3 new changes at Google you need to be aware of…

There’s quite a few new changes at Google you need to be aware of and a few thing to do to your todo list.

(If you’re a current client we’re providing SEO or Adwords services to, nothing to do here as we’ll take care of that for you)

1. iOS6 (new iPhone & iPad operating system) to be released in a few months with new Apple Maps instead of Google Maps

From an SEO and business owner perspective THIS IS HUGE!

Right now, maps on Apple devices are driven by Google Maps. This means if you have a Google Places listing you show up when someone searches for you on an Apple Mobile device.

With iOS6, Apple now has their own maps app with business listings driven by Yelp.com.au – previously you had to deal with Sensis/Yellowpages to get in Yelp (ugh!) but Yelp is now accepting public registrations.

My advice is to get onto this ASAP and get listed in Yelp and some Yelp reviews as you want to make sure your listing is live well in advance of the iOS6 release date. (there will be a first mover advantage here too)

Here’s the link to setup your business listing at Yelp:

https://biz.yelp.com.au/support

2. Google Places pages are now Google Plus pages

Google Places has now been rolled into Google Plus. The change is mostly cosmetic right now but you can bet that Google will be taking your Google Plus social activity into account in the very near future when ranking websites.

I would suggest that you start getting familiar with Google Plus because its clear Google Plus is the future for Google.

Click here to see the new layout in action

Goto plus.google.com for more info on Google Plus 

3. Adwords Product Display Ads

This one is for ecommerce and online retail businesses. Google is rolling out Adwords Product Display Ads to Australia. These are the paid product listings that appear in the top right hand corner of the search results when you use buying terms.

Click here to see a screenshot of the new Product Display Ads (chances are you’ve already seen one of these).

Product Display Ads are essentially a paid version of Google Shopping – really important to work with your Google Adwords provider to get these ads online ASAP if you’re in online retail.

Note that you will need to have an active Google Shopping Feed to run these ads.

4. Why you should be using Adwords

If you’re relying on search engines to generate traffic and new leads for your business then you should be looking seriously at Adwords. A lot of our SEO clients who have a top 3 ranking question me when I suggest using Adwords – they figure they’re already at the top of the search results so why waste money on Adwords?

Well, take a look at this screenshot from my iPhone below – what’s number 1 on your screen right now might not be number 1 on a different screen. In this example, every search result above the fold on my iPhone is a paid search listing (Adwords ad). Don’t assume because you’re listed number 1 on your computer that you’re listed in the number 1 spot in Google on everyone else’s screen or computer.

 

 

To ensure you’re getting in front of every possible lead or prospect then it really is important that you take a serious look at Adwords – in most cases you’re leaving money on the table if you’re relying on SEO or organic search results alone.

Really important that you don’t DIY your Adwords campaign too. Adwords is an extremely complex platform and unless you have experience with it or are willing to burn a whole bunch of cash learning how it works I’d suggest you use an internet marketing specialist to help you with you campaign setup.

Let me know if you get stuck on any of these action points – if you want to talk them through you can catch me at the office on 08-9467-7373 or just hit reply on this email.