The world is going mobile, but is your business?
Recent studies show that smartphones are now the most used devices for searching the internet. The world is going mobile, and so should you. Maybe it’s the unlimited data plans, or maybe it’s because the boss has a harder time nosing in on your phone, but no matter why, smartphones are it.
Mobile Search Beat The Desktop – So What?
If you own a small business you know that customers are in your store pulling up the shopping apps by the big guys and price checking you. Why? Because they can, customers are going mobile.
What you many not know is that Siri, Alexa and Google virtual assistants are becoming more and more popular and small businesses are falling farther and farther behind. Siri is built into the Apple Watch.
So many small business owners just don’t have the time to keep up with social media, websites and running the business. The reality is that while the big search engines are trying to make it easier for the consumer, it feels a lot like they are making it tougher on the small business. A real catch 22.
There is Good News For Going Mobile.
A big part of the changes are related to consumer security. The search giants don’t want a consumer to land on a fake webpage and get a virus or a coin mining trojan, they want the consumers to find a business that has what they are looking for. A business like yours!
So how do you make sure they find your business? If you don’t want to keep reading, here are some quick highlights from the BG.Marketing Video Newsletter. Essentially there are three major areas that changed last year.
First there is the ability of a mobile browser to use your website. Is is mobile friendly? Well this one is easy, Google has a free checkup and will give you a list that you can just hand to your web peeps and get fixed.
Second is SSL or Secure Socket Layer. If you have any kind of forms on your website you need to have a secure website. SSL isn’t just for credit card companies and banks, its for small businesses like yours. Not sure if you have SSL? Scott Bourquin at BG.Marketing says if you just go to any browser, enter your url and look for the lock in front of the name you will know.
No lock, that might not be bad, right click and most browsers will tell you secure or not.
The next two are biggies, get them wrong and you might as well disappear from the internet.
Local Search. If you are a small business you know about those big name directories. You know, the people that call saying for $xxx we can help you get more stars on our site? Well there are now over 100 of those sites and about 80 that the big search giants trust. Those sites are designed for users going mobile. If your information doesn’t match, chances are good that Apple Maps, Google Maps, Siri, Alexa and Google home won’t find your business.
Want a free checkup for your website to see how you stand with Local Search? Click Here.
Finally it’s Video. YouTube has become more trusted and bigger than television and smart phones are a big part of this shift. If you don’t have video and your competitor does, you are dead to over 40% of the market under 30. The good news is you don’t need pro video. In fact many YouTube viewers prefer and authentic feel to video. If it looks too much like a commercial, you are a goner.
An authentic feel is achieved by simply being yourself in your business and talking about what you do. Video quality does matter but not as much as content quality. Check out this video about how our videos here at Beach Street News started out.
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