Local Listing

By Pat Smith

Submitting local listing information is an important element for business owners who operate brick-and-mortar businesses. A large percentage of the population use online directories to locate driving directions or contact information for local businesses. Those who don't submit business information can miss out on customer sales.

Hundreds of local listing directories are available. The time required to submit and maintain listings can be cumbersome, but the benefits can far outweigh the cost of man-hours needed to complete the submission process.

Business owners don't need to submit to every local listings directory, but should submit to those they feel will provide the best results. It's best to start with the major list providers such as Google Local Business, Yahoo! Local Listings, Yellow Book, SuperPages, AOL Local Search, Local.com, and Google Maps.

Submitting to local listing directories can help business owners be found via the search engines, but many business owners fail to get listed through in-car GPS navigation systems such as OnStar and Telematics or through 411 directory assistance.

Another area to consider when submitting local listing information is social networks such as Yelp, MojoPages, and CitySquares. It's also smart to scout out mobile local listing directories for Android, iPhone, and Blackberry apps. Google recently launched "Places Directory" offering mobile local search listings for Android phones, while "Beyond411" offers local listing directories for Blackberry mobile devices.

One time-saving solution is to pay for a universal business listing. For a nominal annual fee, business owners can create their local listing and have it distributed to all of the major outlets.

While a universal business listing can be a good choice, it's important to realize that submitted information should be verified through each directory to ensure accuracy. If information changes business owners will need to undergo the submission and verification process again.

Another solution is to work with an online marketing company. In addition to submitting information to local listing directories, marketing agencies offer a wide range of helpful business services. Many online marketing companies offer clients discount prices when they bundle multiple services together.

Online marketing agencies can help business owners incorporate a variety of online marketing strategies including SEO services, podcast marketing, video marketing, and mobile marketing.

Working with a professional ad agency can ensure local listings are SEO-friendly to maximize search results. They can also review websites to ensure they contain the primary keywords required to reach your target market.

Local listings are an important element in the overall marketing plan and should be carefully crafted to capitalize marketing dollars. Taking time to understand the power of local listings and writing SEO-enriched copy will go a long way in helping business owners reach their goals.

Online Marketing DNA specializes in providing local listing services, along with valuable marketing tools and personal business coaching. We invite you to review our offerings and contact us to schedule a consultation to help you determine the best online marketing strategies and best way to approach getting your business information distributed through local listing service providers.

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Published on January 01, 2011

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