Maile Ohye of Google is one of the best people there are providing clear, concise, understandable and actionable advice to webmasters and small businesses. She did it again in a series of six videos aimed at helping local businesses get online even without their own web site.
Bring your local business online -- no website required! via the Google Webmaster Blog has the video series:
I love the Yelp mention, to be honest.
Video #1: Introduction and hot topics (3:22)
Meet my sister, Marnie, who owns a jewelry store and my cousin, Scott, who works as a realtor. Follow them as we talk about the big changes in the last decade, such as making sure your business can reach customers at work, home, or on-the-go using their mobile phones.Video #2: Determine your business’ value-add and online goal (4:08)
With the example of Scott, the realtor, you’ll learn about the marketing funnel, setting an online goal, and highlighting what makes your business special.Video #3. Find potential customers (7:41)
Marnie and Scott figure out their customers’ most common journeys to reach their business. We'll use their examples to brainstorm how you can reach customers on review sites, through search engines, maps apps, and social and professional networking sites.Video #4: Basic implementation and best practices (5:23)
The fundamentals and best practices to take your business from offline to online!Video #5: Differentiate your business from the competition (5:09)
With Scott’s business as a realtor, see how to demonstrate that your local business is the best choice for customers by adding photos, videos, and getting reviews.Video #6: Engage customers with a holistic online identity (4:51)
We'll end the series by showing how Scott makes sure his online presence sends a cohesive message to customers and answers all their common questions. :)
Forum discussion at Google+.
This post was pre-written and scheduled to be posted today. FYI, I am offline today, so if Google does a Penguin update - I won't get to it until Monday.
