BrightLocal webinars are back, and we sure did kick off 2021 with a bang!
In our first webinar of the year, BrightLocal CEO Myles Anderson was joined by three expert panelists to reflect on the ups and downs of 2020, and to talk tactics and trends for the year ahead.
Thanks to all those who joined us, and of course our fantastic panelists, Steady Demand’s Ben Fisher, Sterling Sky’s Joy Hawkins, and Local SEO Guide’s Andrew Shotland.
If you missed out on the live action, you can watch the full webinar recap recording below, plus take a look at some of the resources discussed.
The Agenda
Webinar Recording
Takeaways
If there’s one thing that 2020’s really shown us, as a digital marketing landscape for agencies, we’ve been able to adapt really well.
Ben Fisher, Steady Demand
Keep investing in marketing because right now it’s really what you need to do.
Ben Fisher, Steady Demand
If business is less busy than usual, I’d really focus on content… Make a list of the questions your customers ask you, and each one of those becomes a page on your website.
Joy Hawkins, Sterling Sky
SEO is always underinvested in…What we saw when Covid happened, is that people froze their ad budgets. And those that didn’t have an SEO program were suddenly caught flatfooted, whereas those who invested in it weren’t.
Andrew Shotland, Local SEO Guide
I think it’s going to be interesting what we see in 2021 as things rebound. Will we change this behavior that’s become ingrained in us for the past nine months?
Ben Fisher, Steady Demand
If you’re a local business and you’re not doing Google My Business, you may as well be giving all your business away to your competitors.
Ben Fisher, Steady Demand
Review spam is horrible. [Google], in my opinion, has made no progress there. It is a real problem. I wish the media and laws would do more to protect consumers.
Joy Hawkins, Sterling Sky
What is the outlook for agency owners in 2021? Our panelists sound positive! #BrightLocalWebinar
— BrightLocal (@brightlocal) January 13, 2021
Resources
- Twitter: Ben Fisher
- Twitter: Joy Hawkins
- Twitter: Andrew Shotland
- BrightLocal: How to fight spam and influence rankings (webinar)
- BrightLocal: How local businesses can combat spam
- BrightLocal: How to use Google’s spam redressal form
- BrightLocal: How to report Google My Business spam
- BrightLocal: Google My Business Covid-19 attributes
- Census: Business formation statistics
- Sterling Sky: Are Local Services Ads stealing clicks from GMB? Study
- BrightLocal: Local Services Ads click study
- Whitespark: Local Search Ranking Factors survey
- Local U: GMB tests “services” function
- Chrome Web Store: GMBSpy plugin
- BrightLocal: Local Search Clinic with Andrew Shotland (webinar)
- BrightLocal: Local Search Clinic with Colan Nielsen (webinar)
- Twitter: Local SEO networking list
- Twitter: Local SEO experts list
Our Expert Panelists
Ben Fisher
Ben is VP of Marketing and founder of Steady Demand, and has been helping businesses grow online since 1994. He is also a Google My Business Gold Product Expert, hand-picked by Google to inform product decisions and help the community.
Joy Hawkins
Joy is the owner of the Local Search Forum, LocalU, and Sterling Sky, a Local SEO agency in Canada and the USA. She is also the author of the Expert’s Guide to Local SEO. She has been working in the industry since 2006. She writes for publications such as Search Engine Land and enjoys speaking regularly at marketing conferences such as MozCon, LocalU, Pubcon, SearchLove and State of Search. You can find her on Twitter or volunteering as a Product Expert on the Google My Business Forum.
Andrew Shotland
Andrew is the Founder and CEO of Local SEO Guide, a leading search consultancy with a speciality in SEO for multi-location brands, enterprise-level search marketing and corporate training. He is a regular contributor to Search Engine Land, author of the definitive Google News Ranking Factors survey and AppleMapsMarketing.com, a blog focused on helping businesses navigate Apple Maps and Siri.
Host: Myles Anderson
Myles is Founder and CEO of BrightLocal. He has worked in the local search industry since 2009 and has been a major contributor to the Local Search Ranking Factors Study. Myles has also written a regular column for Search Engine Land and has spoken at SEO conferences such as Brighton SEO and Inboundcon (Toronto).
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