How to make the most of Google’s predefined services

and more highlights from last week

November 04, 2024

Hi,

Here’s what went down last week ⬇️

1. How to make the most of Google’s predefined services

Google is adding services to Google Business Profiles all the time, and sometimes they can be so ridiculous. Where do they get these from?! Are they AI hallucinations?

I recently discussed this and other local SEO topics with Jack Chambers-Ward on the Search with Candour podcast.

In 2023, Joy Hawkins confirmed that these predefined services can affect rankings.

Swipe through this carousel to learn how to make the most of predefined services 👇

See the carousel on Instagram.

2. Need to convince your clients to invest in reviews? Send them this:

Reviews are not just feedback anymore — they are user-generated content for your business. In fact, reviews have at least 6 different powers when it comes to promoting and improving your business:

  • Customer service — How you respond to a review shows how you would handle a customer in real life.

  • Public relations — There is no more powerful PR than social proof.

  • Sales — Positive reviews bring direct sales to your business.

  • Business intelligence — Reviews reveal what your business does well, and what it needs to work on. Your competitors’ review sections are also worth checking out.

  • Content marketing — Your review section is an endless source of content ideas for all online and offline platforms.

  • Ranking factors — Seven out of the top 50 local search ranking factors are review-related.

Miriam Ellis’s brilliant new article is full of suggestions on how to harness each of these review powers to its full potential. Read it here 👇️

3. Which Google Justifications have been axed and which ones still haunt the search results? 👻

Swipe through to find out 👇

Find the carousel on LinkedIn.

4. Local SEO can be spooky 👻

Check out the local SEO nightmares that keep Whitespark’s team awake at night 👇️

Let us know which one’s the scariest on Instagram!

As always, follow me on LinkedIn, Threads, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok to learn about local search every day!

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Darren

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