Google Places For Business Dashboard Update: News Roundup

Earlier this month, Google started slowly rolling out the new Google Places For Business Dashboard which includes an updated interface, deeper integration with Plus, and a promise of faster updates. The dashboard is now available to all new users in the U.S. To help better understand the new features, we have compiled a great list of resources on this much-needed updated.

From Google:

• Improving the look and feel of Google Places for Business – Google – Qasar Younis

• More details about the improved look and feel of Google Places for Business – Google – Joel Headley

Local University Is Setting Off on Its Own and Ramping Up For 2013

Local business owners! Interested in learning how to gain sustainable search rankings, better local visibility online, and access to a potential boatload of new customers?

I thought so.

Luckily, Local University and the great team of internet marketers behind it are beginning their 2013 schedule and are ready to spill the beans on their top-notch tips and tricks for seo, local search, and internet marketing success. Search Influence has been involved in Local University and GetListed from the beginning and is proud to be presenting again this year.

Google is Flip-Flopping on Practitioner and Practice Listing Quality Guidelines

Back in June, Linda Buquet posted a great piece detailing Google’s new policy on practice and practitioner listings. In that piece, there was a direct email response from Google stating that “…at the moment we do not remove or merge individual practitioners.” Now it seems that there is a split from this policy if the practitioner is the sole practitioner at the practice. However, Google isn’t exactly being straightforward in how best to handle these particular practitioner and practice listings.

The Suite Life of Google Plus Local Address Issues

With Apple in position to steal some of Google’s mobile maps glory, the search giant is starting down a warpath. By boasting to the BBC about the superiority of Google Maps and touting their fancy Ground Truth technology that uses Street View data as an additional factor in verifying Maps data, Google is giving a clear message that they are not taking the replacement lying down.

Google's Comin', Yo! Penguin Update Resources You Can Use

Over the past couple of months, there has been a great deal of hysteria surrounding the unnatural link warnings being sent out in Google Webmaster Tools. These warnings and the release of Google’s Penguin update mean that now is definitely the time to start trying to “act natural” with your link-building methods. While I don’t have any major revelations about this alarming issue, I have been following it rather closely and have some informative posts on the subject to share.

Getting A Virtual Office For Your Google Places Page Is Risky Business

Virtual offices have many uses. They are great for having a professional space to meet a client when you don’t have an office in the area. They can also be really useful if you are searching for a permanent office space and need somewhere to get business done in the meantime. However, using a virtual office address in a Google Places business listing is not something that will benefit your business. In fact, this practice technically goes against Google’s guidelines and could end up hurting your rankings in the long run.

There Will Be Blood - Competitors Can Now Destroy Your Google Listing

Google is feeding local business owners to the wolves with their latest Places update. Lior Ron, Google Places Product Manger, announced yesterday evening that Google will be “helping” business owners keep their business listings updated by now allowing anyone, mischievous competitors included, to edit your entire Places listing for you. Yes, even if it is verified.

How… thoughtful of Google.

Local SEOlé!

Our current goal is to improve an international client’s local rankings for their collection of Playa del Carmen hotels and condos. Now, if this would have been a U.S. or Canadian based client, I wouldn’t be writing this blog post, but taking local SEO to the land of the Aztecs and the Mayas certainly added a twist of lime to my typical local cocktail. The local SEO landscape of Mexico hasn’t been as thoroughly developed as it’s other North American neighbors. To give you an idea of how uncharted this territory is, Google Maps is still in beta testing for Mexico. This means there is a good deal of room for error, so you have to make sure to bring your A-game.

Google Isn’t Bowing Down

Donde Esta Mexico, Google?

The realm of Local SEO can be a complex, frustrating land. A fruitful, popular land but a land where seemingly easy obstacles can quickly turn into uphill battles. And, if your client happens to be in a country other than the U.S, that hilly jog transforms into a trek up Everest… without a Sherpa.