Bigger than Google?

Published By Ryan on Jul.11.2008 at 8:00AM

 

Last weekend I ended up sitting poolside with a family friend to discuss his website. My friend, Don, and his wife Melody own a wonderful little bed and breakfast, Silken Dreams, in Niagara–on–the–lake and Don has been thinking about updating his site.

During our conversation he mentioned that his B&B is #4 on Trip Advisor. Don said that was his main source of referrals for the business. I was quite impressed by the ranking and asked how he achieved such success (after all, to be fourth in city famous for its B&B's was quite a feat). He said it all came down to good food, clean rooms, and great hosts.

I got thinking about how you take a great ranking and make it greater. Most companies concern themselves about their Google ranking, but nearly every industry has it's own ranking site. Don's B&B has Trip Advisor, Restaurants have Chowhound, even web designers have sites like BodyModified.

I'm not saying Google doesn't matter, but more time needs to be put into concerning ourselves with the sites that focus on our industry.

The solution to improve Don's Trip Advisor ranking was quite simple: Soon Don will have a computer set up for his guests to use when they visit so that they can look up local events, winery tour info, and so forth. When they start up the web browser they will see the Trip Advisor site as their start page.

Not only is this an extremely passive way to remind guests to share their comments on the site, but it also gives them the opportunity to leave a fresh review of Silken Dreams before their memories start to go stale with time.

Improving your ranking, and adding more feedback about your company on another site will ultimately help your Google ranking as well. Two birds with one stone!

So how do you improve the ranking for your business?

Perhaps a line at the end of your invoice suggesting they comment at the site relevant to your industry? Or a postcard in the mail after you finish a project with a client to say "Thank you ... and by the way, could you put in a good word for me at this site"?

Who says you have to rely on your customers? I'm not advocating fake comments on Trip Advisor, but visiting the site to make sure your business profile is listed and accurate is definitely a good start.

Add your great new blog post to Digg. Submit your new site to website showcases and galleries. Heck, toss an ad onto craigslist. Every little bit will ultimately help.

Be honest. The web can be a vicious place and if you are caught lying or cheating the repercussions could be extremely harmful to your business.