It is not that uncommon for Google to list old or inaccurate info for your business. The top sources they pull data from are: Acxiom, InfoUSA and SuperPages. You can change the information for the latter two but not in Acxiom. Be aware that Google will and does sometimes overwrite whatever info you have listed in your Google Local Business Center listing with these 3 sources. So please make sure your info is correct in InfoUSA and Superpages...and all the other IYPs (Internet Yellow Page sites). I should probably write an article or tip listing the top IYPs that matter...

Hi Joe,

The stats came from various speakers at the SMX Local & Mobile conference in San Francisco recently. In a few cases, the source was given, in others they were not. I will do a little digging on this.

Good point - Judy's Book is like Angie's List in that it does not allow a business to add or edit their listing; rather your business gets listed after a member submits a review. Which is silly as you are dependent on the public to accurately fill out your business details.

Yelp and CitySearch are undoubtedly the most influential sites of the bunch but don't overlook getting listed in the others as this does play a role in the GoogleLocal ranking algorithm. And these are links back to your site from reputable sources.

Signing up for Yelp Sponsored Results (similar to Google Adwords) is an excellent way for some businesses to further promote themselves. Like all pay-per-click programs, one must track and monitor the cost and figure out the ROI to see if it is profitable.

Yes, that is why keyword research is so important and is truly the foundation of your online marketing efforts. Good tools out there include WordTracker (sign up for their free trial) and especially KeywordDiscovery - it has probably the cleanest data. An SEO firm should sit down with the client beforehand and after the tool is run to decide which keyword phrases are most important, relevant and profitable to that firm. Singular vs. plural forms of search phrases can have decidely different search numbers. Firms think their internally-used terminology is how their customers search and that often is not the case. Keyword research and anlysis can be a real eye-opener!

You are most welcome Jasmine. SEO has developed somewhat of a bad name due to shady companies that cold-call companies and make claims that are simply impossible to meet. This is still a nascent industry with a fledgling professional organization (SEMPO) and so still has a bit of a wild-west element to it. SEO practices also change fast - what used to be true and work even one year ago doesn't any more as the search engines constantly change their ranking algorithms. This is also true on the pay-per-click paid search side of the house.

You bring up an excellent point - look for an article soon on some tips for hiring the right SEO/SEM firm!