Newsletter #22

Whitespark Local Insider

December 15, 2016

Whitespark's Monthly Local Search Newsletter

Local InsiderDecember 2016

"From year to year, the only thing you can count on in local search results is change." As 2016 comes to a close we've been reflecting on the multitude of changes we have seen over this past year and how they have impacted local rankings.One big change for Whitespark is that we will be leading the 2017 Local Search Ranking Factors Survey. David Mihm has passed the torch to Darren Shaw to lead the survey, and we are thrilled to work with the industry's top experts, and prepare, analyze, and publish the results on Moz in early 2017.A few updates you will see in this year's survey:

An expanded definitions section with the intent to standardize the terminology used across the industry, particularly with the pack types.
Foundational vs Competitive factors. What factors industry experts consider table stakes, and what factors are needle movers.
Changes since Possum. How has the Possum update changed how industry experts approach local SEO, if at all?
Commentary on how the local search ranking factors have changed since the last survey.

The survey is currently underway and Darren will present the findings at the Local U Advanced workshop at Mozcon Local on February 27.Cheers,Team Whitespark

From the Blog

What Happens When You Sign Up for Yext?In part two of our research on Yext, we wanted to explore what happens when a business signs up for the service.Our test subject for this study is a personal injury attorney in New York – Proner & Proner (established in 1958). This industry and the city where the business is located is enough to make any local SEO professional shudder, so we decided that it was the perfect case for our research.

We performed a detailed manual citation audit of the business's listings on all the sites in Yext’s network before signing up, and then again after signing up, so we could see how well Yext did with their claim to "fix your local search listings everywhere".See what happened to Proner & Proner's citations, which listings were "fixed", what happened to duplicates, new listings added, and the overall performance of this automated citation solution. You'll want to read the post for all the details, but here's a teaser:

7 Easy Local Link Building Tactics You Should Be UsingOne of the most challenging aspects of local link building is that often many small business websites aren’t very “linkable,” and many small business owners don’t have the budget to invest in exceptional content, however; based on the strategies outlined in this post, small business websites can often be link worthy simply due to their local relevance. This gives them an edge over national brands.Fortunately, the majority of small businesses have no links other than directory links, so only a handful of quality local links can have a significant impact on your local rankings in non-competitive local markets. David Mihm, one of local search’s foremost experts, has said that the typical small business has less than 4 non-spam, non-directory links:

So, with this in mind, let’s get into some strategies for acquiring those local links.

Around The Web

The 7 Citation Building Myths Plaguing Local SEO

In the local SEO sphere there are various myths that float around when it comes to citations, from both small business owners and SEOs alike. Joy Hawkins, with some input from our own Darren Shaw and Nyagoslav Zhekov, lays some of these fears and myths around citations to rest.

What Is the Essential Digital Marketing Bundle for Local Businesses?

For small business owners with a limited monthly budget (we're talking $170 a month here), Mike Blumenthal and David Mihm provide a outline for where you should be spending your budget right now to maximize your digital investment.

Top 10 Local Search Insights of 2016

Go back through 2016 with Wesley Young of the LSA as he shares his top 10 insights that local search marketers should be keeping in mind while planning for the upcoming year.

Google My Business Rolling Out Attributes to Single Listings

GMB is now allowing some users and business owners the ability to add attributes to single listings. While it's not available to all business types at this point in time, and the functions available to a user are not the same as an owner, the presumption is that this will eventually be rolled out and accessible to all users.