Category Archives: Local SEO

This is a collection of all Local Splash Blog posts that cover Local SEO

Apple Launches iPhone 5, Fully Equipped with the New Apple Maps

Last Updated On August 13th, 2014Local SEO, , , , , , , ,

Applemaps1At today’s San Francisco iPhone 5 launch event, Apple revealed a thinner, faster iPhone equipped with Apple Maps/local search, Siri enhancements and other updates.

The new iPhone 5 will be the first iPhone to feature Apple Maps instead of Google Maps. Apple Maps could have a significant impact on local search if the application’s user experience proves to be a good one. If Apple Maps is successful, it could take a large piece of Google’s local search traffic on the iPhone. However, the user experience of Apple Maps is still to-be-determined. Apple revealed that the new iPhone 5 features enhancements to Siri, which could mean more people will be using Siri to perform searches rather than Google.

Apple Maps will feature turn-by-turn voice navigation and will have real-time traffic data available. This means as traffic conditions change, alternative routes will be offered to the user. One feature that is exclusive to Apple Maps is the “flyover” feature which includes 3-D images that were taken by helicopters as they flew over major cities.

What did you think of the new iPhone 5 and Apple Maps? Will you be trading in your iPhone 4s or Android phone for the slimmer, faster iPhone 5?

GoDaddy Has Been Hacked, Millions of Sites Experiencing Outages

Last Updated On August 13th, 2014Local SEO, , , , , ,

Godaddyhacked

One of the biggest web hosts and the world’s largest domain registrar, GoDaddy is experiencing a major outage. GoDaddy.com is down and any websites hosted by GoDaddy went down with it. Many site owners turned to Twitter to complain about the outage or ask questions. GoDaddy tweeted that it is aware of the trouble people are having with the site and they’re working on finding a solution.

In addition to websites hosted by GoDaddy, any domain that has been registered with GoDaddy that uses its nameservers and DNS records are down as well. This means that people who use GoDaddy for DNS but host their site with another company are still experiencing an outage.

A member of Anonymous (hacktivist group), Anonymous Own3r, is taking full responsibility of the GoDaddy outage. Anonymous Own3r tweeted “I’m not anti godaddy, you guys will understand because I did this attack.” The user also responded to one Twitter user explaining the reason for the take-down is to “test how the cyber security is safe and for reasons I can not talk now.”

GoDaddy’s outage should make current customers think about switching to a new registrar; perhaps one that isn’t a multi-million domain hosting company.

Local Splash founder, David Rodecker, tweeted, “GoDaddy outage is a case for hosting with a medium sized company vs putting your eggs in with the ‘big guys.'”

Godaddyhacked1

3 Common Local SEO Myths Debunked

Local Search Techniques, Local SEO, , , , , , ,

There’s so much information online discussing best practices of local SEO that it can sometimes be difficult to separate the truth from the myths. Here are the top local SEO myths debunked so you can get a better understanding of local SEO.

Myth #1: Your local SEO efforts will work immediately. Local SEO does not happen overnight. Once you submit your information to Google+ Local and other local directories, it takes time to verify and approve those listings. Once the listings are verified, it takes time for the search engines to index them. The bottom line is, SEO is definitely not an overnight success. It takes a lot of time and effort then patience to wait for your hard work to make an impact.

Myth #2:  Your company will only show up in the search results if the person searching is someone in certain mile radius of your business. It’s is a common belief that there is a certain mile radius around your business that your local SEO efforts will reach and that if a person searching happens to be within that radius, they’ll see you in the search results. However, it’s actually the opposite. The radius is around the person who is performing the search. So whether the person is performing a search on their mobile phone or computer, based on their location, the SEO efforts of the business and other factors in Google’s algorithm, the most relevant businesses will show up in the results. If your company has an optimized listing and you’re located near the person who is searching, your business is likely to show up in their results.

Myth #3: I should concentrate more on PPC than local SEO. There are multiple reasons why your local SEO is more important than PPC. Eye track studies show that the majority of people look at the Maps first when they enter a search results page, not the paid advertisements. According to comScore, 61% of searchers consider local search results to be more relevant, 10% for PPC. Also 58% of searchers consider local search results to be more trustworthy with only 9% for PPC. Local SEO is also less expensive. In fact many local SEO tactics are free (but time consuming). PPC can be very expensive depending on how competitive the keywords you’re going after are. The best practice is to use a variety of Internet marketing techniques together to get the most effective campaign. This includes local SEO, social media marketing, mobile marketing, traditional SEO and PPC.