With the release of new Google+ Local pages, Google is increasingly promoting local business, and they aren’t alone. See some of the other tools you can use to promote your local business today.
Google Goes Local
The new Google+ Local has local business as its focus. Or so says Jen Fitzpatrick, VP of engineering for Google. The pages are designed to create a simple experience for customers, help people find, rate, and share your business with others, and still allow you to manage through Google Places. Google and Your Business
What Google+ local pages mean to your business. If you haven’t yet gotten up to speed with the new Google+ local pages, here’s your chance. Find how the new local pages affect SEO, how business reviews are handled, and how the changes affect other Google offerings like Place Pages, and Google+ Business pages. Small Business Trends
Have a look. If you want to know what the Google+ Local pages will look like, Google has worked with a select group of businesses to give us all a better idea of what’s coming next. For now, local businesses will need to manage both a Google+ Business Page and Google+ Local Page, though eventually both will be merged. Google+ The Meatball Shop
More about how Google+ Local influences SEO. The new Google+ Local pages may have an impact for local business owners that goes well beyond increased social features. Remember, all data collected on the new pages, including information and ratings on local businesses, are indexed by Google. Enterpreneur
Other Local Tools from Google
A local ad push is coming soon too. Google has been trying to crack into local advertising, a $20 billion market, for some time. The company will launch a renewed effort beginning in July, according to recent reports. The Wall Street Journal
Local marketing surveys now also an option. Whether you’re an international brand or local business, Google Consumer Surveys now provides a fast, accurate, and affordable way of doing marketing research crucial to your company. Watch this video for more on how it works. Google and Your Business
More Options
The all new Foursquare is here. Foursquare is another option for small businesses seeking to market to and research their customer base locally. Foursquare was founded with the lofty goal of helping people make the most of where they are, according to a blog post from the company on its “Extreme Makeover.” How might you use the new Foursquare? Foursquare Blog
How the Foursquare app will help you market. The new Foursquare is using big data to figure out what customers crave next. Of course, like other aspects of the app, this is happening at the local level. On Facebook, the emphasis is on social interactions and shared photos, while on Foursquare it’s about location and detecting patterns. How can you use this to research and market to customers? The Verge
Under the hood of the new Foursquare. For more about how the new app can change Foursquare from an online curiosity to a true utility, here is a closer look at all of the changes. Foursquare has described the redesign as a whole new app. The app will allow users to browse locations by category and specific search. How will it change your local marketing? PC World
The local small business marketing trend continues. Entrepreneurs are keen to jump on board the local marketing bandwagon and are using social media and mobile technology to target customers where they are. Here are some inventive ways other small business owners are already using the tools available to them. What efforts are you using to improve your business’s local marketing online? The Miami Herald
