Rank Like a Big Company, Impress Like a Local Company

August 2016
Brandify Summit
Phil Rozek
@philrozek
Rank Like a Big Company.
Impress Like a Local Company.

Big brands’ big weakness: online reviews
Current trends favor the top-reviewed businesses.
Most big brands are lousy at encouraging good reviews.
Over time, highly-rated local competitors may steal some
market share (although you’ll probably still outrank them).
Or your company can rack up reviews as the best SMBs do.
@PhilRozek | LocalVisibilitySystem.com Brandify Summit 2016

Shift: more choices, changing preferences

Shift: more decisions in SERPs / off-site

Shift: more reviews in Google

It’s still the Wild West:
• Relaxed review filter
• No oversight
• Google+ not needed
• Yet more prominent
than ever…
Shift: more reviews in Google

Shift: more reviews
everywhere

Shift: more review sites than ever before
There are over 400
review sites now*
(*Yes, I counted.
Type “Definitive List of
Local Review Sites”
into Google.)

Must-read: BrightLocal’s study on reviews

Who wins?

Big brands, on the one side:
Solid rankings
• Name-recognition
• Media attention
• Link juice
Customer base
Human resources

SMBs, on the other side:
They’re closer to their
customers better and
can get more of them to
speak up online.
Smart SMBs can rack up
reviews big-time.
Recent trends benefit
SMBs when consumers
have a choice.

How can a big brand impress more effectively?

Well, how do the best SMBs impress?

1. They know what the reward is:
get business because of reviews

2. They care about the review sites
that customers care about

3. They identify their biggest fans and
ask them to speak up

4. When it’s time, they focus on the review

5. They provide clear instructions

6. They make it sound like a personal favor

7. They know specific people in the company
create 1-star or 5-star experiences
Tom the technician
Mary the manager
Sam the server
Bob the broker
Etc.

8. They act like they’ll see the customer again

Scalable ways to get impressive reviews?

Get picked because of your reviews
Best way to leverage
local rankings.
Crucial whenever there
is a choice.
How? Showcase reviews
everywhere

1. Get picked because of your reviews
Use Brandify’s Review
Builder to curate reviews
on your location pages.

1. Get picked because of your reviews

2. Focus on the sites your customers care about
This is where that
“Review Us” page helps
a lot.
Have one for each
location (maybe start w/
just a few).

3. Identify your biggest fans and
get them to speak up

3. Identify your biggest fans and
get them to speak up
BBB
CitySearch
Facebook (!)
Foursquare
InsiderPages
OpenTable
SuperPages
WeddingBee
YellowBot
YellowPages
Zillow
Or send them to your
“Review Us” page.

4. Focus on the review (for now)

5. Provide clear instructions

Use pronouns:
“We” and “You.”
No passive voice.
Try to sound smaller
than you really are.
6. Make it sound like a personal favor

7. Ask reviewers to mention specific people

8. Act like you’ll see your customers again
They’re more likely to
review you
– and come back –
if they think you’ll read
their feedback.

By the way, reviews might help rankings….
Higher click-through
“Local content” for site
Barnacle SEO
Word-of-mouth / PR

Takeaways & points to meditate on
1. People & search engines ever-increasingly value reviews.
2. More is happening before visitors reach companies’ sites.
3 “Local” is no longer just about getting your site into SERPs.
Now it’s crucial to get your reputation in there, too.
4. Review strategies that help SMBs can help big brands, too.
5. What works better for local SEO: centralized “marketing
machine,” or location-level “boots on the ground?
6. How might reviews get monetized or go “pay-to-play”?

Thank You

60+ Questions to Troubleshoot and Fix Your Local Reviews Strategy – me
Effective “Review Us” Pages for Local Businesses: a Fistful of Examples – me
Which Local Review Sites Are on Your Side? – me
Ultimate List of Review Widgets and Badges for Your Local Business Website –
Local Consumer Review Survey 2015 – BrightLocal
Whitespark’s Review Handout Generator – Whitespark
User Behavior and Local Search – Darren Shaw
Barnacle SEO: Local Search Engine Optimization for The Sam’s Club Crowd – Will Scott
Grade.us (for building an off-site “Review Us” page)
GetFiveStars (for review outreach by email)
Resources and further reading

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mliu92/20994389558/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/zunami/3319244684/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/phooleo/4703219191/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/runran/3015588455/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/emilymills/15066204105/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dvids/4476796877/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisfithall/16839991675/
http://www.funnysigns.net/weirdest-strip-mall-in-america/
Image credits

Rank Like a Big Company, Impress Like a Local Company

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