Blog

May '23

Google Perspectives: What it Means for Contractors and SEO

On May 10, 2023, Google unveiled its upcoming Search Perspectives filter at its annual Google I/O conference. The new search filter is designed to showcase expert content from verifiable sources.

Reading over the document, one quote stands out:

“In the coming weeks, when you search for something that might benefit from the experiences of others, you may see a Perspectives filter appear at the top of search results.”

Perspectives will showcase content from discussion boards like Reddit and video platforms like YouTube Shorts and TikTok.

However, the filter itself is one of many ways that Perspectives will impact SEO.

Google Perspectives Impact on Search Results

The document goes on to outline how Perspectives will also be used to enhance Google’s algorithm for all search results and serve as a continuation of the August 2022 Helpful Content Update.

The following quote demonstrates their intentions:

“In the coming months, we’ll roll out an update to this system that more deeply understands content created from a personal or expert point of view, allowing us to rank more of this useful information on Search.”

That statement clearly indicates how the newest algorithms will value content and that EEAT will become even more essential to ranking.

How Perspectives Might Impact Local SEO

Based on the statement above, all search results will be affected by Perspectives, including local search. As a result, local content that demonstrates EEAT will rank higher than content that fails to provide those signals. To prepare for these changes, you must insert EEAT.

Using DataPins to Create EEAT Signals

Since Perspectives will likely roll out within weeks, contractors should prepare now by activating EEAT signals on their website and Google My Business listings.

DataPins is the fastest and most effective way to achieve this goal in 2023. You can convert your jobs into pins with a few clicks and route them to optimized web pages based on service type and location.

Expertise

DataPins creates expertise signals by allowing contractors to snap photos of their job site, geo-coordinates, and schema markup. These combinations of data demonstrate expertise to search engine crawlers.

Experience

DataPins produces branded content that routes pins to a company website’s individual pages. For instance, a website service page optimized for commercial roof repair in Dallas, TX, will show pins from commercial roofing jobs in Dallas.

Authoritativeness

DataPins progressively build authority by allowing companies to submit unlimited job site pins. As you begin to publish more social proof on your website, your authority progressively increases.

Trustworthiness

DataPins automates review requests through SMS and email so customers can validate their experience with your company and build trust with future customers. DataPins also connects reviews to pins so that prospects can view jobs in the context of customer feedback.

Last Word on Google Perspectives for SEO

Google has been hinting at its increased commitment to valuing EEAT for over a year. However, the recent Google I/O announcements have demonstrated that the time has come. Contractors looking to quickly prepare their web presence for modern SEO should invest in DataPins.

May '23

7 (Must-Have) Local SEO Signals for Service Area Businesses

Many small businesses confuse Local ranking factors with Local SEO signals. Ranking factors directly contribute to where your website and Google My Business listing rank on local search results. Google outlines distance, relevance, and prominence as the three primary ranking factors for Google Maps results (and Google Map 3-Pack)

Organic local results are based on those ranking factors, along with link authority, internal link context, on-page optimization, image optimization, and hundreds of other factors.

Local SEO Signals vs. Ranking Factors

As Google often states in its public documents, there are signals at play that are not direct ranking factors. Instead, these signals indirectly dictate where you rank.

For example, distance (proximity) is a local ranking factor. Therefore, the closer a searcher is to your business’s verified address, the more likely you will appear on their search results for relevant keywords.

Conversely, schema markup is not a ranking factor but a signal. Signals drive ranking factors and ultimately create a climate influencing your rankings, engagement, and overall success.

Essential Local SEO Signals

Below, DataPins outlines the seven essential signals for Local SEO in 2023.

1) Schema Markup

As Google has indicated, schema markup is not a ranking factor. However, it is one of the most important Local SEO signals in 2023. Unfortunately, many small businesses don’t grasp schema markup, which is understandable since it is its own language designed for search engine crawlers.

Screenshot of Schema Markup Validator Tool

It’s not so crucial that you understand the intricacies of schema, but only that you implement it on your website. By communicating with search crawlers in their native language, you foster an environment for SEO success in your local market.

2) EEAT

Google publicly states that EEAT is not a ranking factor. However, it’s clear that EEAT is an SEO signal that has become more important with each passing algorithm update. EEAT stands for expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness.

You might wonder how to encapsulate each of these qualities into a single acronym, and apps like DataPins do that for you. However, building relevant local links from other credible organizations is also essential to expand EEAT.

As AI-generated content becomes more accessible, EEAT will continue to influence the credibility of your content, website, and web presence in your local market. Therefore, it’s more vital than ever to demonstrate that your website is a credible source for its published information.

3) Geo-Coordinates

As a service area business, your primary address rarely tells the story of which areas you most frequently service. For example, roofers, plumbers, and HVAC technicians regularly travel to destinations between 5 and 50 millers from their verified business addresses.

While proximity is a ranking factor, it can not accurately demonstrate everywhere your company does business. Creating signals of your work outside your main zip code occurs when you produce geo-coordinates.

Generating geo-coordinates requires a specific software app to convert your recent jobs into longitude and latitude information and embed it within a schema check-in.

4) Branded Search

You might dismiss the idea of local consumers searching directly for your brand name. After all, the whole objective of SEO is to rank for industry-specific keywords like roofer near me, right? However, while service keywords are essential to your SEO strategy, branded search is a powerful Local SEO signal that can contribute to those rankings.

When search engines log regular searches of your brand name in a specific geolocation, it signals that your relevance in that area is credible and trustworthy. As a result, you may see a macro-level spike in your ability to rank for competitive keywords and variations.

5) Contextual Content

Once again, we aren’t talking about on-page optimization or keyword insertions; we are speaking about the context that demonstrates a local connection in your content. For example, images of local jobs from your recent roof repair are perfect for that roof repair service page.

Screenshot of "Pin" on Local Business Website

Of course, it helps if you can validate these jobs with a digital hand raise that confirms where and when the job took place and connects it with verified customer reviews from Google, Yelp, or another credible platform.

6) Social Proof

Social proof is an important SEO signal, but local companies often fail to produce the baseline requirements for this particular signal. For example, it’s not enough to take a screenshot of your customer review and paste it as an image on your testimonials page. Any tech-savvy marketer can doctor images which negates the credibility of the feedback.

You must pull verified reviews via API plugins to create social proof as an SEO signal. For example, your website should have a reviews slider that pulls reviews from Google, Yelp, and Facebook via API. You can also use schema check-ins with geo-coordinates for job-based social proof.

Screenshot of Social Proof Review Slider on Local Website

7) Original Images

While image optimization techniques like alt text and captions can contribute to website rankings, unique and original images send clear signals to search engines. Since many local contractors use stock photos on their business websites, unique and original pictures of your staff, equipment, and team differentiate your company.

You still want to apply the image optimization techniques to your original photos, but they will have an extra punch because of their uniqueness. Moreover, these kinds of images also contribute to the EEAT factor mentioned above. Therefore, it’s okay to upload these photos to your Google My Business listing and your website, and can even strengthen your signals by associating the two digital entities.

List of Essential Local SEO Signals for SABs

Schema Markup
EEAT
Geo-Coordinates
Branded Search
Contextual Content
Social Proof
Original Images

Summary of Local SEO Signals for SABs

Getting caught up in direct “ranking factors” is easy when crafting your local SEO strategy. However, you’ll find that Local SEO signals often determine the difference between success and failure in a marketing campaign.

This is especially true for service area businesses (SABs) that perform work in areas outside of their primary city. For example, consider roofers, plumbers, and HVAC companies traveling to nearby towns for various services. In these cases, SEO signals are essential to success.

You can check out DataPins: The Map Ranking App to start generating Local SEO signals simply by doing your day-to-day job.

Apr '23

10 Local SEO Hacks to Rank Your SAB on Search Engines

Local SEO requires a specialized approach beyond “traditional” SEO methods. Many tactics used to optimize a national website do not apply to a local business. Conversely, many of the Local SEO hacks outlined in this post would not benefit a national website or global SEO campaign.

Local SEO is unique in that it relies on two separate algorithms. The first algorithm is for Google Maps and the Google Map 3-Pack. The second algorithm is for organic results and specifically those with local and regional user intent. Therefore, a successful Local SEO strategy must account for both algorithms simultaneously.

Below, DataPins highlights the ten best Local SEO hacks for 2023.

1) Google My Business Landing Page

The best-kept secret in Local SEO is the GMB landing page hack. Every Google Business Profile includes a URL field that allows the manager to insert a website or web page. However, most people must realize that the connected page and its on-page SEO directly impact the Google Maps ranking for that business listing.

Google Maps scans the landing page and its content to understand better which services you offer. They will even showcase some of these services through local justifications. If you’ve ever seen a Google My Business listing that says “their website mentions,” you have seen a local justification.

Screenshot of GMB URL Field for Local Company

2) Schema Markup

Every local business website should utilize schema markup to help search engines understand your business. Think of schema markup as the language of search engines, and when your website is fluent, the search engines take notice.

Various types of schema markup are beneficial to your local website, including LocalBusiness schema and GeoCoordintes schema. Other schema commonly found on local websites are OpeningHoursSpecification and serviceArea schema. You can check your website’s schema using Markup Validator.

3) Review Automation

It’s no secret that reviews remain a local ranking factor in 2023. Whitespark’s Local Ranking Factors Study found that review signals are still the third most influential ranking factor for Google Maps. As a result, it’s essential to generate as many reviews as possible for your business.

The best way to achieve this is through review request automation via text and email. Several software tools are designed for this very purpose. For example, DataPins features email and SMS review request automation with the software.

Screenshot of GMB Reviews for Local Company

4) Social Proof

With the emergence of AI-generated content, it becomes more challenging to distinguish legitimate businesses from imposters. One way to close the gap is to increase the value of social proof. For those unfamiliar with the term, social proof is an example of your business’s work. For example, photos of recent jobs and widgets that show reviews from verified sources like Google and Yelp are social proof.

Google’s algorithmic process for rewarding social proof is called EEAT. The acronym stands for expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. You can demonstrate experience and expertise with unique photos of recent jobs and original data and insights. Showcase verified reviews and testimonials to achieve authoritativeness and trustworthiness.

5) Pins

Pins are the best option if you want to publish all the required signals on your website in a single instance. Pins are map markers filled with data about your recent contracting jobs in the form of SEO signals. The DataPins tool was created to consolidate all the necessary Local SEO signals into a single digital entity.

For example, pins serve as visual social proof for website visitors AND schema markup, and on-page SEO for search engine crawlers. Instead of using various tools to check every Local SEO box, you can utilize one powerful tool to check all compartments simultaneously.

6) Location

It can be a bold move, but moving your business to a better location for SEO can quadruple your traffic. Google Maps’ algorithm uses proximity as one of its most impactful ranking factors. If your business is located on the outskirts of a city, you may not rank very often. If you move your address to a more central location, you can pick up more.

There’s no way to trick Google into thinking your address is in a different area than its actual location. For example, Google My Business listings using virtual addresses and PO boxes are regularly suspended, eliminating all rankings. Also, GMB verification requires business owners to receive a postcard at their address and enter the code into Google My Business before going live.

Screenshot of Various Map Markers on Google Maps Results

7) Super City Pages

While Google Maps is the most popular SERP position for local businesses because of the Local Map 3-Pack, companies should also pay attention to traditional organic results. For example, one way to gain traffic on the margins is to publish super city pages for each of your service areas. Unfortunately, most websites mass-produce redundant city pages that appear to search engines as low-quality doorway pages.

You can stand out to search engines with super city pages. These pages are superior versions of city pages and include specific pins for jobs completed in the page’s target city. For example, a water heater repair job in Altamonte Springs, FL, will appear on the Altomonte Springs city page. You can scale the pages to include each of your most serviced Florida cities.

Screenshot of H1 Tag on Local Business Webpage

8) Local Link Building

It’s no secret that links are an SEO ranking factor. But for local companies, link context matters more than authority. For example, it’s more beneficial to receive an inbound link from a nearby business website than from a national website with higher domain authority.

Keep in mind that one way that local and national links do not differ is spam. You should never seek out links from spammy websites, fake websites, or doorway pages. These types of links do more harm than good, or Google may completely ignore them.

One way to get local links is through local networking and partnerships. For example, sponsoring a local little league team might earn you a link from the organization’s website.

9) Industry Citations

Most local businesses pay a service like Whitespark or Yext for citations. But because your competitors are doing the same thing, it’s important to differentiate your company through industry citations. For example, roofers should submit citations to roofing-based directories, and the same for plumbers.

Some citation services have special packages that will target these industry directories. Other times, you may have to manually submit these citations or have someone on your team find new opportunities. NAP consistency remains important and is something you should consider when expanding your reach.

10) YouTube SERP Boosters

Google owns YouTube and will show video results from YouTube on some search queries. Because YouTube SEO is less competitive than Google, you might be able to rank your videos for keywords that your website would otherwise not rank for.

The process is straightforward. Perform keyword research (as you would for a website page), and create a video that covers the topic or service. Optimize the video title to include the target keyword and write a detailed description that also includes keywords, keyphrases, and related terms. Include a URL to the website page that targets this keyword.

Finally, add tags to your YouTube video and hit publish. Next, embed the published video on the website page that covers the term. Check back in a day or so to see if your video starts ranking on Google SERPs. Even if it doesn’t rank, you have built a digital connection to your website and validated your coverage of the keyword.

Summary of Local SEO Hacks for SABs

Use the hacks above to improve local rankings in your area. Even if you don’t have the resources to utilize every hack, any of them can impact your search visibility. Of course, you can invest in the software DataPins to handle each of these hacks with one tool.

Aug '22

The 29 Best Roofing SEO Tools to Boost Rankings in 2023

Roofers dislike SEO, and for a good reason. Most roofing SEO agencies provide mediocre services. Just ask Backlinko, who reports that 70% of consumers dislike their current SEO provider. And who can blame them? Most agencies don’t understand the contractor lifestyle. Most marketers have never had the inherent work ethic of authentic roofing professionals. They also don’t provide roofing SEO tools.

There are other reasons why roofing companies loathe SEO. For example, roofers are regularly bombarded with emails, DMs, and other unwanted propositions for marketing services. Most of these roofers already have an ineffective marketing provider and certainly don’t need an additional consultant who learned their SEO “skillset” from TikTok videos.

While roofers’ disgust with the marketing industry is warranted, the shame is that SEO works if you have the proper tools. The problem is that agency owners claim that tools are “black magic” and that “real SEO” requires paying multiple thousands of dollars per month for “hard work.”

There’s nothing hard about having one of your flunkees write an uninteresting blog post about “roof repair in city.” and then telling clients you can’t update their Google Business Profile because it might cause a suspension. So what exactly do these agencies do? Aside from charging hardworking Americans way too much money for “content.”

But that’s enough about why roofing marketing agencies are incompetent. You’re probably wondering about the best roofing SEO tools for your business. Well, here are the best 29:

1) DataPins

DataPins is the best SEO tool for roofers because it automates content, reputation management, and Local SEO in a single app. Roofers snap a photo of their job, write a short caption, and apply the necessary location and service tags.

DataPins does the rest by assigning geo-coordinates and publishing the pin on the corresponding website page. For example, if you drop a pin for a shingle roof repair in Plano, TX, your pin appears on the shingle roof repair service page and the Plano location page.

Using pins beats blog posts because it consistently keeps service and city pages fresh with unique content that describes your jobs. The SEO benefit is apparent as you can rank for more long-tail keywords like GAF Shingle Repair in Plano and increase the word count on your primary pages.

Aside from the ranking benefit, DataPins also enhances reputation. Regular city pages usually fail to convert because they look like spam and provide no evidence that your company works in that city. DataPins provides social proof and also connects local reviews to their corresponding pages.

2) Yoast

Yoast is one of the best WordPress SEO plugins available, evidenced by its 200 million downloads. Roofing companies can easily assign a target keyword, title, meta description, and URL slug to each URL.

Also, Yoast grades your on-page SEO based on your assigned keyword. As a result, you can make real-time edits to improve your on-page SEO score and have a better chance of ranking for the target keyword.

For roofers who lack technical savvy, Yoast also allows you to manually set a page as noindex, meaning Google is instructed not to crawl that URL. Typically, you would need HTML knowledge to perform this task.

3) Rank Math

Rank Math is a Yoast alternative and, in some ways, is a better plugin. For example, RankMath allows roofers to insert schema markup and structured data, including schema FAQ, without HTML coding.

Like Yoast, Rank Math helps you refine your on-page SEO in real-time. The plugin uses 30 grading factors to help roofing companies maximize their SEO potential. RankMath also lets you target multiple keywords.

Furthermore, Rank Math presents pertinent information at the right time. Its simple and powerful user interface highlights the most critical statistics about your posts and pages on your screen. As a result, roofing contractors can immediately upgrade their content.

4) Google Search Console

Every roofing company should set up its Google Search Console dashboard for daily reports about which pages are getting clicked on Google Search. Search Console has the best user experience (UX) of all the SEO tools from Google and provides easy-to-understand insights.

Setting up your website as a domain property on Google Search Console requires you to access your hosting account for DNS records verification. Google explains the process here, but you may need further assistance.

5) Ahrefs

While SEMRush and Moz provide similar SEO suites, Ahrefs is the most complete tool for roofing companies. Ahrefs is second only to Google regarding the size of its web crawler. Additionally, the Site Audit feature is unmatched by competitors. It reveals tons of SEO insights for your website and competitor websites.

Roofers can also use Ahrefs to evaluate competitor backlink profiles and perform a content gap analysis. If you target specific keywords in an area, Ahrefs will give you a roadmap to overtaking competitors that rank for these terms. In addition, Ahrefs helps you fix broken website links.

6) Google Analytics

Although Universal Analytics (the soon-to-be expiring version of Google Analytics) provides a better user interface than Google Analytics 4 (GA4), the tool remains one of the most valuable in search engine optimization. GA4 can track all of your website data and organic traffic, including from non-Google search engines.

Setting up GA4 is relatively simple if your website is already tracked with Universal Analytics. Google explains how to add GA4 to your website property here, which you’ll be required to do by 2023.

7) Answer The Public

Answer The Public is a free SEO tool that helps roofing companies find topics consumers search for online. A recent study from Ahrefs revealed that Google hides more than half of its user queries in Google Search Console, which means a ton of non-tracked keywords drive traffic to websites. A tool like Answer The Public helps you find these keywords.

ATP also helps roofing companies target featured snippets for various subcategories. For example, you might want to answer a question like how much does roof repair cost in Dallas? Claiming the featured snippet for this phrase can help you eat up SERP real estate and gain traffic.

8) SEMRush

SEMRush has been a powerful SEO tool dating back to 2008. Over the past 10+ years, SEMRush has continued to evolve and add new features like user intent filtering. In addition, the domain analysis tool is helpful for roofers looking to assess their website against nearby competitors.

SEMRush’s reporting features make it easy for roofing contractors to pull metrics that can inform future SEO strategies. Also, the on-page SEO checker makes tracking keyword rankings a breeze. SEMRush is an intelligent investment, as we can trust it to evolve with new algorithms.

9) Moz Pro

Moz Pro was once considered the #1 SEO tool for roofing companies but has dropped off recently. Instead, Ahrefs and SEMRush offer more helpful and innovative features in 2023. Still, Moz Pro remains a valuable tool for keyword research as its volume estimates are the most accurate.

However, it’s now best to use Moz Pro in collaboration with other tools like Majestic since Moz’s link-building metrics leave something to be desired. In addition, Moz’s on-page SEO grader is also obsolete, so it doesn’t make sense to craft content using Moz’s on-page analyses.

10) Majestic

Majestic is an excellent link-building tool for SEO-related analysis. Majestic’s Site Explorer allows you to analyze any domain’s link-building metrics quickly. For example, you can track the number of backlinks, the anchor text, and the trust flow of referring domains. This tool helps you hone in on links.

While Majestic is great for link analysis, it’s limited in other areas of SEO. As a result, it’s best to use Majestic in collaboration with a keyword research tool like Moz Pro. You may also need a content analysis tool like Surfer SEO to maximize the findings from Majestic.

11) Google Trends

Many of the best SEO tools for roofers come directly from Google. After all, Google has the best data about itself. One example is Google Trends, which helps roofing companies measure a topic’s popularity trajectory. Google Trends will even break down the metrics by location.

Contractors can evaluate rising queries, interest over time, and geographical locations of a keyword. Google Trends is especially helpful for local roofing companies looking to gauge their specific service types in a particular zip code. There’s always a benefit to using Google Trends.

12) SEOQuake

Free SEO tools for roofers are even more appealing because they require no payment. SEOQuake is an example of one of the most popular free Chrome extensions for SEO. In addition, SEOQuake performs on-site audits and helps you evaluate a website’s indexed pages and potential rankings.

SEOQuake is easy to install on your browser, especially using Google Chrome. In addition to the features mentioned above, SEOQuake allows you to analyze keywords and keyword density on a particular page. So a roofing company can’t go wrong by installing this free extension.

13) Siteliner

Siteliner helps prevent roofing websites from publishing duplicate content, which can cause keyword cannibalization and limit SEO effectiveness. In addition, Siteliner is free and easy to use as it scans your entire website for duplicate text. Also, Siteliner identifies broken links and average site speed.

While Siteliner is an effective way to track duplicate content, your job is not done after running the scan. First, if the tool finds duplicates, you must determine which of your pages ranks better for the target keywords. Then, you can use Google Search Console to measure each page’s performance. Eventually, you’ll redirect the worse page to the superior URL.

14) Keywords Everywhere

Another excellent SEO Chrome extension is Keywords Everwhere which aggregates data from various Google tools to identify the best keywords. Installing this browser extension saves roofing companies lots of time as it consolidates the work of several tools into one convenient dashboard.

Keywords Everywhere works while you search Google as long as you activate the extension on your Chrome browser. Using this tool, you will indeed find countless roofing keyword opportunities to target in 2023.

15) Screaming Frog

Roofers know that a property relies on its foundation; the same is true of a website. Screaming Frog is the best technical SEO tool on the market. It allows roofers to crawl their websites to identify every kind of technical issue, including indexing, status codes, and problematic redirects.

Unlike many other SEO tools on this list, Screaming Frog is an external software you run on your computer. Since some websites have thousands of pages, the software must use many resources to crawl the URLs fully. However, most roofing websites are not more than 300 pages, so they should go fast.

16) Detailed

Detailed is another Chrome extension that provides incredible SEO insights for roofing contractors in 2023. Detailed delivers one-click info on any website you visit, including title tags, meta descriptions, no index tags, and much more.

Many roofing company owners don’t know much about reading HTML source code. Detailed translates the information, so it’s easy to consume. You can immediately look at competitors’ websites and grasp their SEO strategies.

17) HubSpot Website Grader

HubSpot Website Grader lets roofers insert their URL for an instant report card containing insights about site performance, issues, mobile Optimization, user experience, and security. While some similar on-site graders fail to deliver worthwhile metrics, HubSpot is an exception.

Be careful, however, that HubSpot wants you to enroll in their SEO training academy, where you can find out how to improve their recommendations using other resources, including many of the tools on this list.

18) Surfer SEO

Surfer SEO is like getting the answers to a test before you take it. Insert any roofing keyword into Surfer, and it’ll tell you every SEO tactic used by the site currently ranking for that term. Sometimes editing your content to a 100% score won’t be enough to rank #1 (because of the lack of backlinks), but it will get you closer than you ever imagined.

One downside of Surfer is its price. Surfer costs a minimum of $50 per month. The good news is most roofing companies won’t need an upgraded plan since they manage only one roofing company website.

19) Cora SEO

Cora SEO is a more in-depth but less user-friendly variation of Surfer SEO. To be fair, Cora SEO existed before Surfer’s emergence and is a more accurate on-page SEO analyzer in many ways. Still, the clunky UX and high price encourage roofing companies to choose Surfer SEO instead.

For contractors wanting to get into the nitty-gritty of SEO, Cora is an appealing option. It says no other company uses the 2,000 ranking factors this software considers when grading your URL.

20) Jasper

Jasper generates coherent AI content to a degree never previously witnessed. For example, roofing companies have many service pages that require mundane explanations that visitors rarely read through. Jasper makes it easy to generate helpful content and speed up the SEO process.

While Jasper is the best AI tool, you still need human oversight. Google’s Helpful Content Update warns against content created primarily for search engines, which is what most AI content aims to accomplish.

For example, Editing the content that Jasper outputs for your roofing website is vital before hitting the publish button. We recommend that you use it for outlines instead of writing complete pages or posts. Still, Jasper is a valuable tool for generating all types of content outlines for SEO purposes.

21) Canva

Image optimization is an underrated aspect of SEO for roofers, and Canva provides lots of great resources. Instead of uploading cheesy stock photos to your roofing company website, use Canva to develop original image files and infographics.

Canva makes it easy for roofers to brand their graphics by pulling the color scheme from the company logo. In addition, creating new image files is helpful for SEO, as Google’s crawlers no the difference between a stock photo and an original graphic.

22) Link Whisper

Roofers are constantly bombarded with blog posts about the importance of link building. Still, internal links can be equally as effective for SEO. One tool that makes internal liking easy is Link Whisper. The tool suggests the most appropriate internal linking opportunities on each page and post.

Roofers can quickly add relevant internal links to their pages based on Link Whisper’s recommendations. As a result, link equity transfers throughout the website while expanding topical authority.

23) HARO

Building links externally is a complex process for some roofers. The best way to get links is by getting featured in news articles. In addition, you might have some local contacts to reach out to on your company’s behalf directly. Still, HARO provides daily link-building opportunities.

Signing up as a HARO source allows roofers to receive daily emails with lists of reporters and their topics. The prompts will outline what kind of sources they need for articles. Press CTRL + F (Command + F on Mac) and search for roofing and related keywords to find excellent opportunities.

24) Ubersuggest

Uberssugest is a SEMRush alternative that provides limited free SEO research. If you’re looking for fast keyword research on one or two terms, Ubersuggest can be helpful. However, upgrading to a paid account doesn’t make much sense despite its relatively low cost.

Roofers can benefit more by investing in a superior tool like SEMRush or Ahrefs, providing all the data they’ll need for an SEO campaign. Still, it’s nice to have Ubersuggest as a backup option.

25) Open Link Profiler

When you get deep into the weeds of competitor analysis, you’ll find that some competitors hide their backlinks from popular crawlers like Ahrefs, Majestic, and SEMRush. One way to combat this is to use the Open Link Profiler tool.

The tool’s relative lack of popularity allows link builders to overlook its crawlers. As a result, stealth roofing companies can find hidden backlinks from their competitors by checking for them on Open Link Profiler.

26) SERPerator

Roofing companies need to know how search results look in a specific zip code. The SERPerator tool from Mobile Moxie helps them achieve this. First, assign a country, state, city, or zip code and insert a keyword. Then, SERParator does the rest by providing accurate local search results.

In addition, SERPerator allows you to test local SERPs by device type, like iPhone 12 Pro, Google Pixel 5, etc. Roofing companies can even preview the results as they appear on the specific mobile dimensions of each device.

27) WPRocket

Speeding up your website is one way to improve its SEO performance. WProcket helps speed up your roofing company website without needing technical knowledge. As a WordPress plugin, WProcket automatically assigns settings that enhance your website’s loading speeds.

You should check your current speed by visiting Google Pagespeed Insights. Be sure to monitor the desktop speed score and the mobile speed score. You can combine WPRocket with a CDN like Cloudflare for even better results.

28) Imagify

Image file sizes can slow down your website and ruin the user experience. The Imagify plugin automatically converts your image files to WebP, making them easier for browsers to load. Imagify helps you maintain your image SEO and contributes to potential SEO improvements via speed.

Of all the WordPress image compression plugins, Imafity is the most effective. The tool allows roofers to resize images on the go and auto-optimizes photos to the ideal compression level. Finally, Imagify backs up the originals if you need to restore images.

29) Whitespark

Roofing websites require foundational links in the form of NAP citations. Whitespark is the best SEO tool to submit dozens of citations for your roofing company or update current listings with new contact information.

Foundational links help establish your roofing company domain on Google search and prove the legitimacy of your business from a local SEO perspective. In addition, roofers can invest a one-time fee of $199 per location.

Do Roofing Companies Need SEO Tools?

Although the SEO industry has earned its horrible reputation, it remains a highly effective method to produce new roofing leads in 2023. However, roofing companies need the best SEO tools to get the best results.

Like roofing projects require the best tools and equipment, so does an SEO strategy. As a result, compiling the most effective roofing SEO tools gives you a better chance of ranking on Google searches and acquiring new customers consistently.

Jun '22

7 Revealing Florida Local SEO Statistics for 2023

Florida Local SEO Statistics (Blog Cover)

Florida local SEO statistics reveal granular insights into how Florida businesses can benefit from search engine optimization in 2023. At DataPins, we know a thing or two about helping Floridians rank online.

Google implemented the Pigeon update in 2014. Over the past eight years, it has shifted how search engine optimization tactics work. The update allows local businesses to reach more consumers in their immediate area. But small companies have been slow to take advantage of it.

Business owners should reference these Florida local SEO statistics when allocating their marketing budget in 2023. The goal of this post is to impress upon Florida business owners the importance of local SEO and how it can benefit your bottom line.

1) 78% of local searches lead to purchases

According to at least one study, 78% of local searches (searches wherein the user specifies a geographic location) lead to purchases. Likewise, someone looking for a service or business near them on their computer or mobile device will purchase with that business 78% of the time.

Local searches commonly have purchasing intent. That’s why local SEO is so powerful. You are essentially putting your business in front of the eyes of pre-qualified leads. They are ready to purchase, so all you have to do is be available to them.

2) Local queries have increased 34 times since 2011

One of the most common phrases for local searches is “near me.” People are constantly using this phrase to find local businesses and services. So, for example, someone might search for “pizza places near me” or “mechanics near me.” And according to Google, the frequency of “near me” searches has ballooned over the past few years.

There are so many people doing “near me” searches as a means of finding local businesses and services. You have probably done one yourself!

3) Over 50% of “Near Me” Searchers Visit The Location

It’s all well and good to have your business visible online. But what percent of people who see your business on a local search will come in and visit your physical location? Well, according to Florida local SEO statistics, more than 50%. So over half of the people who find your business through a local search will visit your brick-and-mortar location.

Getting people’s foot in the door is essential for most businesses. And from this statistic, we can see that local SEO can get people through the door.

4) 62% of consumers disregard businesses with no online presence

What can happen if you don’t have an online presence or don’t optimize your site for local searches? According to one survey, 62% of consumers won’t even give a business the time of day if they cannot find information online.

The fact of the matter is that the internet is the way that people do consumer research in 2023. Suppose a consumer can’t get the answers to their questions about your business by looking it up online. In that case, they are more than likely to purchase with one of your local competitors.

Essentially, if you don’t optimize your site for local searches, you aren’t going to be visible to local consumers.

5) 84% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations

Part of optimizing for local searches is getting reviews for your business. Here at Datapins, we provide an accessible software suite that helps you get more reviews and leverage your existing reviews to get more leads. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. The main point is that 84% of consumers trust online reviews as much as in-person references.

More than that, most consumers need to read at least one online review before making a purchase decision. Online reviews are an essential part of your off-site optimization – meaning there are ways to get more web traffic outside your website. Getting reviews and managing them will generate more leads.

6) 86% of consumers report using Google Maps to find local businesses

Have you ever opened up the Google Maps app and typed in a category like restaurants, malls, or gas stations? We’re going to assume you answered “yes” to that question. We’re confident in that assumption because 86% of consumers report using Google Maps to find local businesses.

When you search for anything in Google Maps, it will show you the closest matching results. And with so many consumers using the app to perform these kinds of searches, it’s clear to see how important local SEO is. For business owners, it’s a valuable tool that allows you to gain more leads through a service that people are already using.

7) 46% of all Google searches include location

Google is a top global resource for information ranging from news to entertainment. However, despite its wide-ranging coverage, nearly half of all Google searches contain location information. As a result, the number of local searches that occur on Google is revealing for Florida businesses.

When Florida consumers need services from a roofing company or HVAC contractor, they primarily go to Google to find them. Whether it’s the Local Map 3-Pack or traditional organic results, the companies ranking in these spots will generate the most business.

Local SEO is one of the best investments a business owner can make. Whether operating from a large city like Orlando or a smaller town like Altamonte Springs, Local SEO for Floridians can be a game-changer for your small business in 2023.

Jun '22

Map Pack SEO: 7 Useful Tips for Improving Rankings in 2023

Map Pack SEO is critical for local businesses in 2022. The Map Pack appears on top of search results for most local queries making it prime digital real estate for companies looking to generate local leads online.

However, most people don’t know that Map Pack SEO is based on a separate Google algorithm. Therefore, improving your position on Google Maps requires different strategies than you would use for a website.

Here are seven tips to boost Map Pack rankings:

1) Optimize Your Google Business Profile

The first and most important thing you must do is get listed on Google Business Profile. If you don’t, you have no chance of ranking in the Google Map Pack. Getting set up is free though you will have to go through a verification process which you can get started here.

Once you are listed, start loading up your profile with a concise description of your business, the areas you service, the services you offer, your hours of operation, and accurate contact information. Don’t forget to include a link to your main website.

Once you have everything set up, don’t just leave your profile idle. Instead, try to update it as often as possible. For example, if your company just started servicing a new area, add it to your profile. In addition, people will be able to leave reviews of your business on your Google Business Profile, so be sure to respond to those reviews as much as possible.

Keep in mind that Google loves fresh content, so keep your Business Profile up to date as much as possible. You can add Google Posts automatically using the DataPins Local SEO tool.

2) Add Local Content to Your Website

Standard SEO overlaps with Map Pack SEO via local website content. However, to utilize this method, you must include your website URL within your Google Business Profile under the website field.

Once you’ve connected your website to your Google Business Profile, it can begin influencing your Map Pack rankings via web content. For example, adding a local landing page or a service page can increase your rankings on Google Maps for related queries. This is because Google associates your website’s content with your Google Business Profile.

For example, let’s say you run a plumbing business in Akron, Ohio. Whenever someone searches for plumbers in Akron, Google will crawl websites associated with nearby map listings, searching for plumbing-related information.

3) Submit Citation Listings

Your NAP (name, address, and phone number) is like a digital ID for your local business. Citations help verify and disseminate that identification. Directories like Yelp and Angi and social media platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn create NAP citations for your local business.

Off-page citations are any mention of your business or website anywhere other than your own website. The more of these citations you have, the more signs you have pointing to your website. As a result, Google trusts your business listing and may rank it higher on the Map Pack.

4) Install DataPins

DataPins is a Local SEO tool that increases Map Pack rankings with schema markup, geo-coordinates, and user-generated content. In addition, DataPins publishes social proof on your local business website, which contributes to your Google Business Profile rankings.

The best part about DataPins is that it auto-generates local web content based on your job and location. So once you take a photo of your job and write a short caption via the mobile app, the software does the rest by publishing the pin to the correct page.

Screenshot of Pin from Water Heater Repair Website

Each time you submit a pin, another geo-coordinate, and mini-map appear on one of your pages, and your Map Pack rankings have a chance to increase.

5) Publish City Pages

City pages are another way to boost Map Pack rankings in 2022. One of the most challenging things to do is rank on Google Maps outside your primary service area. Using local landing pages combined with DataPins, you give yourself a chance.

Let’s say you operate a roofing company in Fort Worth, Texas. Showing up on the Map Pack in Fort Worth is relatively straightforward. However, showing up in nearby cities like Southlake and Grapevine requires publishing individual city pages.

The key to creating successful city pages is writing unique and locally-driven content. Unfortunately, most websites use duplicate content for their city pages and swap out the city name. Google’s algorithm is far too sophisticated to provide you credit for duplicate content pages.

6) Build Local Links

Local links also influence Map Pack rankings for local businesses. As a result, many companies wonder whether they should build links to their Google Business Profile or their website. Of course, the answer is your website.

We’ve already outlined how Google can associate your website URL with your Google Business Listing. As a result, the links pointing to your website will also influence your Google Maps rankings.

Aside from the apparent SEO benefit, building links to your website ensures that you own the digital property. For example, if you were to build links to your profile that were suspended, those links would be rendered useless.

7) Be Aware of Your Map Marker

The most overlooked Map Pack SEO ranking factor is your map marker. Spoiler alert, Google Maps is an actual interactive map with markers for every business listing. Even service area businesses with hidden addresses have a map marker on Google Maps’ internal mapping system.

As a result, your physical location will directly influence your rankings. If your office address is in a prime location of a central metropolitan area, your listing will receive many more impressions than a business located on the outskirts. Google’s proximity ranking factor is very significant.

While you can’t manipulate your map marker, you always have the option to move your office to a better location. Once you re-verify your business via postcard, Google will move your map marker to your new location.

8) Get More Google Reviews

Last but not least, get as many Google reviews as possible. Use a tool like DataPins to automate review requests through SMS and email reminders. In addition, ask all of your customers personally after finishing a job. The majority of consumers will submit feedback if requested multiple times.

The number of reviews on your profile absolutely influences rankings. For example, searching for seattle hvac company will show you that nobody with fewer than 100 reviews ranks on the Map 3-Pack. While review frequency is important, always make sure the feedback is legitimate.

Seattle HVAC Company Map Result (Screenshot)

You will get a few negative reviews on Google as you gather more customer reviews. When you notice a negative comment, reply professionally and attempt to resolve the issue offline. Customers will often remove the review or change it to a positive one.

Jun '22

Yelp Vs. Google Reviews (Which Are More Important in 2023?)

Yelp vs. Google has been a debate in reputation management for over a decade. So which platform is better for customer reviews?

Make no mistake about it; reviews are critical to your business. Consider that 84% of consumers trust online reviews as much as word-of-mouth referrals. In addition, most people find new services by searching online.

While establishing a presence on multiple review platforms (Google, Yelp, Facebook, and others) is the best strategy, it’s still important to understand which platform you should prioritize for your business in 2023.

The Best Platform for Customer Reviews

Google Business Profile (Google My Business) is the best platform to focus on customer reviews. As you gain more reviews on Google, your listing begins to rank higher in search results for relevant queries. Furthermore, more customers will contact your business after a search when they notice the positive reviews associated with your listing.

Creating Business Profiles

Both review platforms are free. However, optimizing your profiles for SEO and managing your online reputation requires time, effort, and resources. Still, it all starts with the first step of creating your business listing. Here’s how you do that for each platform:

Google

With Google, you will have to have your business confirmed by sending in a postcard with some of your business’s information. You can start the process right here; it isn’t very much work. Once you are set up, you can fill out your profile, and you will be able to see the reviews people leave for your business.

Yelp

With Yelp, you go through a similar process to claim your business. Your business may already be listed, but you will still have to claim it. You can do that right here. Once your listing is live, you will find it by searching your company name.

Yelp Vs. Google: Lead Generation

A Google Business Profile listing is very likely to appear when someone is doing a relevant search on Google. Your Yelp profile may also appear, but probably much lower on the search engine results page. In general, Google Business Profile will make you more visible to those using Google, which accounts for about 4.3 billion individuals.

Compare that to the 178 million monthly users on Yelp, and you can already see a bit of a discrepancy.

Google Business Profile

One of the most fantastic things about Google Business Profile is that you can use it to generate more leads for your business. The platform allows you to write a bio and share critical information like what areas your business serves, what services you provide, and an overview of your business.

The more you fill the profile out, the more visible you will be to people in need of your services.

Yelp for Business

On the other hand, Yelp is a bit scanter with the type of information you can provide. For example, you can add photos, and your customers can add photos too. But most people don’t see the complete profile page when they search on Yelp, which leads us to a crucial point.

Yelp Vs. Google: Mobile Experience

The next thing to compare is the mobile-friendliness of each platform. Both Google My Business and Yelp have mobile apps. Both are pretty helpful for business owners too. You can do anything on the desktop version, so it’s pretty convenient when you’re on the go.

You can reply to reviews on both mobile apps during downtime and even update your business’s information. However, inequality comes on the consumer side. While 63% of Google’s organic search traffic comes from people using mobile devices, the Yelp mobile app is used much more frequently. The Yelp app has 37 million unique users every month.

There is a caveat here, too, though. Yelp has a bit of a genre issue regarding consumer usage. For the most part, Yelp can’t seem to shake the perception that it is only for reading reviews of restaurants. Mainly, people open up their Yelp app when their stomachs start growling.

While you can find pretty much everything on Yelp and even devoted tabs for home and auto services, you will see the first tab for restaurants. This can be a bit of a drawback if your business is not a restaurant.

Yelp Vs. Google: Requesting Reviews

Asking for reviews is very important for your business’s online reputation. Especially since 72% of consumers will leave a review if they are simply asked to. But in the age of the pandemic, you may be asking people for reviews online more than in person.

Google Business profile has a distinct advantage because you can ask consumers for reviews directly. You can create a shortlink to your review page and send it to all of your customers. Yelp not only discourages you from requesting reviews directly from customers, but it may violate their terms of service.

Google Business Profile Pros

Google My Business is generally considered the best review platform for most businesses, especially contractors. Because of its integration with the world’s leading search engine, Google reviews benefits are immense:

SEO

Google Business Profile is essential if you want your business to be more visible on relevant searches. Of course, yelp listings will also appear on relevant searches. Still, Google prioritizes its own service and will likely list a Google Business Profile listing higher than a Yelp one.

Ease of Use

With Google, your customers won’t have to create a special account to leave a review. Instead, they only need a Gmail account, which most people have anyway.

Trust

It’s much harder to dispute a review on Google than it is on Yelp, so people tend to trust Google reviews more. Furthermore, Google reviews often appear at the top of search results, creating automatic trust.

Google Business Profile Cons

Although Google offers numerous appealing benefits, it also has a few drawbacks. While these should not discourage business owners from focusing on the platform, they should be monitored to avoid pitfalls:

Slow Posting

Google reviews take more time to post than Yelp reviews which are nearly instant.

Disputes

As we mentioned in the pros, Google reviews are hard to dispute – a definite con if you have an inaccurate review on your hands.

Yelp Pros

Yelp remains a proficient review platform for small businesses even if it lost some of its market share to Google and other platforms. While Yelp’s domain authority allows it to show up high on search results for most queries, it’s still lower than Google Map 3-Pack results. Take a look at some Yelp pros:

Great for Restaurants

If you are in the food business, you want to be present on Yelp.

Disputes

Yelp makes it much easier to dispute reviews and remove them if they deem them biased or inaccurate.

Reputation

Yelp has been around longer than Google Business Profile, so it has a large built-in audience.

Yelp Cons

Yelp has faced its share of criticisms in recent years, particularly regarding its increasingly strict review filters. Yelp’s reputation has suffered because of its seemingly arbitrary decisions to terminate business listings. Take a look at some of the common criticisms:

Autonomy

Yelp reviews are filtered, which means they can reject a review if they determine that it violates their terms of service.

Listing Termination

Yelp can terminate your listing at any time and has been known to wield its power liberally.

Yelp vs. Google: Final Call

Yelp is where you want to focus your attention if you own a restaurant. However, if your business is not a restaurant, Google should be your emphasis. It helps more with SEO and is better for all businesses – not just restaurants.

Ultimately, however, you should aim to collect reviews on both platforms and showcase them on your primary website. The DataPins Local SEO plugin allows you to request reviews on Google and Yelp and display them directly on your website.

May '22

5 Helpful Home Services Review Management Tips for 2023

Home Services Review Management (Blog Cover)

Home services review management can be an exhausting task. You can have 50 5-star reviews, and one unhappy customer will remove their misdirected frustrations on your company and threaten your reputation. Luckily, there are tools and SOPs you can utilize to manage the process.

As a result, you can effectively control how you respond to and manage online reviews, which helps your internet marketing and SEO strategy. Review management is important because reviews are crucial to your online reputation and customer acquisition.

Table of Contents

How Important is Home Services Review Management?

Consider the following statistic: 79% of consumers report that they trust online reviews at least as much as personal referrals. That is a staggering amount of trust to put into the opinions of strangers. It’s also why home service review management is so important. But there is much more to the story.

Review Management Tips for Home Services Contractors

If you’ve overlooked your home service company’s reviews, you need to read the following post because DataPins discusses how you can leverage reviews to earn more business. Check out the following tips to improve your review and reputation management in 2023.

1) Be Easy to Find Online

Your home services company should appear on all the major review platforms like Google My Business, Yelp, HomeAdvisor, Angi, etc. You also want to claim your business on other platforms like Facebook and Houzz. On most of these platforms, you can opt-in to review alerts that notify you every time a user submits feedback about your company.

Beyond notifications, you’ll also want to regularly log in to these platforms to monitor and respond to reviews. While the process can be time-consuming, you must keep in touch with your customers online.

2) Respond to Every Review

97% of consumers read company replies to consumer reviews which means that your potential leads and customers are specifically looking to see what you say in response to a customer review.

Apart from ingratiating yourself to potential customers, responding to reviews lets existing customers know that you care about their experience. While it’s good practice to respond to both positive and negative reviews, it is essential to respond to negative ones.

Home Services Review Response Screenshot

Acknowledge the complaint and ask how you can do better in the future. Don’t make excuses, be apologetic but not overly apologetic, and let the customer know you will work to correct the issue.

3) Reach Out to Customers

Don’t be afraid to reach out to customers and ask for reviews. They will be more willing than you probably think, which is crucial for your business. Why? Because the only thing worse than having negative reviews is having little to no reviews. The more reviews you have, the more a customer will be willing to research and hire your business.

If a company has a perfect 5-star rating but from a pool of only two reviews, would you be likely to hire them? Maybe, but you’d likely move on and look for a business with more reviews to evaluate. We understand that asking for reviews can be tricky, so here are some tips:

Include a Link: Make it easy for the customer by texting or emailing them a link that leads them right to your review page.

Speak Sincerely: Let customers know how vital their review is to your business. After a well-done job, they will likely be more than willing to help.

Train your Employees: Make it protocol for your team members and employees to ask for reviews.

Use DataPins: Utilize the DataPins tool to automate review requests via SMS and email.

Home services reputation management has a significant influence on conversion rates. As a result, reaching out to customers personally can help reflect your business well on digital platforms.

4) Use Feedback to Improve Your Company

Don’t just read your reviews; listen to them. You’ll find that only rarely will anyone leave a completely false review of your business. By and large, they will highlight their actual experience. You can learn about your company’s strengths and weaknesses when the reviews are reasonable.

When the reviews are bad or mention a minor dissatisfaction, you can learn where you need to improve. Of course, you can’t completely invest in the opinions of emotionally charged internet users. Still, take every point into careful consideration and learn from your reviews.

Remember that sometimes bad reviews result from something unavoidable, like a slammed staff, supply shortages, or simply the customer having a bad day.

5) Use Reputation Management Software

A good reputation management software suite will make home services review management simple. The software can automate some things we discussed, such as SMS and email review requests.

A good reputation management software suite will also provide you with a single dashboard from which you can keep an eye and manage the reviews from all review platforms. Also, reputation management software will help you leverage your existing reviews to earn new ones and generate leads.

Take DataPins, for example. The DataPins tool not only streamlines the review request process but it leverages your reviews and jobs as social proof for your website. Users can monitor your company’s reviews across various platforms directly on your company website (via a plugin slider).

DataPins is incredibly unique because it allows home service contractors to showcase their recent jobs with geo-coordinates, schema markup, photos, and captions. As a result, your service and city pages rank for more keywords and convert at a higher rate because of the user-generated content.

May '22

How to Optimize Your Google My Business Cover Photo in 2023

Google My Business Cover Photo (Blog Cover)

The following post outlines how to optimize your Google My Business cover photo. Remember that Google My Bsuiness is now called Google Business Profile, but the same steps apply. Most local businesses understand the importance of an optimized Google Business Profile listing and want to take every step to enhance their profile in 2023. A strong cover photo can help achieve this.

Why are Google Business Cover Photos Important?

The quality, size, and message that your Google Business Profile cover photo sends will impact how many people click on your business profile. Google Business Profile listings appear on the local map pack. The map pack is typically the top result people see when searching for a local business, product, or service.

GMB Cover Photo for HVAC Company (Screenshot)

You want to make a good impression as your Google Business Profile cover photo is likely the first interaction a new (or potential) customer will have with your business.

Steps to Optimize Your GBP Cover Photo

It’s not so much that your cover photo is crucial as it is your Google Business Profile is essential. Your GBP listing is hugely important to your search engine rankings because Google will prioritize its own services as often as possible.

As a result, a Google Maps listing will appear on the first page of a Search Engine Result Page(s) (SERP). The Google Map Pack is the most frequently indexed SERP feature, as it appears on the first page of 30% of all SERPs. Furthermore, Map-Packs appear above regular organic listings.

Below, we outline ways to optimize your Google My Business cover photo.

Image Dimensions

First thing first: you must have a good image size for your photo. It used to be that Google would require a 16:9 aspect ratio image for your Google Business Profile cover photo. While that is not the case anymore, and they offer more leeway, they implemented that requirement for a reason: it’s a good size aspect ratio for the sizes of images displayed on GBP listings.

If you want to know the ideal image size for your GBP cover photo, it’s 1024 x 576. While you can upload other sizes like 854 x 480, 1024 x 576 is a good size because it’s small enough not to slow down your listing loading time but not too small to be a poor resolution.

Remember that the searcher will see only a small image when your listing comes up, so choose a good one while remembering that they can see more photos if they click through. While you will probably need to play around with the dimensions of your picture to land on the perfect size, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Load Time Affects Rankings: You never want your image to slow down your listing’s loading time. Remember that Google recommends a load time of 3 seconds or faster, so make sure your picture is not so big that it loads slowly.
Quality Matters: You should always have an HD image as your Google My Business cover photo. Poor quality, blurry, fuzzy, or off-center images speak of unprofessionalism or carelessness.
Storefront Images: If you have a storefront business, it may be helpful to make your storefront your cover photo as it will quickly let people know what your storefront looks like if they are physically searching for it.

File Format

Google also gives you a choice of which format or file type of image to upload. For example, you can choose between PNG or JPG. Here is a brief breakdown of the pros and cons of both:

PNG: PNG images tend to be a higher resolution, but their file sizes are larger. The bigger size makes them look good but can cause them to load slowly.
JPG: JPG images can be compressed, so the file sizes tend to be smaller and load quicker.

The quality of a JPG can be compromised by compression. However, by and large, they still offer an adequate resolution for a Google Business Profile cover photo, so our overall recommendation would be JPG.

File Size

You will need to stay within the file size parameters of 10kb and 5MB, but this shouldn’t be too much of a problem if you stay within the 480 x 270 and 2120 x 1192 resolution range.

Google will notify you if your file exceeds its size limit and prompt you to choose a different cover photo or temporarily leave it blank. In addition, you can use image-editing software like GIMP to reduce file sizes.

Image Guidelines

Also, you should ensure that your Google Business Profile cover photo is devoid of filters that drastically alter the appearance of your image. Google doesn’t like business owners misrepresenting their stores, products, or services with doctored photos.

Of course, it can be tricky to know how much photo alteration is too much, but as a general rule of thumb, you should stick to only tweaking saturation levels and brightness.

If you go overboard with the doctoring or upload an image that doesn’t comply with Google’s requirements, they may replace your image with their own selection.

By using DataPins, you can consistently upload new unique photos to your GBP listing.

Apr '22

6 Helpful Tips for Sending A Review Request Via SMS in 2023

Sending a Review Request Via SMS (Blog Cover)

Sending a review request via SMS can be challenging for business owners. How do you find the review link on Google, Facebook, or Yelp? How do you send it to your customers? Can you automate this process? These are common questions, and DataPins provides the answers.

Below, DataPins provides several helpful tips for sending a review request through text messaging.

Sending a review request through text messaging is shown to increase review frequency and help build an online reputation. Still, you have to understand how to achieve this at scale in 2023.

Table of Contents

Tip #1: Include A Link

The first thing you should do is make it easy for your customers to write a review of your business. One of the easiest ways to request a review is to include a short link to your Google review page.

It’s straightforward to get a Google review link; once you do, you can include it in your SMS review requests.

Most people fail to submit a review because the process is too long or too complicated. However, when you send a link that leads right to your review page, you will get much more reviews for your business.

Be sure to include the link in your text message requests. Bonus tip: you can also use this link in your marketing emails.

Tip #2: Keep It Concise

One of the reasons sending a review request via SMS is so effective is that the whole process is quick. When people open a text message, they aren’t expecting to read an essay, so keep your message brief and to the point.

Let the customer know that you value their business and input. Again, a link will help you truncate the message to just the important stuff.

A customer will immediately delete or ignore a text message if the body appears too long. Therefore, keep your message well under 160 characters for the best response.

Tip #3: Personalize your Message

We understand that running a business is extremely time-consuming. However, you should try to take the time to personalize your SMS review requests. Why? Because personalized messages get opened up a lot more than generic ones.

It’s true of emails, and it’s also true of text messages. But unfortunately, most consumers will simply ignore a text message as spam if the message does not seem personalized.

But what do we mean by personalized? For starters, you can use the customer’s name in the first few words of the text message. You can also reference the specific product or service the customer paid for.

Consumers appreciate it when they feel a message has been tailored for them and not just spurted out by some spammy marketing campaign. It may be time-consuming, but you will find that you get a much better response rate when you personalize your text message review requests.

Tip #4: Consider Timing

Timing is also crucial when sending a review request via SMS. Some customers need time to process the service before they can have an opinion of it. An immediate request is fitting for some businesses, but others may need to wait a day or two.

For instance, if you are a painting contractor, you won’t want to ask a customer for a review as soon as you leave the job site. Instead, you will want to let them live with their new paint for a few days to form an opinion.

On the other hand, if you run an HVAC company that provides emergency repairs, you will want to ask your customers for a review while their newly distributed cold air keeps them comfortable inside their homes.

Every business is different, so you must carefully consider the best time for sending a review request via SMS.

Tip #5: Avoid Incentives

One of the biggest mistakes that businesses make is incentivizing reviews. People will eventually catch on when you have bribed your customers to leave a review because such coerced reviews tend to be disingenuous.

You want your reviews to be as detailed and honest as possible, so don’t offer discounts or freebies when you request your reviews. Furthermore, incentives violate most platforms’ guidelines and can get your account banned.

Instead, simply let the customer know how much their review means to your business. Again, you’ll find that most consumers will be more than willing to submit a review of your business if you simply ask them.

Tip #6: Include CTA’s

Last but not least, you should include a Call to Action (CTA) in your text message request. Don’t assume that including a link will be enough to get your point across. A compelling call to action will make things clear for your customer.

A simple phrase like “leave us a review here,” “Find us on Google reviews,” or “Let us know how we’re doing” can really drive response rates and get more reviews for your business.

How To Get More Reviews

According to social proof statistics, 79% of consumers said they trust online reviews as much as personal references. But the importance of online reviews of your business doesn’t end at lead generation. They are essential tools for digital marketing as well.

Since so many consumers seek out online reviews, they have become one of search engines’ most important ranking factors. You need reviews of your business to gain leads and convert customers as well.

How To Automate SMS Review Requests

DataPins allows businesses to automate SMS review requests using the app. Customers will receive a review request with a link in their SMS inbox. In addition, DataPins will enable companies to connect reviews with pins, providing further social proof of a job well done.