12 Most Important Local Search Blog Posts of 2012

[Linda Buquet]

Let the "Best Of" and "Year in Review" posts begin!

There were several defining moments in local search in the year 2012

.:. The update to Google+ Local
.:. The ability to merge your Place page with your Google+ Business page (still not ready for prime time)
.:. The on-going and still growing Google Local review issues
.:. The thousands of small businesses deleted by Google, due to the service area/hide your address fiasco

Following are my top picks for the best posts of 2012 and most cover the issues above. Categorized
by topic, but in no particular order: (Except #1 is #1 in my book, due to the current state of affairs.)

Google Local: Train Wreck at the Junction
Mike Blumenthal - GOOGLE+ LOCAL PROBLEMS

Google Places Is Over, Company Makes Google+ The Center Of Gravity For Local Search Greg Sterling - GOOGLE+ LOCAL UPDATE

Google Places Pages Are No More – But What has Changed?
Mike Blumenthal - GOOGLE+ LOCAL UPDATE

Google+ Business Pages: To Merge Or Not to Merge, That is the Question
Mike Blumenthal - GOOGLE+ MERGE

BREAKING! Google+ Business Merge with Google Place Pages Starts Now!
Local Search Forum - GOOGLE+ MERGE

Local Search Ranking Factors
David Mihm - LOCAL SEO

The Zen Of Local SEO
Miriam Solas - LOCAL SEO

Local Search Ecosystem: Fall 2012 Update
David Mihm - LOCAL SEO

How Long Does Local-Search Visibility Take?
Phil Rozek - LOCAL SEO

Asking for Reviews (Post Google Apocalypse)
Mike Blumenthal - REVIEWS

The Local Business Reviews Ecosystem
Phil Rozek - REVIEWS

New Guideline – Hide your Address or Risk Losing your Place Page
Linda Buquet - SERVICE AREA - DELETED LISTINGS - DO NOT SUPPORT

There are so many great bloggers and 2012 was filled with great insights and many other great posts.

Did I forget anything important? There were so many, that I had a really hard time narrowing it down to just 12. Please feel to post any others you feel deserve an honorable mention in the comments below.

 

[Linda Buquet]

I keep thinking of other great posts I wish I had added. So I'm just going to keep adding as I think of them.

Matchmaking Advice for Local SEOs and Business Owners | LocalVisibilitySystem.com

50 Local SEO Lessons from 50 Clients | LocalVisibilitySystem.com

 

[Phil Rozek]

Hey Linda,

Thanks a bunch!

I may break character and do a ?best of 2012? roundup myself, so by mentioning these I know I?m opening us up to some overlap here, but I just wanted to mention these two awesome posts from Nyagoslav:


The Real Meaning of the Google Places Statuses | Local Search Marketing Blog by NGS

8 Ways to Recognize Fake Google Reviews | Local Search Marketing by NGS Marketing

 

[Linda Buquet]

Thanks Phil for those!

I was going to go doublecheck Nyag's when I had time because I know he's done several really good posts. Also Myles from Bright Local has done a few on their blog as well as Search Engine Land.

But like I said it was really hard to narrow it down to just the top 12 for 2012. Top 30 would have been more like it but would not fit the 2012 theme.

So you guys just keep adding more and we'll make this a great repository of top posts!
(Made this a sticky too, so it will stay on top.)

 

[MiriamEllis]

Great thread, Linda! Thanks for the kind mention, and I'm glad you've made this one a sticky.

 

[Linda Buquet]

Here is Phil's Top 10: My 10 Favorite Local SEO Posts of 2012 | LocalVisibilitySystem.com

 

[Dave Cosper]

Thank you for organizing these Linda. Definitely some good ones in there, and not surprisingly, these blog posts are well represented in our list of Top Local SEO Blogs that we recently put up on Pinterest

 

[Linda Buquet]

Cool Dave! Thanks for sharing and for joining us!
Thanks too for giving me a spot on your leaderboard.

 

[Phil Rozek]

Thanks, Dave!

 

[Linda Buquet]

Thanks all for adding to this thread!

 

[Phil Rozek]

LOL, I just noticed that the mention of Miriam's excellent post says "Miriam Solas" (right under the link). Now that would be taking "personal branding" to a whole new level!

 

[Radha]

I would like to add one more to this list
How to Pimp Your Google Places Listing | The Super Rad Whitespark Blog

this post is a must read for everyone. Loved this post!

 

[Phil Rozek]

Thanks, Radha! Although some of the specific tactics no longer apply (with the Google+Local rollout), about half of them still do. But I had a lot of fun writing that one