What Business Wants to Be Invisible?

by Lissa Monroe

We should all know by now that when customers want a local product, they start by searching online. So we should also all know by now that if you are not ranked highly on search engine results pages for the keywords within your industry, you are invisible. As in, not there. As in, you do not exist in the eyes of the people searching for your local product.

You have several options on SERPs (search engine results page).  Organic results on a Google SERP may include:

• Your optimized website
• Quality citations that function as backlinks to your website
• Your Google Maps listing
• Your Google+ Business listing (this may be merged with your Maps)

Google Maps is a powerful tool in local search that should not be ignored.  Especially if you don’t have a website. OR a mobile-optimized website. Local customers can come primarily from this listing alone.  From the snippets of information, potential customers can find links, your phone number, reviews, directions and much, much more on your Maps listing.

Its surprising how many local businesses are just completely missing from SERPs all because they don’t have a Maps listings or have done absolutely nothing with the listing they do have.  You could search directly for these businesses by their name and their listing won’t show up!  Invisible.

But, the good news, it’s fixable.  Follow these three simple steps to keep your local business from being invisible.

1. Create A Business Listing On Google Maps/Places. If you want to show up on the SERPs, you must have something to show!  Be aware, this step alone won’t grant you Top Dog status on Google since there are other metrics used for ranking and relevancy but it’s a great place to start.
2. Provide Relevancy and Authority Through Quality Citations – Providing citations is where Local Search Marketing most differs from traditional Search Engine Optimization. Citations are directory listings for local businesses. In order to prove relevancy, each citation must match the business listing on Google.  Google looks at the provided NAP (name, address, phone) on your businesses listing. The more information that matches, the better.
3. Provide Relevancy and Authority Through Reviews and Activity – It is important for your business listing to have consistent activity. Customer reviews are a great way to provide activity. Scheduled optimization is another. Use enhanced content and promo tools such as coupons or blogs. Not only does this create activity, it can also influence your potential customer.

Ready to take your local search marketing seriously? 
Call or email Fresh Mint Marketing and we'll find the right
marketing strategy for your small business marketing. 

You've Got a Bang-up Website But....

Your website's not showing up in local search results.

Get found with targeted search engine optimization from
Fresh Mint Marketing and Design.

1. Speak the same language. 

In order for search engines to know quickly and accurately what they need to know about your website to rank it properly it is imperative that your website speak the same 'language.' And how do you do that? Make sure you have your city and state listed in:

• Title tags
• H1 headings
• within your landing page URL,
• Alt tags
• Meta description
• and within your excellent, relevant content

2. NAP

Your NAP (Name, Address, Phone) is also key to ranking well on search engines. Use schema markup language on your landing page NAP for even better results.  Make sure you use a local phone number with area code. No tracking numbers!

3. Citations are a prime factor in local rankings.

If you have missing or incorrect information, it is sending sends confusing signals to the search engines, plummeting your rank and leaving your data in the dust. Find and fix your Tier 1 data providers and Tier 2 local citation sources. Start with the top local citations for this area:

Top Citation Sources in Southeast, AL

• AL.com
• Superpages
• Yelp
• Facebook
• Manta
• Merchant Circle

4. Be where Google expects you to be. 

For a big boost in ranking, embed a Google map on your landing page that not only points to your address but also your (verified and optimized) Google Plus Business Page.

Matt Cutts Comes Out With Big Mobile Data

by Lissa Monroe

Google Mobile Queries May Surpass PC Search This Year

Google's Matt Cutts spoke at SMX West last week and said he “wouldn’t be surprised” to see mobile search exceed desktop queries in 2014. We all knew this was coming..... mobile (and tablet) searches have been steadily increasing since data plans became so much more affordable. That, and there are 2 billion desktops in the world and more than 5 billion mobile devices.

In anticipation of this inevitable eclipse, Google is pushing  (as illustrated in the new SERP layout) for a cross-platform marketing and experience. One experience for all users, regardless of whether they are searching on their smartphone, tablet or desktop.

Is your business still marketing in the Stone Age? What can your business do to tap into this powerful mobile market? Here are a few suggestions....

• Have an optimized, responsive website. If a mobile or tablet user cannot see your website, they will leave. Quickly.
• Claim and optimize your local sites on search engines and directories. The real estate on mobile screens is small and precious.  Make sure you are on it and stay on it with 21st Century Lead Generation.
• Engage your customers on a scheduled, regular basis through a solid Social Media strategy. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and more have developed apps that mobile users use every day.

Ready to jump into 21st Century Lead Generation?
Call or email Fresh Mint Marketing today. 

Let's Move Together (it's that time of year!)

 Let's start with a few sobering facts about arthritis:

• Fifty million Americans or one in five adults plus nearly 300,000 children have some form of doctor diagnosed arthritis. 
• Arthritis is one of the most prevalent chronic health problems and the most common cause of 
• Arthritis limits everyday activities such as walking, dressing and bathing for millions of Americans. 
• Arthritis results in 39 million physician visits and more than a half million hospitalizations. 
• Arthritis costs the U.S. economy nearly $128 billion annually. 
• Arthritis affects people in all age groups including nearly 300,000 children. 
• The risk of arthritis increases with age and is more common among women than men. 
• Arthritis refers to more than 100 different diseases that affect areas in or around joints. 

Based on NHIS data, approximately 67 million people age 18 or older

My own personal involvement began with my grandmother, Mary Jane Morgan, who suffered from arthritis for years. She was  miserable, with little or no relief really available. My mother was diagnosed in her mid-30s and by 45 had to have a full hip replacement.

Who hasn't been affected by arthritis?  Maybe a better question would be who hasn't been affected yet?

I am asking every person, every company, that I know to get involved.  To do just one thing (join the walkers) or the other (sponsor the walkers). You can help fund arthritis research, education and community programs, and get us closer to a cure for the millions who suffer from this debilitating disease.

Please visit the team page and get involved, now.

Why the Average Visitor is Spending Only 15 Seconds on Your Website (and what to do about it!)

by Lissa Monroe

If I have only 15 seconds to grab your attention, then I better have content and design that stands out, and stands out quick!


According to data by Tony Haile of Chartbeat, content on the web isn’t being read the way we think it is. So, instead of tracking article views, maybe we should focus on the time spent on the page, and how much, if any, engagement there is.
But be aware, the data compiled by Chartbeat is comprised of “blog posts and the but most are traditional news/media posts. Also, the term "articles" doesn't include homepages or landing pages; they're the news/content/media posts, pages, stories."
The majority of us aren’t traditional news/media content sources. We don’t all have the same goals, challenges or business models. But we all want to engage our visitors. Here are a few ways that can make that happen. 

People want fresh, relevant content.

According to TIME, "Articles that were clicked on and engaged with tended to be actual news."  On the other hand, articles whose activity was as stale as its content, were those with generic, superlative non-changing content such as articles that were “Top, Best, Biggest, Fictional etc.”  This is pretty surprising since these types of articles make up a HUGE chunk of leads and views every month, but then again, we are looking at a definite snapshot of 30 days. 
Newsworthy content will be a shoe-in for first place. It’s relevant. But keep in mind, views will spike when it is new and plummet when it becomes old news.


According to Ginny Soskey of HubSpot, evergreen content and newsworthy content are two different plays -- one for longterm, sustainable growth, the other for quick splashes of traffic. The point should not be to double down on newsworthy content. You longterm, sustainable traffic to your site. Traffic that converts into sustainable growth for your business, not content that brings you business one month and then trickles off.

If you are trying to reach short-term traffic and lead generation goals then cater to both crowds. Have quality evergreen content and newsjack for the fresh stuff.

Apparently, despite how many times your content is shared, people are still not reading it.

Chartbeat’s data on social media's influence on reading engagement showed that out of 10,000 articles shared on social media, they found that there was no relationship whatsoever between the amount a piece of content is shared and the amount of attention an average reader will give that content. 

Refocus to engage only the most avid readers? Find those that consume the most content and spend more time sending them articles?
There are two ways that visitors may have come to your site via social media. They stumbled on a link and something specific caught their eye. They found you passively so small wonder they aren’t the most engaged of readers. Or they found your site through a SERP and are in active search mode already. They are more engaged because they are looking for something specific and will take the time to find it.
Focus on search engine optimization (SEO) to lure those more engaged visitors into your website.  Rethink how you are utilizing the platforms available to you and find out whether you need to spend more time on the optimization of your website.  

Don't use traditional web banner advertisements.

TIME says, "Click-through rates are now averaging less than 0.1% and you’ll hear the words banner blindness thrown about with abandon."

The majority of a visitor’s attention is spent below the fold. It goes without saying that advertisers should probably focus on placing their ads in places people actually look and making them interesting enough to get visitors to look at their for a while.

We, as advertisers, need to look at time and attention instead of views and clicks to get a better ROI.   It all points back to #1, create quality content that gets people to stick around and read your stuff.
According to user testing by the Nielsen Norman Group, no matter what the engagement level, people ignore banner ads. They say, "If users are looking for a quick fact, they want to get done and aren't diverted by banners; and if users are engrossed in a story, they're not going to look away from the content."

Ginny Soskey of HubSpot says it best, “Focus on creating your own quality content. Be the content on the page that keeps people engaged -- not the ad on the side that's either interrupting an experience or getting ignored. Get the pageviews on your site instead of renting out others'.

Call or email Fresh Mint Marketing
to start your custom local marketing strategy today. 

The New Google Search Layout is Here to Stay (even though we are all like, 'really? That's the best you could come up with??)

by Lissa Monroe

First displayed on a limited basis, the new Google search layout is now live to all despite poor reviews. 

The layout’s new font and removal of link underlines also displays the AdWords ads differently. Headlines are larger and the rich snippets are lighter with an adjustment to wider typeface.
AdWords are no longer the familiar light yellow in the background instantly designating it as the advertising space for so many years. There is no shaded background at all in the new layout. Instead, there is an underline separating the ads from the organics as well as a tiny ‘Ad’ next to the green URL. 

Besides the aesthetics, the new Google search layout is having a big impact on your SEO. Headlines are now being truncated.  The new optimized limit is 59-60 characters in a title.  This means having to rework all your titles so your snippet isn’t affected in SERPs which could affect your click-throughs.

Google's explanation regarding the new layout is that they are making improvements for mobile and tables. Unfortunagely, this change also affe carried over to desktop.  Jon Wiley of Google says, this change creates improved readability and a much cleaner look. And there is an end goal of creating a consistent user experience across multiple devices (desktop, mobile tablet):

“Towards the end of last year we launched some pretty big design improvements for Search on mobile and tablet devices (mobile first! :-). Today we've carried over several of those changes to the desktop experience.

We've increased the size of result titles, removed the underlines, and evened out all the line heights. This improves readability and creates an overall cleaner look. We've also brought over our new ad labels from mobile, making the multi-device experience more consistent.

Improving consistency in design across platforms makes it easier for people to use Google Search across devices and it makes it easier for us to develop and ship improvements across the board.”

So, get used to the new layout ‘cuz its here to stay whether we like it or not.

Having a hard time making to the SERPs (search engine results page)?
Fresh Mint Marketing can help. Call or email today.

If You Ever Wondered About St. Patrick.....

St. Patrick depicted with shamrock
in detail of stained glass window in St. Benin's
Church, Kilbennan, County Galway, Ireland

Just out of festive curiosity and the fact that I must distract myself and my beloved since we have both given up alcohol for Lent, here are few interesting facts about our mysterious Saint Patrick...

• He's not actually Irish. When he was about 16, he was captured from his home in Great Britain, and taken as a slave to Ireland, where he lived for six years before escaping and returning to his family. 
• It's the date of his death we celebrate.  It is celebrated inside and outside Ireland as a religious and cultural holiday. In the dioceses of Ireland, it is both a solemnity and a holy day of obligation; it is also a celebration of Ireland itself.
• He was a bishop and missionary in the 5th century.
• He's known as the "Apostle of Ireland".
• There are two Patricks.  Many of the traditions attached to Saint Patrick actually concerned Palladius, who was sent by Pope Celestine I as the first bishop to Irish Christians in 431 before Patrick was dispatched.
• He had visions. 
• He was charged with some 'shady dealings' regarding money.
• "He converted wealthy women, some of whom became nuns in the face of family opposition" 
• Legend has it St. Patrick taught the Irish about the doctrine of the Holy Trinity by showing people the shamrock. For this reason, shamrocks are a central symbol for St Patrick's Day.
• He did not banish snakes from Ireland. According to National Geographic, Ireland has never had  snakes.  "At no time has there ever been any suggestion of snakes in Ireland, so [there was] nothing for St. Patrick to banish", says naturalist Nigel Monaghan, keeper of natural history at the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin, who has searched extensively through Irish fossil collections and records.
• He grew an ash tree everywhere he preached. Saint Patrick carried with him an ash wood walking stick or staff that he would thrust into the ground wherever he was evangelizing. According to legend, the place now known as Aspatria (ash of Patrick) the message of the dogma took so long to get through to the people there that the stick had taken root by the time he was ready to move on.

Want to know more?

• biography.com
• goireland.about.com

Sources: Wikipedia

Myth #6- What You THINK You Know About Local Marketing

Custom Social Media Strategies for your small business.

I Don't Need Social Media For My Type Of Business

Were only that true.... marketing would certainly be simpler. Some types of businesses do have an easy time attracting customers through social media interaction, but it's not the norm. Most likely, you are in a category of business that people wouldn't necessarily want (or think) to connect with in social media. Regardless, you really should have even a basic social media strategy in place.  If you're a plumber or an attorney, position yourself as an industry expert among your peers by networking, curating content and commenting on industry-related topics.

Twitter, Facebook and Google+ pages provide assets to help manage online reputations, and can help your business outrank your competition by providing more relevant and authoritative content for search engines to see and rank. Who doesn't want that?? 

Need to set up a Social Media Plan for your business? Email lissa@freshmintmarketing.com to find out how.

Myth #5- What You THINK You Know About Local Marketing

You Gotta Have a Keyword in your Domain Name.

This is a dearly-held myth by many. Especially those businesses just starting out with only a vague idea of what SEO actually is. Yes, it can't hurt, but even with regular keyword search, having a dominant keyword embedded in your domain name really isn't necessary. The real leads come from all the other SEO tactics, such as tagging, inbound links from your local listings, etc.

And most importantly, since the 'endgame' is Branding, the best action is to use your company name for your domain.  You want around half of your search traffic to be brand name searches.

Myth #4- What You THINK You Know About Local Marketing

Be 'King of the Map' with
a customized local marketing plan.

We Must Have a Separate Listing For Each and Every Service Area and Each and Every City that Surrounds Us.

Nope. You don't.  In fact, if you try this by setting up bogus locations in each of your service areas, Google will slap you. Quickly.

It was certainly tempting.... Google was giving preference to companies with physical locations in the city being searched but that is no longer such a strong ranking factor.  (Phew!!)

Local listings give you the tools to select and set your service areas.  If you do have multiple locations, be aware that you need strong, specific and consistent SEO promotion for each one or you will be diluting your efforts.

Here are a couple tips to help dispel this ugly rumor:

1. Claim, verify and optimize your Google Local Page for EACH location. 
2. Set your service areas for each local listing for each location.
3. Build location-based landing pages on your site. Make sure the page content is unique enough to validate its existence.

Myth #3- What You THINK You Know About Local Marketing

Don't know where to go from here?
Get a customized marketing plan
from Fresh Mint.

We Don't Need No Stinkin' Mobile!

We are right smack in the middle of the smartphone era. If you haven't realized mobile phones (and tablets) are taking over the internet, I'm assuming you also adjust the rabbit ears on your television.

Almost 50% of time spent online is on a smartphone.  That number is only going to grow.  According to the Official Google Webmaster Center, if you aren't optimizing for smartphones, your ranking could be impacted.  This is a local marketing myth that you had better shed quickly.