There are many different ways to spend your paid search marketing budget smartly. If you’re a small business owner or your client is a small business then this is a great new way to get the word out about your business, or perhaps you wish there was more you could do with your Google Local Business Center profile, then you’ll be excited to hear that Google is currently testing enhanced listings in selected areas and if all goes well it will be in your city shortly.
So what is a Google enhanced listing? Well when someone uses Google or Google Maps to search for a business in your category, then the standard listing shows up most likely with a link to your Web site, along with reviews from Google users, separate sites, blogs, etc. With enhanced listing you can stand out from the crowd a little more. I like this marketing option because the more local you can get the better the conversions will be. Also, I like the fact this marketing option is new and users are not conditioned to it and it will allow more visitors into your site.
Houston is one of the local cities this is being tested in and I have done a search for Houston computers and this is the results I have gotten:
See pinpoint “E”, Computer Depot Inc.? This is a paid or “sponsored” result. The real change here is that Google allows you to choose one of the following features from your current listing that you want potential customers to see, and have it highlighted with your listing in the 7 pack, and then monitor its activity in your Dashboard.
Pricing for enhanced listings are priced at a very affordable $25 a month and you’re allowed to change or modify your listing as much as you want without an additional fee. I mean if you can get 25 people a month to click on your ad you’re talking about a buck a click. Right now it would cost you around 3 bucks a click to be the number one spot on this exact term if you did the traditional PPC route. Very cost effective using this option.
So where do I see this going? I see enhanced listings becoming available widespread and with every smart business owner or agency jumping on board, it won’t be long before the Google local listings start being “gamed” and look spammy but we’ll all just have to wait and see. In the mean time grab the cheap traffic while you can.
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