Google Product Search offers businesses another option

Many you probably have already encountered businesses that are involved with Google Product Search. And, if you haven't, you more than likely will shortly.
So how do you respond to a client that has been approached by somebody that guarantees to get the business listed among the top five in Google Product Search?

First of all, Google Product Search is a free service offered by Google. Yes, there does appear to be a good deal of maintenance involved in making sure a business will have a high ranking. Product feeds need to be updated as frequently as possible. This, of course, has led to organizations that have offered to maintain the service for a fee.

We recently visited a client that was considering this option and he noted that for $450 per month, he was guaranteed to be among the top five positions. Not coincidentally this business was being pitched by the same company that built his e-commerce web site. This makes perfect sense as the web builder has total access to the products, pricing and inventory that's already on the site.

It does appear to be a natural extension for companies that build, host and maintain e-commerce sites. It's a way to make more revenue.

One thing to remember for both marketers and businesses alike - it's nearly impossible to guarantee top five placement on Google with anything. Google prides itself in changing its algorithms constantly. That doesn't mean that there aren't solid practices that can be followed to enhance any ranking. But beware of anybody that guarantees a "top five placement."

Google Product Search is not a brand new product - but it's still in its early phase. All digital marketers should be aware of it and need to learn enough about it to talk about it with clients.

Marty Valania has been involved in digital marketing for over 10 years. Please email ideas or suggestions to martyvalania@gmail.com or reach him on Twitter @mvalania.

Basics ways to help your search engine ranking

"So I have to change the way I do things."
That was the reaction one small business owner had when we were done trying to explain the basics of Search Engine Optimization to him.
The owner knew he wanted to gain more e-commerce from his website. To accomplish that, he also knew that he had to get more people to his website. He also knew that meant being ranked higher in search engine rankings.
What he didn't realize was that he couldn't just buy a one-time product or service to do all those things. SEO and digital marketing is an on-going and continual process (here's a great blog that explains just that).
When the light bulb went on also came the realization that he would have to do things differently.
Whether that mean allocating his time differently or hiring somebody or changing somebody's duties, he finally knew that to accomplish what he wanted, he would have to dedicate some resources.
Improving your search engine ranking isn't easy and isn't quick. It takes time and a sustained effort.
It is, however, worth doing - so change the way you do business and improve your business at the same time.

Marty Valania has been involved in digital marketing for over 10 years. Email suggestions, ideas or comments to martyvalania@gmail.com or on Twitter @mvalania.