short amount of time. People just aren’t looking to phone books for business listings any more. Businesses are finding that phone book listings are just too expensive for what you get. Even though phone book companies have tried to setup their own web services, they are having a hard time competing with Google. That’s because Google provides the same services as a phone book company to a wider audience for no cost.

If you want people to find you, make sure you have a solid presence on Google. Their Places and Maps services are becoming very important to search results. Get familiar with the way Google works, or you risk being left behind.