In his latest Theo Talk, our Director of Operations, Theo St. Mane asks a crucial question: are you in charge of your business’ online identity? There are dozens of online directories that scrape information from all corners of the internet in order to gather details on your business. However, this information isn’t always accurate, especially if your business has changed locations or phone numbers. If you don’t claim your business on each directory to ensure your information is accurate, customers may not be able to find your website.
Here are two different methods to effectively manage your business’ online identity.
Manually Claim your Business
Pick out some of the top directories that your customers may be using such as Google+, Yahoo!, Bing, and Yelp. Each of these directories has different processes for claiming your business or creating a listing for it. Once you have control of your business’ identity, you can edit the information at any time, which is helpful if your business changes locations or phone numbers. This option is free but can be time-consuming.
Directory Listing Tools
If you don’t want to manage your listings manually, there are tools that allow you to update your business’ information across multiple directories all from one platform. A few popular services such as Yext, Moz Local, and UBL are compared here. These tools allow you to control your business’ online identity all in one place. While convenient, these services are not free, ranging in price between a few dollars per citation to $500 a year.
Taking control of your business’ online identity is an important and often forgotten aspect in managing a business. Don’t wait! Make sure your customers can find your business today.
To learn more about online identity and Theo Talks, visit MLT Group’s Youtube channel.
To find out how MLT Group can help your business with its online identity and SEO, contact one of our professionals at sales@mltgroup.com or 507.281.3490.