Imagine… A homeowner sees your signs in her neighborhood. Maybe she’s seen your ads in her mailbox on online. Then she decides to sell. If she doesn’t have an agent already in mind, what do you think is her next step? She’ll likely do her due diligence and conduct her own research about YOUR NAME she keeps seeing. And where does she go to do that? One place: Google. Now comes the scary part… What does she find when she Googles your name? Are you confident, or will she see a hodgepodge of half-baked marketing ideas you’ve used over the years that create no cohesive vision and make no strong impression?
Getting “Google Ready” Tip No. 1:
Control the First Impression - You need to buy Google keywords of your name so you can control the first impression and send these prospective clients exactly where you want to send them. Maybe it’s a landing page specifically built to introduce people to your unique way of doing business. Maybe it’s just the home page of your website, or your “About Me” page. Whatever the case, make sure you own those keywords so you can control the narrative… right from the start!
Getting “Google Ready” Tip No. 2:
Over-Index on “Google My Business” - You’ve probably searched for a business before, and alongside the results a box pops up with all sorts of pertinent information about their hours of operation, their phone number, website, reviews, etc. Right? That’s all controlled through “Google My Business,” and it’s something you should be paying attention to! This is a great opportunity to add all of your information AND ALSO add photos of yourself, your team, and recent “Just Sold” properties. PRO TIP: Create a standard for formatting your name, address, phone and domains so it’s easy for Google to recognize you’re the same person wherever they see that same information.
Getting “Google Ready” Tip No. 3:
Max Out Your Off-Page SEO - It’s likely you have profiles all over the Internet – from Facebook to Zillow to Realtor.com and beyond. Agree? Here’s the big question: Is there consistency among all of them? Would consumers instantly recognize you from one platform to the next? Or more importantly, does Google itself recognize you as the same person to make sure they know exactly who you are? Be sure to use the most accurate and appropriate keywords in all your profiles to make it happen.
Getting “Google Ready” Tip No. 4:
Get All Matchy-Matchy - Take that SEO concept we were just talking about, and now apply it to your brand. Does your profile look the same on all the different platforms? Would consumers instantly know that it’s you, or do you use different photos, typefaces and colors from one site to the next? Your job is to make it “dumb and easy” for someone to recognize you immediately. This is how you tap into the power of multi-channel marketing and gain top-of-mind awareness, where people start telling you, “I see your stuff everywhere!” PRO TIP: This includes usernames… always try to use the same usernames on all your social platforms.
Getting “Google Ready” Tip No. 5:
Tools, Apps & Gizmos - Here are three tools you should be aware of and use in your marketing: Whitespark.ca – This allows you to audit what shows up in your search results. Namechk.com – Type in your name, see all social profiles and domains that show up using your name. Google Search Console – This service from Google tells you what people searched that led them to your site. What did they click through to get there? Go find out!
Getting “Google Ready” Tip No. 6:
Be YouTube Ready - Google and YouTube are practically siblings, both owned by Alphabet. YouTube is the second-most utilized website and search engine on the planet, which means being “Google Ready” also means being YouTube ready. Step up your game with these tips: Thumbnails – Don’t underestimate the importance. This is what attracts people to click play on your video. Use Canva, or hire someone on Fiverr to create something eye-catching. Titles and keywords – When posting a video, you need to think in terms of SEO. What’s the keyword you want to rank against? Titles and keywords are not the place to be clever or cute. Keywords need to be based on how people search. Make it obvious what your video is about. Watch time – YouTube loves when people watch longer. Do whatever possible to keep people interested and engaged. Channel Subscribe-able? YouTube wants to keep people on the platform, so make sure you make your channel subscribe-able so they can recommend channels and videos to increase watch time.
Let us know in the comments where your business needs the most help becoming “Google Ready.”
Strength and courage,
Wade
