Recently, a pizzeria operator reached out to us because his pizzeria wasn’t appearing in Google search results or on Google Maps, and the lack of online presence was hurting his business. While he was able to fix the issue, it is a reminder of just how much local search has become so ingrained into our culture. If your rankings on search and review sites slip, you will notice it in your bottom line.

I reached out to a foremost expert in the area to drill down an understanding of what’s happening with local search and the role you play in its results. Mike Blumenthal, co-founder and analyst of Near Media, has 20 years of local search and local marketing experience, as well as researching and reporting on reviews, local search and reputation.

When we talk about local search, Google is a majority of the focus. “Right now, that digital world that sends a lot of leads is primarily Google,” Blumenthal says. “We do see that changing over the next five years, but for now, Google has 90 percent market share and, in the local space, they have the best data set, and so people rely on them.”

Blumenthal encourages businesses to not look at search in terms of ranking specifically.

“Ranking is a sort of a false god,” he says. “It’s about visibility. It’s about engagement. It’s about brand understanding, and Google essentially in local SEO (search engine optimization) – unlike in traditional SEO – it’s about the entity that Google understands you to be.”

Search engine optimization is constantly evolving. It’s a multifaceted concept, and Blumenthal suggests you look past traditional SEO strategies such as loading keywords and links. “In traditional SEO, you worried about page visibility, and so you had to get links to that page,” he says. “Well, in entity SEO, you worry about brand visibility and getting that brand known so that the more people search for the brand, the more they engage with your brand, the higher it will rank. So, it’s a fundamentally different project than traditional SEO, even though most SEOs don’t understand that, and they sell sort of old school, get citations, get links.

“It’s about your brand, the strength of your entity,” he continues. “Now, when I talk about brands, Google likes to see a mix of brand queries and engagement in relationship, to show you more for keyword queries. There’s this reinforcing loop between brand and the entity where Google is looking for real-world understanding that people like this brand and look for this brand in relationship to others in your field.”

Your first priority is to make sure your search business page on Google and other search engines is 100 percent complete. “I think you need to fill in all the little details of Google, but particularly in your business, the menu. The menu should be all the details that Google allows, which is photographs, pricing details, etc.,” he says. Furthermore, keep the information up to date. Set time in your planner or checklist to stay on top of this important task.

Go beyond basic information. “If you’re a woman-owned business or a veteran-owned business, Google looks for those details. And if somebody’s looking for a woman-owned pizza parlor, you will show up,” Blumenthal says. “If somebody’s looking for a specific menu item, and you have it there, you’ll show up.”

Facebook, Yelp, Google, Tripadvisor And Zagat

Review sites play a vital role in your business. “Reviews are critically important as a first-level engagement,” Blumenthal says. “People don’t really read the reviews that carefully. They look at them as a mnemonic to indicate quality, and so they’re looking for 4.5 stars up. They’re looking for review quantity. Photographs are incredibly important, and it’s not just important to have good ones. It’s important to have good ones updated that are engaging to people.”

Through his work, Blumenthal found that replacing stock photos or bad photos with great photographs increased engagement on websites and Google, which in turn, increased Google rankings and conversions on the websites.

With Google’s new Maps chat AI, users can ask open-ended questions, and this is where review sites can help or hurt a business. “When they ask open-ended questions, Google is going to answer them, but sometimes they’re going to ask hard questions, like, ‘What does the broader internet say about this business, not just Google?’ And they’re going to pull in reviews from all the other sites, TripAdvisor and Facebook. So, if your business doesn’t look good there as well, Google’s going to say, ’Well, the good thing is this, but the bad things are said here, here and here.”

Getting Seen On Google

Next, your website is a key to your visibility. “It’s important that you have a website that shows and tells all the things you do,” Blumenthal says. “You have to start thinking of your website as a data feed to Google. This is where they learn about you. Google only has very limited number of categories, and so maybe your category is pizza restaurant, but maybe you are particularly good at calzones or burrata or something, and those types of things Google learns from your website. So, it’s important to have a website with a solid home page that links to your primary products and services.” He suggests that each major product has a dedicated page.

It’s not just having the information on the site. How it is presented matters. “It’s important that the website has meaningful title tags and meaningful user focused content,” he says. “Now this isn’t keywords, because Google doesn’t work on keywords anymore. They work on sort of semantic word clouds. You do this using a title tag and content that reinforces it.”

There is no magic formula to be No. 1 on a Google search. “It’s not about gaming the system,” Blumenthal says. “It’s about building a great brand and having great pizza that people like and write good reviews about. If you can encourage them, when you’re in your business, to take a picture … and post, that’s another form of engagement, and it shows up in the reviews, and Google likes that sort of stuff.”

Denise Greer is Executive Editor at Pizza Today.

The post Put online search and reviews to work for your pizzeria appeared first on Pizza Today.

Now, more than ever before, your pizzeria needs to be open online 24/7. No, not your physical location, your digital shop, the place where customers and potential customers gather information on your business. This is the you that sparks 3 a.m. cravings for a customer who can’t sleep or one that’s wishing the scratch-and-sniff mobile device was invented. The digital you is not limited to your website and social channels.

It’s time to audit your pizzeria online to make sure the digital you is on point. Check the following auditing tasks for your pizzeria (We’ve made the page responsive so you can check items off as you complete each task). Get started now!

Website

•    Website is mobile responsive. User should not have to zoom in or scroll across to see menus and images on a smartphone. More on mobile-responsive websites.
•    Contact info, menu and ordering is easy to find on homepage.
•    Phone numbers are active and clickable to call.
•    Location has clickable directions.
•    Menu is easy to read in body text format. It’s good for search and visibility. Menus shouldn’t be hidden behind PDF links or in images.
•    High-quality photos of your food are present and they have meta descriptions — a must for SEO and ADA compliancy (More on SEO in Search category below). And, please no more stock photos. Your smartphone is a high-resolution camera! More on Food Photography Tips.
•    Online ordering is easy to access and use.

Social

•    All major social pages are claimed (Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, SnapChat). Even if you will not update the pages regularly, pages should still be claimed.
•    Review all social “About” pages to be sure all information is accurate and up-to-date, including address, phone, business hours, business type and categories, menus, etc.
•    All ratings and reviews have been viewed and responded to, if necessary.
•    Review all Mentions and direct Tags. Flag/remove any that violate your company policies or the social networks policies.
•    Check your Inbox on social channels. Respond to those necessary and mark all others “done.” More on Social Strategies.

Search

•    The free Google My Business Profile is claimed.
•    Review Google My Business Profile for accuracy. This can be done for all other search engines as well.
•    Type pizzeria’s name into Google search and city or district. If restaurant’s website, social, online order platform or reviews are not at the top of results, it’s time to investigate SEO (Search Engine Optimization). We found a great video that explains SEO. Watch now!
•    Type in “pizza near me” into search. Where does the pizzeria appear? Page 1, 2, 3?
•    Ask Alexa, Siri or Google Assist to call the restaurant, or if online ordering is available to be begin an order at the pizzeria. If it doesn’t work, investigate how to improve it. Also review that all basic contact and menu information on website is searchable and Google Business Profile is accurate.
•    Open your favorite map on mobile device with your location activated and type “pizza” or specific to style (ie. New York style pizza, deep dish, Neapolitan, etc.). Does your pizzeria appear?
•    Type your pizzeria name in quotes into search, click NEWS from bar under search or at header menu then enter. Scan News for articles about the pizzeria. Pay particular attention to any special interest positive articles to share, as well as negative articles to strategize responses.

Directories & Review Sites 

•    Are you listed on major directory and review sites, like Yelp, Zagat, Allmenus, Yahoo Local, Four Square, HotFrog, eLocal, and even YellowPages? Other hyper local listings to check are Better Business Bureau, Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau.
•    If so, is all information correct and up-to-date?
•    View all ratings and reviews and respond, if necessary. More on Handling Online Reviews.

Third-party Delivery Sites

•    Search for pizzeria on all third-party delivery sites and apps available in the area. Major third-party companies include UberEats, GrubHub, Postmates, DoorDash, Seamless and others. Do you have contractual agreements with them? If not, evaluate whether your pizzeria should be listed?
•    Review all information on third-party sites to be sure it is accurate and up-to-date. Check menus. Look out for any discontinued items or new additions that do not appear.
•    View all ratings and reviews and respond, if necessary. More on Going Third-Party Delivery.

Now, get to work! Take care of items on this checklist to increase your reach online and better serve your customers and potential customers.

The post Audit Your Online Pizzeria appeared first on Pizza Today.