What’s interesting about reputation management and SEO is that they are often pitted against each other. For many business owners when considering investing in these, it’s thus a choice between either SEO or reputation management.
And to tell the truth, when I was young and desperate for the deals, I used to think the same. It was never both, but always a choice between the one or the other.
However, after working with several different clients through the years, I’ve since found that this is the wrong way to look at it and I’ve changed my ways. And I’ll urge you to change yours too.
The thing is, if you’re trying to win at Orange County SEO, you’re trying to be seen by users searching for businesses like yours in Orange County. That means you want your business in front of as many eyes as possible. This increases your chances to be found and acquire more customers.
If that’s the case, you’ll make a mistake in choosing either SEO or reputation management. You’ll have to choose both. In other words, reputation management should be a partner to your SEO strategy in order to get the most coverage and the best results.
But where do you start creating a reputation management strategy? Do you just pick a site and it’s done? The answer is a bit more involved, and with this post I aim to shed some light on these questions and help you create a strategy that’s suited to your needs.
Reputation Management Sites Will Vary by Industry and Location
An important thing to remember is that, when it comes to reputation management sites, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. There are a few things to consider to make your reputation management strategy work for you.
For instance, when talking about reputation management sites, most people immediately think of Yelp. Although Yelp is a perfect example, it by no means is the complete gamut of these kinds of sites. There are many others.
The first thing you should keep in mind is that reputation management sites will vary depending on the industry and even the location. This means that although one site may seem great on paper, it may be unsuitable for your business due to its location or industry. For example, in Orange County, the main reputation management firm for SEO searches at the time of writing this is Clutch. However, in other localities you will see that their competitor, Upcity is the site that ranks well.
So, for instance, based on the basic fact that Clutch ranks for “Orange County SEO” terms, that means that Clutch is the primary ally for Zupo we engage with.
Another example would, for instance, be a business with offices in different locations. Let’s say the business has offices in Orange County and Phoenix. Would the same reputation management site be suitable for both offices? In this example, Clutch would be the main reputation management site for related keywords in Orange Country, while the main site for related keywords in Phoenix would be Upcity. So, no, they won’t be able to use the same site for both offices.
Therefore, for your business in Orange County you’ll need to investigate what the reputation management sites are for your industry and location and then determine which of them ranks well in Orange County. Because the rankings change by locality and industry, it can have a huge effect on how your strategy is implemented.
Once Identified, Determine the Rules of Engagement
Another important thing to remember is that not all reputation management sites are equal. Some, like Yelp and Google My Business make writing reviews quick and quite easy. In contrast, others like Clutch and Capterra are more involved. With them the review process takes more effort and can involve 5 - 10 minutes of focused writing to write a review.
Each reputation management site is therefore different, and you’ll have to compare them to make sure you win with the right ones.
Once you’ve narrowed down the sites, you’ll also have to consider the pricing, or the sponsorship and paid features. This is where the rules of engagement really become important.
For instance, some sites like Yelp are extremely biased towards sponsorship and pay to play. This means that the more you pay, the more exposure you’ll get. In contrast others, are not as focused on sponsorship and will use their own metrics in their rankings.
Ultimately, you’ll have to decide whether or not you’re willing to engage with these reputation management sites based on the price you have to pay. Obviously, this doesn’t pose a problem for those sites that don’t rank on the first page as you don’t need to engage with them, especially on a paid level.
Where it does matter, though, is with the sites that do rank on the first page of search results. In this case you’ll have to consider whether the extra exposure you’ll get by engaging with these sites is worth the price you must pay.
Personally, I have a bias against paying for some review sites, but I have also seen amazing results by paying for sponsorship on review sites, in tandem with strong Google My Business and Organic Orange County rankings.
Keep in mind, though, that your preferences may differ and it’s quite possible that you’ll get different results on different sites or combinations of sites.
Make the Review Site a Priority
So, now that you’ve looked at the options, weighed up the pros and cons, and considered the pricing, there’s only one thing left to do. It’s simple, execute your strategy.
For the most holistic Orange County SEO success you want to feature in the Google Map Pack, use Orange County organic results and related reputation management sites. It surely is a worthy goal to strive for.
This will truly give your business the most visibility in Orange County Searches
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