The Small Business Trifecta: Google Visibility, Web Accessibility, and Harnessing AI

We’re joined by Kevin Frost to teach us how to effectively get your local business listed on Google, optimize your website, and harness the power of technology to reach a broader audience.

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Business success in today's world demands an online presence. Luckily, we're joined by Kevin Frost, the founder of Standing 360 and a seasoned marketing expert with over ten years of experience. Kevin has helped countless brick-and-mortar businesses establish and grow their digital footprint.

In this webinar, Kevin walks us through the essential steps to get your business listed on Google, how to optimize your digital brand, and take advantage of new and emerging technologies.

Getting Your Business Listed on Google

Having your business on Google is the first step to making it easy for customers to find you. In fact, 88% of consumers who search for a local business on their smartphone visit or call that business the same day. Kevin breaks down the process into simple steps:

• Set Up Your Google Business Profile: Kevin emphasizes the importance of setting up a Google Business Profile as the first action item. This involves creating a profile, verifying your business, and making sure your contact details, address, and operating hours are accurate. Consistency is key, so make sure the information matches across all platforms.
• Leverage High-Quality Visuals: Adding high-quality photos and videos to your profile is crucial. These visuals give potential customers a better idea of what to expect and can significantly boost your online appeal.
• Tackle Common Challenges: Not every business has a physical storefront, which can make verification tricky. For example, virtual offices aren’t recognized by Google so Kevin offers practical advice, like registering your business as a service-area business, so you still show up in local searches without needing a public address. Also, make sure you respond to emails from Google to prevent unauthorized access to your business profile.

Optimizing Your Website and Expanding Your Reach

Once your business is up and running on Google, it’s time to expand your online reach and make sure your website is fully optimized. Kevin dives into the importance of getting listed on other key platforms and using Google’s suite of tools to track and improve your online performance.

• Beyond Google: Kevin stresses the importance of not just relying solely on Google. He advises getting your business listed on other platforms like Yelp and Bing Places. These are crucial, especially for reaching Apple Maps and Microsoft Edge users. Remember the keyword again is consistency – so make sure your NAP (Name, Address, Phone number) information is the same across all platforms to avoid confusing potential customers as well as search engines.
• Optimizing Listings: It’s not enough to just be listed – you need it to be optimized. Kevin recommends enhancing your Google Business Profile by adding service areas, detailed and high-quality descriptions, and multiple categories. This gives you better visibility and helps you rank higher when people search for what your business offers.
• Google Tools for Businesses: Kevin also offers several free Google tools that are essential for monitoring and improving your online presence. Google Analytics helps you understand how people find and interact with your website. The Google Search Console monitors your site’s presence in Google Search, identifies indexing issues, and offers optimization suggestions. Finally, you can use Google Trends to see what’s trending so you can align your content with what people are searching for.

Leveraging the Power of Technology

Kevin then shifts gears to discuss how AI and accessibility can further enhance your online presence. He explains how these tools not only help reach a broader audience but also ensure that your website is inclusive and accessible to everyone.

• Web Accessibility: Making your website accessible is not just a nice-to-have; it’s essential. Kevin emphasizes the importance of adding alternative text (alt text) to images and using proper heading structures to improve both accessibility and SEO. He notes that 15% of the world’s population experiences some form of disability (like color blindness or deafness), and neglecting accessibility could mean losing a significant portion of your audience.
• Using AI in Marketing: AI is transforming the way businesses approach marketing. Kevin highlights the use of tools like ChatGPT for generating keyword ideas and creating personalized content. He also mentions that AI tools like Grammarly and Google Assistant have already become integral parts of daily business operations, making tasks easier and more efficient.
• Protecting Intellectual Property with AI: Kevin also provides tips on safeguarding your intellectual property when using AI tools. He suggests using tools like Google Notebook AI, which does not internalize your proprietary information, making it safer for sensitive data.

Key Takeaways and Recap

As we wrap up, there’s so much more that Kevin covered in the webinar that we couldn’t fit into this blog here. Here are a couple more tips that you don’t want to miss:

• Use Reviews to Your Advantage: Kevin suggests responding to every review, good or bad. This will help improve your relationship with customers, and it also boosts your business’s credibility online. A simple “Thank you” to your 5 star reviews shows you value your customer experience. And make sure you address the issues in negative ones (they might even switch to 5 stars too!)
• Stay Updated with Trends: Kevin encourages using Google Trends to stay ahead of the curve. Keeping your fingers on the pulse of what’s happening in your niche and sector is essential to give yourself a competitive edge. By understanding what’s currently trending, you can tailor your content and services to meet customer demands more effectively.

If you love what you’ve read so far and want to dive deeper into Kevin’s expert advice – where he gives more in-depth examples and explanations – make sure to watch the full webinar. It’s packed with actionable tips that you can start using today to take your business to the next level!