The Missing Link
Business development means a lot of things to different people, however one description is: the intersection of Sales, Marketing, Customer and Product. We like the idea of Online Business Development as a component of your overall Business Development Strategy. Many consumers are so connected to their devices and to everything online, its hard to separate the consumer from the device, as it relates to messaging and relationship development. Online Directories and Reviews are the missing link in the Business Development process. These are a critical component of your overall business success because of the following:
- The proliferation of smart phones and mobile devices. As you probably know, mobile search has surpassed desktop search. Google recognized this by making major changes to its search algorithms. This has been referred to as “Mobilegeddon“. Google believes that when people are searching, and when they are searching from a mobile device, they are probably more interested in results that are near them rather than not near them. So, the concept of “Local Search” is based on this premise.
- Online Directories consist of lists and information about companies which includes name, address, phone number, product & service information and other relevant information about a business. Many of these directories are considered important to Google search results. When you have several directories that showcase your business information and that information is consistent and correct, these directories are considered even more relevant.
- Many Online Directories allow users to leave Online Reviews. These reviews are considered important to Google also, such that, if you have several reviews on multiple Online Directories, you must be more important (all other things being equal) than other competing companies that don’t have reviews.
Online Directories and Reviews represent a critical component of your overall Business Development function. If you do not have these in order, you will be ignored when people are searching for your business, products and services because one or more of your competitors will have their directories in order and have many positive Online Reviews. This is a major determinant when someone sees businesses in search result pages.
All Things Being Equal, Which One Would You Call First?
This is a Google results page that shows the business information and the number of Google reviews they have. This represents the first touch point a business has with a prospect. This can determine whether you get the customer or not. Most people, when faced with a choice like the ones above, will see that two dentists have reviews, one of them has nearly 300! And their average rating is 4.8 out of 5 stars. Its safe to say, they will probably get the first phone call.