Who’s a better judge of product merit than people just like you? This exalted, consumer-knows-best doctrine has fueled the soaring popularity and unquestionable validity of review sites such as Yelp. Nowadays, glowing public reviews can and often do mean the difference between a trickle of website visitors and an unstoppable storm. The consumer has spoken and has been heard.
Somewhere along the line, however, influencing customers wasn’t good enough for the Yelps of the world. So they jumped into the SEO game and started influencing search results. And they’re getting more influential all the time.
Credit for this new twist goes to Google. A long time ago in the year 2014, the search engine leader performed an update to its local search algorithm. The update was given the code name Pigeon.
The Pigeon has done much to improve the accuracy of local searches. It also delivered a major windfall into the hands of Yelp and other review sites — they now have much greater impact on search rankings than they did before the update. In fact, sometimes business pages listed on review site directories outrank their own business page.
Google has performed one other service for the review sites, as well – integrated a new local 3-pack with Yelp and its kind. The 3-pack displays average ratings for businesses within search results. With a quick glance, searchers can know where a business stands in the eyes of consumers. Businesses with the highest standing, of course, will generate the most interest and clicks.
If you have any questions or comments about the connection between review sites and SEO, or about any other brand-related topic, feel free to send them our way.
You can connect with the Young Company team at 949-376-8404 #4033 or bart@youngcompany.com. And be sure to follow us for the latest brand marketing news and tips.