Do you know who this Guy is? He's Guy Fieri, of Food Network fame.  Guy has made his face famous by traveling the country and visitng all manner of "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives" in search of good tasting (if not good for you) food.  He's become a beloved icon of the Food Network, seeming very...

Google purchased Zagat in September of last year (2011), and finally fully incorporated their ratings into their massively re-vamped Google+ Local listings in May of this year. Zagat uses a 0, 1, 2, or 3 point rating scale, which apparently throws a lot of people for a loop.  People seem to like either a 1...

What is Your Business Worth? I love to haggle.  Maybe it's genetic inculturation (My father was Iranian Kurdish, and that is a haggling culture if ever there was one, I'm given to understand).  Maybe I'm just like the thrill of getting a good deal.  But whatever it is, haggling can be fun. But not when...

So, you want more customers, and you're thinking about using insurance leads or business leads to get them?  Think again. One of the demographics I work with often is insurance agents/brokers.  Insurance is lucrative, of course, but only if you can find new customer.  Every agent would like to get to the point that they...

"Help!  How do I improve my Google Local Listing?  Is there some trick of Google Local SEO that I can use?" It used to be that if you wanted your local business to be found, you had to get an expensive listing in the yellow pages, a cheesy (yet expensive) commercial on the TV or radio,...

The ORS (Online Reputation System). The importance of handling negative online reviews is clear, but how do you know when they're posted. You need to set up a way to monitor your brand, an "online reputation system" which alerts you to when something pertinent about your business is said.  If it's something good, you get a pat...

You do know that there are negative online reviews about you, right? (And they're killing your "Google Local SEO" score) Reputation management is all about being proactive.  I'm always amazed at how many business owners are completely oblivious to the fact that they already have reviews of their business online, even if they've never set up...