Your agency is unique. It’s refined, a cut above the competition, and you choose style and wording carefully when interacting with customers and prospects alike. So, doesn’t it make sense that your sales tools for your website hold to the same standards?

At Advice Local, we wanted to develop a sales generation tool for agencies like yours, with total customization and control available from the get-go. That’s precisely what we did, and now we’d like to teach you how to better customize your new sales widget for everyday use!

Getting Started – A First Look at the Sales Tool Website Widget

Before we dive into a step-by-step rundown of the customization possibilities, let’s first look at Advice Local’s sales tool for your website. We’ll start with exploring its outward appearance and uses for the visitor to your website.

Shown here is the sales widget in its minimized and expanded state.

The sales widget is quite straightforward. Upon expanding the widget from your agency’s website or homepage, the prospect will be greeted with your logo and copy. Below that, they may fill in their business information and personal information before running a free online visibility report.

Once the prospect selects “Get a FREE Report Now,” the widget will pull in the necessary business information. The prospect will then select their specific location from the list of available options or select “My business is not listed.”

From there, the widget will begin the process of running the free online visibility report. On the screen, the prospect will be presented with an overview of the Visibility Score, and have the option to click to “See The Full Report” onscreen.

If they choose to view the report onscreen, a new browser window opens where they can examine the report. Otherwise, the report is sent directly to the prospect’s email – with your custom wording and agency information included. That way, the prospective client is prepped for future contact with your team.

The results of the online visibility report will also appear in your Advice Local partner dashboard, allowing your sales team access to key information needed to make a quick sale. The prospect will then receive an email with their visibility report and any other information that you provided within your email template.

Overall, it’s an extremely simple and effective way to gather sales information without wasting manpower or resources.

Now that we have covered the experience for the site visitor utilizing the sales tool we have created for your website, let’s discuss where you can access this sales tool to customize it to match your agency’s brand.

Accessing the Sales Widget Within Your Agency Dashboard

Before you dive into customizing your new sales widget, you’ll need to locate it within the partner dashboard. And by design, like everything else to do with the widget, it’s simple!

First, log in to your partner dashboard via the Advice Local website. You’ll start on the main page of the dashboard, which will look something like the example below.

Look to the top right corner – you’ll see your email address. Click here and open the admin panel drop-down box to access additional information, commands, reports and tools. Click the item that says “Widget.”

Once you click the widget function, you’ll have access to the sales widget editor. Here you can customize your sales widget, and access the code allowing you to implement the widget on your website.

Now, we’ll move on to customizing the sales widget step-by-step.

Customizing the Sales Widget for Your Agency Website

With a basic understanding of how the sales widget functions, let’s look at how to customize your new widget before pushing it live on your website.

Personalization and branding can be considered the most important features of the sales widget. For that, navigate to the “Global” category, where you can insert your agency’s logo and select the type of font you want to use. It looks something like the below image.

In the place that says Image Logo Link, add the link to your logo that you have uploaded to your agency website.

Now, let’s move to the “Header” tab. In this section you can select the widget’s primary background color. This color appears behind your logo at the very top of the sales widget itself. You can also change the font color if you’d like.

When you use the Chrome browser you’ll have more color preference options, including the ability to enter the exact color codes you use on your website. In Safari, you’ll have a color selector to choose from (or use the dropper to select a color from something else already on the screen).

In the “Header” tab, the text box is one of the more important components. You can insert custom copy related to your agency, mission statement, or how you wish to help customers. This message will appear on your website when the site visitor expands the widget to generate their free report.

Next, navigate to the “Body” tab. In this section, you’ll have a chance to edit the background color on the main body of the sales widget. We recommend choosing a color that’s pleasing to the eye and also easy to read, as prospects will enter text in this section.

Further, you can also change the font and the background color for the bottom section.

But what if you don’t have a specific color in mind? You can choose from popular color options by using the drop-down box. Click on the font color section and choose what works best for you from the color picker.

Once you’ve selected the important colors that set your agency apart from the competition and turn eyes your way, it’s time to choose the perfect wording for your sales widget.

Get ready to set up the “Button/Input” tab. This includes the background/border color of the button itself, the button font color, the text included on the button – and the text for viewing the full report. You can customize each aspect of this to best suit the wording your agency prefers.

Next, we have the “Notifications” tab, which features an email BCC, email subject line and email body. We recommend adding your email address in the BCC, so you’ll know right away when a free report has been generated via your agency website.

You can make the email body content as personal or professional as you like – it’s yours to work with and mold as you see fit.

You’ll note the email body begins with “Hi [business_name].” It’s best to include this code to ensure the widget pulls the business name from the information provided by the prospect.

If you don’t want to use “Hi,” change it to something more your style. You could throw in a “Hey,” or “How are you,” (and so on) to fit your needs. It’s very important to leave the “this link” text untouched, as we have code in there that will link the free report to your partner dashboard for the prospect.

And finally, we have the “Format”   tab. From this final tab you can choose whether or not to permanently float your sales widget on each page of your website. You can also change the positioning (from left, center, or right) depending on your space, and where you’d like the widget to appear to best catch attention.

Inserting Your Customized Sales Widget

Once you have fully customized the sales widget, it’s time to add the widget on your website.

From the Advice Local dashboard (in the same area as the customization tools), you’ll find the Sales Widget Code. This code changes as you enter your various customizations. Therefore, before you copy/paste the code to your website, it’s best to wait until you’ve uploaded your logo, finished selecting coloring and font, adjusted the other settings, etc.

As you can see, depending on the type of content management system (CMS) your website uses, you have a few options. For example, if you have a WordPress website you can install a plugin to handle the code implementation for you. Google Tag Manager is also an option for adding the code into the header.php file on your website.

An alternate method is to copy and paste the sales tool website widget code directly into the header.php on your website within the <head> and <body> tags.

And once you add the code to your website and click save, your widget will appear on your agency website, right on the homepage, for easy access! If you cannot see the widget right away, you may need to clear your website and browser cache.

How to Customize Our Sales Widget for Your #Agency Website by @BernieColeman #SEO
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Ready to Get This Powerful Sales Tool for Your Agency Website?

For current Advice Local partners, the new widget is already turned on in your partner dashboard. Please keep in mind that if you’re using the legacy sales tool, you’ll no longer be able to make customizations to the legacy sales tool or landing page. Please contact your account manager if you have questions or concerns regarding this.

If you are not yet an Advice Local partner, request a demo right away. You’ll definitely want to get our sales tool for your agency website! Call (214) 310-1356 today to learn more.

The post How to Customize Our Sales Widget for Your Agency Website appeared first on Advice Local.

As increasing numbers of businesses recognize the power of digital marketing, the demand for white label listing management services continues to grow. These businesses rely on the expertise of local agencies to gain search visibility and deliver new customers to their brand. But as agencies experience this growing demand, they face the challenge of meeting their clients’ needs. Fortunately, there’s a simple solution for scaling an agency fast – white label local listing management services.

What Are White Label Local Listing Management Services?

Local presence management has grown in importance as more consumers research businesses online before making a purchase. But while digital marketing was once fairly limited in scope, there are now countless channels and verticals that a business needs to target.

White label listing management gives agencies access to all the high-quality integrated services they need to best serve their clients. Here are some of the primary white label services available.

Local Listing Management Distribution

A crucial benefit of local listing management software is the ability to maintain consistent data across all platforms. At Advice Local, we achieve this consistency by using a combination of automated and manual listing submissions.

We can submit your clients’ data to our wide-reaching Data Amplifier Network and make fast adjustments to citations in real time. This distribution covers everything from popular search engines to GPS navigation and mapping apps.

White Label Widgets

Lead generation is a consistent challenge for agencies, and many businesses are in the dark about their online visibility. White label widgets offer a solution to this issue, delivering accessible, solutions-focused data to a business owner.

The development of our new listing management lead generation website widget  is a prime example of such a solution. Agencies simply add the customizable widget to their website, and visitors can generate a free online visibility report. As an automated sales funnel, this hands-off approach provides agencies and local marketers with a straightforward way to secure new customers.

Voice Search Readiness

According to data from Statista, 35% of U.S. consumers own smart speakers. And as consumers grow more comfortable conducting voice searches using mobile devices and smart speakers, agencies need to keep up with this trend.

Our Voice Search Readiness Test allows an agency to generate a report for their business clients, identifying opportunities for improved presence. We can then distribute your clients’ data to Alexa, Siri, Cortana, Google Assistant and other platforms via our data network.

White Label Reporting

Agencies need to keep their business clients informed of progress using monthly reports. But maintaining and compiling digestible reports based on multiple data sources is no easy task. White label reporting helps agencies maintain close relationships with clients without the need for complex data management. Advice Local lets agency partners access detailed reporting from their user-friendly dashboard.

Enhanced GBP Tool for Agencies

While there are numerous platforms that can help increase local presence, Google is still the major player in the industry. Consequently, a Google Business Profile (GBP) will likely be the primary focus for agencies and their business clients. At Advice Local, we have developed the Enhanced Google Business Profile Tool as a white label listing management service for our partners. From our Google Authority Score to GBP syncing tools, clients have everything they need to run successful GBP campaigns.

Why Your Agency Needs White Label Local Listing Management by @BernieColeman #SEO
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Leading White Label Local Listing Management Services

Advice Local is a leading provider of white label local listing management services for agencies and digital marketers. If you would like access to the premier listing tools, GBP services and our Data Amplifier Network, request a demo today or call (214) 310-1356.

The post Why Your Agency Needs White Label Local Listing Management appeared first on Advice Local.

Everyone involved in local search marketing is constantly looking for the next big SEO strategy. So, it’s really no surprise that citation building using listing management services doesn’t always get the attention it deserves. However, citations are fundamental to most local SEO strategies and have been delivering traffic, sales and search visibility for years. To understand why some agencies don’t prioritize listing management, it’s important to look at the varying quality of the directories that are out there.

Why Quality Beats Quantity in Listing Management

Consider this – if two separate businesses both pursue a strategy of citation building on directory sites, how is it possible for them to have such wildly differing results? In all likelihood, you can link the outcomes to the quality of directories being used to promote each business.

Essentially, Google and other search engines value consistent data on quality, relevant platforms. This is exactly why agencies need to submit their clients’ businesses to authoritative listings sites – sites that deliver results.

The Main Features of Quality Directories

From local and vertical directories to maps and premier quality platforms, there’s no shortage of places to build citations. Here are some of the main features found in quality directories.

Spam-Free Directories

As many agencies have discovered the hard way, listings management services are not created equal. Submitting to a vast number of low-quality platforms filled with spam listings will not benefit a business, and could even lead to less prominence in search results. Recognizing this, our Data Amplifier Network at Advice Local contains only reputable directories backed by analysis.

Niche-Specific Sites

Google places a significant weight on relevance when determining which sites get local pack and organic placements. In fact, along with proximity and prominence, relevance is one of the big three local SEO ranking factors. With listings on niche-specific sites, demonstrating this relevance is possible in many industries. For example, our network contains various legal and healthcare vertical directories.

Relevant Categories

Of course, many businesses will not have a wide choice of niche directories to choose from. However, they can still benefit from categories within broader directories. In the highest-quality platforms you can expect to find relevant categories – and a moderation team that prevents inaccurate classifications.

Location-Based Elements

As mentioned, proximity is a crucial metric in local SEO. Therefore, your local clients will benefit from directory features that pinpoint a business’ location. Integrating a map within the listing is practical – and a valuable sales tool. In addition, because consumers use platforms like Judy’s Book and Nextdoor to research local businesses, you need to ensure your clients are listed there.

The Problems With Prioritizing Quantity of Directories

There are many reasons to love local citations, but if the quality is lacking don’t be tempted by the quantity of directories.

• Low-quality directory listings build a lack of trust with the search engines.
• Consider the future negative impact of a mediocre directory without management.
• Managing a substantial number of listings is tough without a quality listing management service.
• A broad approach is more likely to result in bad data distribution that harms search visibility.
• Authority and relevance are hard to achieve when prioritizing quantity over quality.

All Directories Are Not Created Equal by @BernieColeman #SEO
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Access the Top Listing Management Services and Directory Network

Advice Local operates the best listing management services for agencies and local marketing partners. Our services include citation building, voice search readiness, white-label reports and the leading business data distribution network. To see for yourself, call (214) 310-1356  or request a demo now.

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As all successful agency owners know, a consistent local SEO strategy is vital for increasing search visibility. At Advice Local, we have long promoted the benefits of local listing management software, citation building and other proven SEO methods. But as you are probably aware, SEO takes time – and the more complex the strategy, the less profit an agency typically retains. Today we’re offering an alternative way to create an SEO strategy that requires minimal maintenance, yet delivers client satisfaction and profitable returns.

The Critical Elements of a Local SEO Strategy

The best local SEO strategies integrate personalized methods (content creation and social media strategies tailored for each client) with streamlined services (real-time data distribution and hands-off citation building). Here are the main elements of a local SEO strategy for small business clients.

Optimize Business Listings

In the past, agencies could rely on a set-and-forget approach to business listings. Today however, with Google and others aiming to deliver up-to-the-minute information to searchers, the GBP (Google Business Profile), Bing Places, as well as similar platforms need more direct involvement. While each directory does vary, here are some recommendations for a GBP listing.

• Add NAP, opening hours, a description and attributes.
• Maintain consistent data using our GBP Sync tool.
• Add high-quality images that showcase the business.
• Create Google Posts featuring offers, events and updates.
• Respond to every customer review, positive and negative.
• Monitor profile quality with our Google Authority Score.

Take Advantage of Data Aggregators

When it comes to understanding local SEO, it’s critical to truly grasp the concept that Google, Bing and others strongly want to avoid conflicting business data. When search engines can’t determine the exact location of a business, they are quite reluctant to give it prominence. Fortunately, you can avoid instances of bad data by syndicating consistent information to every significant listing platform.

To help accomplish this, Advice Local uses data aggregators to distribute your clients’ information to every important search engine, directory and mobile app. And if that data needs to be changed, our real-time solution gets the job done.

Use GPS and Mapping Apps

From smartphones to in-dash navigation, it has never been easier for people to reach local businesses while on the move. When consumers look up a local store they could easily be making a purchase – within minutes. Consequently, any serious local SEO strategy must incorporate GPS and mapping apps. You can submit your clients’ data manually or use our GPS accelerators for straightforward syndication.

Simplified Reporting

As an agency reporting back to clients, you must not overlook the reporting aspect of local SEO. Companies want to know what you’ve done and how the strategy is working. Thankfully, by partnering with the right local SEO software company you will benefit from automated reporting. Clients receive a detailed monthly SEO report – complete with your agency branding.

Get Found With Voice Search

We’ve intentionally left this critical component of a local SEO strategy until last. But just because voice search doesn’t get enough attention, you certainly should not be among those ignoring it. As part of a collection of listing management services, voice search optimization reaches Siri, Alexa, Cortana, Google Home and other uses in your clients’ local areas. And while you might not know it yet, at Advice Local we let you create voice apps in moments – directly through our dashboard solution.

Create a Local #SEO Strategy for Your Small Business Clients by @BernieColeman #Marketing
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Simple Local SEO for Marketers and Digital Agencies

Advice Local helps agency clients streamline their SEO and local marketing strategies with high-quality tools. Our listing management software offers simple solutions for local presence management. To see for yourself, request a demo now or call (214) 310-1356.

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From the initial research phase to getting directions to the business’ location, consumers are increasingly taking advantage of mapping apps. As a leading provider of GPS business listing services, over the years we’ve seen firsthand the rise in proximity-based searches. And with big brands dominating most general searches, local map searches are a primary area where agencies can deliver massive value to their clients. If you don’t have a GPS data distribution system in place, here’s what you need to know.

Why Map Apps Matter for Local Businesses

In their simplest form, map apps chart the locations of points of interest around the world. But as products like Google Maps and Apple Maps have continued to develop, today they offer searchers so much more.

Business listings naturally include a name, address and phone number (NAP), but they might also include customer reviews, a description, questions and answers, photos and attributes. And with as many as 46% of Google searches having local intent, this offers a valuable sales tool for local businesses.

What Map Apps and In-Dash Navigation Solutions Matter More Than Ever?

Last year, you may remember we suggested five mapping apps and navigation solutions you can’t ignore. Of course, the ever-popular Google Maps was present, along with Apple Maps and Waze. However, we have consistently advocated for a broader syndication approach that targets a host of GPS devices and in-dash navigation systems, as well as those emerging technologies such as self-driving cars.

The ability to get found wherever people are searching is one of the most straightforward ways to reach targeted consumers. According to Google, 88% of people who conduct a local search via smartphone end up visiting the store within one week. Now consider the same outcome for a person using Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Ford, Mazda and other in-dash navigation solutions.

More often than not, consumers using mapping apps are deep into the buying cycle, so a carefully crafted GPS directory listing can be enough to secure a new customer. With minimal effort, your local business clients can get real-world results from a broad-reaching mapping app strategy.

How to Get Listed on Mapping Apps

If you’ve been following Advice Local for a while you already know we are committed to distributing business listings far and wide – while also eradicating bad data. But why does this matter? Well, to succeed long-term your local clients must be discoverable on both the obvious platforms like Google Maps, and the smaller services that are just emerging. You cannot ignore these. It’s crucial that they receive accurate, consistent data to satisfy the needs of consumers.

Our Data Amplifier Network meets both demands by distributing consistent business data to a vast network of platforms – mapping apps, GPS POI databases, devices like Garmin and TomTom, wearables, in-dash navigation and more.

Getting Found on Map Apps

Last but not least, the data you provide to each platform matters. Take advantage of the chance to offer keyword-rich descriptions, opening hours, high-quality images – and any other option the mapping app allows. Our listing management services provide opportunities for optimization, and this can truly make all the difference in visibility. When allied with customer reviews and search proximity, optimized listings have the best chance of being discovered by targeted consumers in the area.

Using Map Apps to Help Local Businesses Get Found by @BernieColeman #SEO #Mapping
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Best Mapping Apps and GPS Data Distribution Services

For local businesses to get found on mapping apps, in-dash navigation and other GPS platforms they need a data distribution service they can trust. Advice Local works with local marketers and agencies in syndicating data to the critical platforms. To find out more, request a demo or call (214) 310-1356 today.

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