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Tag: new orleans

Local U New Orleans: 14 Things You’ll Want to Know
About a month ago, my team and I attended Local U –
an online marketing seminar held at Tulane University. It was an extremely valuable, very energizing half-day! Various industry leaders in local SEO have dedicated their time and resources to helping small businesses learn the basics. It was more than worth the price of admission!

Not only did I take away a lot of valuable information, but I’ve already started thinking about how I can apply the topics discussed to help Audubon improve our online presence. I’m excited to put a plan into action and work with my team to make the website even better.

Below are my top takeaways from the day. If Local U is coming to your city, I highly recommend attending.

Takeaways:
1. Does your website answer the top 10 most frequently asked questions that you hear from customers in your physical space/store?
2. Is your NAP (business name, address, phone number) easy to find on every page?
  This tiger needs a nap! Too bad this type of nap won’t help your local presence!
3. Remove all Marketing Speak.
4. Are you consistently blogging? (Tip: Top 10 FAQs make excellent blog post topics.)
5. Are you building links on your site to other reputable sites? Links are gold! Search engines move from link to link.
6. Content is not just text. Content is photos, graphics, video, reviews.
7. Future of online marketing is customer reviews. Do you have a review process built into your sales process – to both encourage reviews and deal with negative reviews?
8. When asked what do you do on Google, 46% say read customer reviews. Reviews are social proof.
9. If you are not talking about something on your site, you cannot rank in search for it! Create pages for what you want to rank for.
  It’s important to add enticing photos and videos. Who wouldn’t love to look at cute pictures of animals all day?
10. There is no single Google search results page. 50-200 different algorithms at work at any given time and results are personalized. We are all seeing slightly different results.
11. Rank for what you are best at, be specific!
12. YouTube is the world’s second largest search engine. What will users find there about you?
13. You cannot own or control Facebook. You can own and control your website. Your website is most important, at the heart of all your online marketing.
14. Emails must be readable on all devices. 42% of all mails are opened on a mobile device.
Lani McWilliams is the Director of Member Services & Ecommerce at Audubon Nature Institute. Audubon Nature Institute is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to celebrating the wonders of nature and educating their visitors about the natural world.
June 25, 2013
Company Profile: Culture Shock LLC

One of the reasons I love New Orleans is that living local is part of everyday life. People love shopping and eating at local businesses. Thankfully, you won’t find many chains in the New Orleans zip codes (you need to go out to Metairie for that)! My friend Christine Alex recently started a jewelry business that imports handmade pieces from several countries across the world. This Q&A profiles her company, touching on why it totally fits in with the local New Orleans vibe.

How did you come up with the idea for your business?
I came up with the idea for Culture Shock when I was traveling abroad. I thought it was cool to bring back jewelry instead of postcards to my friends and family. The jewelry became a hit and eventually more and more people began giving me money and asking me to bring items back for them. That’s when I thought it would be really neat for people to be able to buy handmade items from all over the world without having to leave their couch. Culture Shock became an LLC in October 2012 and officially launched on January 18, 2013.

What is the goal/vision for your business?
When I studied abroad, I gained a deep level of respect for other cultures and as a result, appreciated my own culture so much more. My goal is to educate my customers about other cultures while selling them a piece of someone else’s culture to wear.

What products do you offer?
I sell jewelry that I hand picked from all over the world. The biggest countries that I receive my inventory from are Nicaragua, India, and Nigeria. Aside from offering a selection of imported items, I also began creating my own ethnic inspired items. In addition, as a way of honoring my own Creole culture, I created an apparel line under Culture Shock called Naturally Creole. This line offers a selection of Creole-themed apparel and accessories.

Do you have an online presence? Website, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest?
Yes, I have a website, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Facebook and Instagram receive the most engagement from followers. I have noticed usually the same people follow us across social media platforms.

Why do you use Facebook? What is the benefit that it is bringing to your business?
I use Facebook because it’s where my customers are, and I want to develop a relationship with them. Facebook allows my customers to understand the personality of my brand and learn more about my company and the products that I offer.

On the content she posts to her platforms:
I try to post content related to the countries that I import my items from. I post photos, videos, and open-ended questions. Pictures usually receive the most activity from our followers. On Pinterest, I pin items from our website.

Do you run any contests on Facebook? If so, what kind?
Yes, giveaways.

On her customers:
Word of mouth and social media have been important in building brand awareness and getting people to buy our great pieces. I’d love to get more interaction from our social media followers to continue to build the brand!

Business Info:
Culture Shock, LLC
P.O. Box 2217 Harvey, LA 70059
504-256-3337
www.cultureshock101.com
www.facebook.com/cultureshockllc
Twitter: @cultureshockllc
Pinterest: cultureshockllc
Contact email: [email protected]

June 18, 2013
5 for Friday — Links, Stories, & Posts for Your Weekend

1. Who is Winning the Apple vs. Google iPhone Driving Directions Battle? Too Close to Call — Mike Blumenthal

Even if you don’t keep up with the war between Apple and Google, you’re probably familiar with Apple Maps and it’s not-so-impressive emergence last fall. Well, since then, the app’s gotten its ducks in a row, and I know quite a few people that use it as their primary navigation tool. But how does it compare to Google Maps? Mike Blumenthal decided to find out. Check out this blog post to see how the two compare now that Apple Maps has matured a bit. I assumed that Google Maps was still the outright leader and was surprised by the results. Who knows, maybe I need to switch over to Apple Maps!

2. The Woman’s Guide to Having it All — Outspoken Media

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the role of women in SEO and the tech industry in general. It amazes me how few women there are, and I often wonder how we can change that. There are several active initiatives to get girls interested in technology, and I truly hope that they can change the future demographics of the tech world. But how do we get women noticed right now? In this blog post, Rhea Drysdal discusses her idea of what it means to be a successful female in the industry and what she thinks needs to change. Drydal is currently pregnant, which adds an interesting twist to her view on the situation.

3. How To Protect Your Home Business From A Natural Disaster — Graywolf’s SEO Blog

Living in New Orleans, disaster preparedness is a necessary part of life. Most people have a plan for storms, whether it involves evacuation routes or a cabinet full of MREs and batteries. While life necessities are obviously the first priority when it comes to hurricanes or any other disasters, business owners must have a disaster readiness plan in place just in case. I once heard Chris Slaughter, WWL-TV’s former executive news director, speak on what he learned about disaster preparedness from Katrina, and I was surprised by what I learned. There are so many small details that are easy to forget when you’re not actually in the situation. I recently came across this blog post from Michael Gray that touches on the subject. It’s filled with some great tips on how to protect your home business when Mother Nature strikes.

4. Zynga relaunches gaming site, loosens Facebook ties — Reuters

Zynga and Facebook. What a tragic love story. It seems that the divorce process continues, as game publisher Zynga relaunched its website on Thursday after previously relying wholly on Facebook for online play. Users no longer have to login through their Facebook accounts, proving further division of the two companies. By the end of the month, Zynga and Facebook will officially just be friends again. Alas, not all relationships are meant to be! And it seems that Zynga might not need Facebook after all. In this article, Reuters’ Gerry Shih gives a report on what led to this shift and what it means for the two companies.

5. Facebook Begins Rolling Out New, Customizable Timeline — AllFacebook

I’m sure all of you savvy Facebook users are aware of the new changes taking place on your News Feed, but just in case you haven’t heard—or if you just want to learn more about the shift—AllFacebook, the Unofficial Facebook Blog, has you covered. Facebook’s spokespeople say the change makes for a cleaner page with less clutter, but what do you think? I like the new bigger images, but there’s not that much else that I’ve noticed really affecting my use. I’m also a little wary of the advertising suddenly melded into my feed. I guess only time will tell what this change means for users.

March 22, 2013
New Orleans: A Growing Tech City
For those of you who don’t know, before Hurricane Katrina ripped through the Gulf South, New Orleans was on a steady rate of decline. However, the city we love to call home here at Search Influence is in the middle of a major renaissance. News sources across the nation have reported New Orleans is the fastest growing city in America.
- Population in April 2010: 343,829
- Population in July of 2011: 360,740
- Change in population: 4.9 percent (national average 0.73%)
- Unemployment rate May 2012: 7.2%
- Unemployment rate December 2012: 6.8 % (national average 7.8%)
With all of these growth changes and increase in jobs, New Orleans has also become a hub of entrepreneurial activity. Forbes recently said New Orleans is one of the biggest brain magnets in the country, attracting young, innovative minds. It is reported that 427 out of every 100,000 adults started up a new business in the New Orleans metro area, which is 40% above the national average.

Many of these entrepreneurial efforts are tech-based. Companies such as Idea Village and LaunchPad have helped young tech and digital media entrepreneurs start their businesses, giving them advice, a place to work, and grants. Marketing firms, apps, and software are all being developed in this city, which is quite shocking considering this has always been a city known for being 10 years behind everyone else. Kickboard, started by Jennifer Medbery after teaching at a charter school, is software that provides a centralized location for teachers to record their students’ progress.

Even Search Influence was founded during Katrina’s aftermath, and along with this city, we have grown at a rapid rate. In 2011 we made it on Inc. 500’s list of fastest growing companies, and we are now the largest online marketing firm in New Orleans. Digital media has many different facets, and we are proud to offer SEO, social media, and paid search services.

New Orleans institutions such as the Audubon Institute, Naked Pizza, and Southern Costume Company have integrated the digital space into their marketing efforts. Naked Pizza tweets on a regular basis, and they have truly embraced pop-culture (I strongly encourage you to watch their Harlem Shake video).

The Audubon Institute and Southern Costume Company have opened their marketing efforts to include social media promotions and building their brand on Facebook.

Digital Media, online marketing, and social media have become vital factors for today’s businesses to succeed. It’s all about the conversation and being transparent with your customers. We are so happy to report that our city and businesses are flourishing due to technology and media advancements.
March 13, 2013
Think Before You Post: Facebook, Chris Owens, and My Grandma

Chris Owens: from burlesque to the NFL.

I had an unexpected conversation with my Grandma on Christmas Day. You see, a while back my parents got her an iPad, and she uses it to get on Facebook pretty much every day. This has been a really great development for her, as it allows her to instantly see pictures of my cousins in Texas and keep up with family friends across the US.

My Grandma figured out how to declare that the Bee Gees are her favorite band on her Facebook page pretty quickly, but what I just discovered is that Facebook is a primarily innocent place for her. She hasn’t watched the site go from pokes to likes to pictures to drunken pictures to sarcasm to the Notorious IPO to one giant platform for ads like the rest of us have.

It made me realize how much fun Facebook was way back in 2007 when I first encountered it. This was back in a time when nobody could link Twitter to their status, Mark Zuckerberg didn’t care which movies you like to watch, and people were pretty much on point with their status updates — even though they all started with the dreaded “is.”

But above all that, I realized that when you are producing content for any online source, you have no idea who is going to read it and how they might react.

Would the Real Chris Owens Please Stand Up

Now, to understand the nature of my Grandma’s Facebook status misadventure, you first need a lesson in French Quarter Royalty. For as long as anyone can remember, a local singer, dancer, burlesque performer, and all around entertainer named Chris Owens has had a strong presence on Bourbon Street.

Every Easter, Owens leads what can only be described as the most sensational and fabulous Easter parade on the planet. She also holds court regularly in her eponymous club on the corner of Bourbon and St. Louis Streets. The woman is a living legend. She is also older than my grandmother, but that doesn’t seem to slow Chris Owens down one bit.

Now, imagine my surprise as I was watching an otherwise disappointing New Orleans Saints game versus the Atlanta Falcons when the name “Chris Owens” was suddenly all over the screen. It turns out the Falcons have a 26 year old cornerback named Chris Owens. He happened to have a very good game against the Saints that day (which I still hold against him), so the announcers kept saying the name “Chris Owens” again and again.

My initial thought was “My God, is there anything that woman can’t do?” and I posted as such on my Facebook wall. Little did I know the effects that would follow.

Sarcastic Facebook Status Updates

My friends and I tend to alternately vent our frustrations and shout our exultations about our beloved yet downtrodden New Orleans Saints during every game. This season started off with complaints about the replacement refs and ended in a mixed chorus of “next year” and “I hate Roger Goodell.” In the midst of all of this, I posted my status alluding to how amazing it is that a burlesque performer who got her start in the 1960s is also an NFL player, intentionally blurring the lines between the two very different people.

Now, when my Grandma read that, she didn’t take it that way. She agreed with me that Chris Owens the performer is amazing, and went on to say that she has been performing since my Grandma was a little girl. I thought that was a great comment, so I liked it.

Then my friend Christian came along and pulled a “Leave Britney Alone!” defense of Chris Owens. My grandmother, not accustomed to the level of cynical sarcasm, snark, and pop culture references that permeate Facebook status updates, thought she had offended my friend and was quite distressed. So on Christmas Day, I had to explain to my grandmother that no one was offended, and how no one means exactly what they say on Facebook. But how do we draw that line?

Watch What You Say

This brings me back to my central point. What started off as a small bit of humor to fill the void of a crappy Saints season ended up with my grandma scared that she had offended a friend of mine by talking about an octogenarian burlesque performer. (You want to move to New Orleans now, don’t you? This is normal here.)

It reminded me that no matter what your intention, and no matter what you say, you will probably offend someone somewhere. When writing online content for absolutely any outlet, your prime concern as an online content producer should be to sound as neutral as possible while still reaching your client’s intended audience.

This is not as easy as it sounds, and Facebook status update fails are only the tip of the iceberg — so be careful what you say and how you say it. A simple joke can end up being offensive, and that’s usually not what the client is looking for. While my incident didn’t make waves, a personal Facebook update can tarnish your professional reputation, and it’s even more important to watch out when you’re writing in the voice of a client. This isn’t to say that you can’t embrace divisive topics and provoke discussion, but as with most things, absolute clarity is the primary goal.

What is your favorite Facebook status misfire?

December 27, 2012
New Orleans T-Shirts & More: Two Local Businesses Lure Culture Bearers with Loyalty Marketing

I am a New Orleans t-shirt and jeans kind of person, and our eclectic “come as you are” culture certainly lends itself to dressing comfortably while slurping oysters, swigging Abita beer, or bobbing your head to the stylings of Kermit Ruffins or the Hot 8 Brass Band.

Two (of many) local retailers, Dirty Coast and Storyville, create New Orleans t-shirt designs that pay homage to the traditions of Southeastern Louisiana with colorful artwork and regional turns of phrase that would only be understood by someone who has heard or experienced them. While the unique designs can spark conversations and essentially sell themselves on an aesthetic level, retailers of these witty t-shirts draw locals and tourists alike in with promises of discounts and extra goodies through information shared on social media.

I do not restrict myself to shopping at just one of these New Orleans t-shirt stores because both Dirty Coast and Storyville have fabulous shirt designs. Also, each store uses an approach to loyalty marketing that allows the business to communicate with consumers while driving brand affinity and getting to know what interests are important to customers. These are great strategies that any business with a presence on social media can use to find out what motivates their customers to care and to buy. Hey, I’m sold!

Dirty Coast posts information on Twitter about contests they are hosting to win gift cards and gives a 10% discount for your check-in on FourSquare. They understand that the people that don their t-shirts are charitable folk, so Dirty Coast donates proceeds from the sale of certain shirt designs to benefit organizations like the LASPCA, the Gulf Restoration Network, and the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic. They even make good on the local concept of lagniappe (a French word meaning small gift or little something extra) by giving away great stickers, including the now iconic car bumper staple that reads “Be a New Orleanian, Wherever You Are.” When a company is able to associate consumers’ buying power with the preservation of valuable culture and the promotion of “a greater good,” they earn brand loyalty that is exponentially multiplied when t-shirt wearers post pics on their cool duds on Instagram. They’ve even gotten some attention from the entertainment industry: actor Steve Zahn reps a new one of their shirts in almost every episode of HBO’s most recent season of Treme.

Storyville rewards their staunch fans with opportunities to try their own hand at the apparel design game. Contests are hosted where the winning shirt designs are created and sold, along with a cash prize for the winner. This is just one way the store can establish a fan base and set itself apart from the competition — online shirt retailer Threadless has made a whole business model out of it. Storyville’s physical locations in Baton Rouge and Austin, TX receive glowing reviews from Yelpers. They use social media to inform followers of deals going on in-store, and even alert their Twitter followers to newsworthy information that their adoring public will care about. Most recently, the topic of conversation was the beloved Saints cheer “Who dat” and information about how many are fighting to keep the battle cry of the New Orleans Saints in the public domain.

The bottom line is that it’s worth it to make time to study businesses that capture your attention online and through social media. The incentives these New Orleans t-shirt stores offer (discounts, coupon codes, contests) draw the consumer in and don’t even involve printing up a flyer or physically attracting the masses to a storefront to get big results. New Orleanians are a proud bunch, and we’re happy to show off our culture with these clever accoutrements — props to these retailers for getting it so very right with both their designs and their marketing approaches.

December 3, 2012
Infographic: New Orleans Hotels on the Parade Route

The Mardi Gras Survival Guide and New Orleans Hotels on the Parade Route, Courtesy of NewOrleans.com

It’s your first time in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, you say? Oh, dear. It’s likely that you’ll be overwhelmed by the spectacle, even if you’ve seen many celebrations in many other countries before. After all, everywhere you look there are parades, costumes, beads being hurled, and all other manner of unfamiliar customs. You know, like women taking their shirts off at a moment’s notice in exchange for small trinkets. Yes, hide the children (or at least be prepared to shield their eyes at the speed of light!)

Jokes aside, New Orleans is a fantastic destination for adults and children alike, and your experience of celebrating carnival here can vary quite a bit depending on where you camp out. For instance, the Mardi Gras experience in the uptown area of New Orleans, near Napoleon Avenue is considered more of a family-friendly spot to watch the parades, and it’s where locals like to hang out as well. At the start of the parade on Napoleon, parade goers can expect light to moderate throws, as most float riders are still too sober to be generous. If you can find a cute baby, you may be able to convince riders to throw you a stuffed animal or two. A little past Napoleon on St. Charles is where most younger locals catch the parade. These include college preps and high school kids who think they are in college. Drink of choice: Red Bull.

If you want to catch the parade in this area, New Orleans hotels such as the Royal St. Charles and Avenue Plaza Resort offer all the charm one would expect from the sound of the names, but are also conveniently located within walking distance of the routes of the most spectacular parades, such as Bacchus and Orpheus.

Venture further down the parade route, between Louisiana and Jackson, and you’ll come across a more family oriented area. Young local families and young adults will occupy most of the area. College freshman who are too afraid to get drunk in front of their visiting parents will carry around a flask, usually filled with Captain Morgan. In this area, float riders primarily throw to their friends and family, in order to save throws for later in the parade.

Between Jackson and Lee Circle are a variety of locals. Hipsters, food cart vendors, and grumpy bike commuters who didn’t leave work early enough to avoid the congestion. The locals are relaxed and enjoying locally brewed Abita beer. The float riders begin to panic that they didn’t buy enough throws to last until the end of the parade, and they get conservative. New Orleans hotels on this part of the parade route are close to the action. Avenue Plaza Resort and the Prytania Park Hotel can offer an area of refuge for bathroom breaks and to rest your feet.

If you prefer to be situated closer to downtown so you can easily access uptown and downtown on foot, The Hotel Modern (formerly Hotel Le Cirque) and Maison St. Charles are excellent choices for New Orleans hotels. All the parades you want to see will be within walking distance, and it’s an ideal way to situate yourself near all the excitement without jumping feet first into the middle of the French Quarter, just on the edge of crazy town. While this area will mostly be tourists exploring the area, you’ll still see a few courageous locals sporting their costumes and dancing in the streets. You can also explore the city’s central business district and enjoy food and cocktails at some fantastic spots. Float riders have now become so drunk, that they lose their inhibitions and begin tossing throws overboard.

But wait — you say you came here because you couldn’t resist the call of Bourbon Street on Mardi Gras day? Well, Lord help you, but it’ll be interesting at the very least. As long as you don’t value sleep, you can stay right in the middle of the action at well-known New Orleans hotels like Royal Sonesta, Hotel Monteleone and W French Quarter. You won’t have to walk a few blocks to find the action if you stay here, as it’s more likely happening right outside the hotel, or possibly on your neighboring balconies. Be warned that this is the heart of the Mardi Gras debauchery, so be ready for anything.

Whether you’re in need of New Orleans hotels uptown or downtown for your first time celebrating Mardi Gras, or you do it every year, there’s plenty to choose from. Just make sure you come prepared with a stomach of iron if you plan to keep pace with the locals!

For more information on New Orleans hotels on the Parade Route, please see information below:

Avenue Plaza Resort
2111 Saint Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Hotel Monteleone
214 Royal St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Maison St. Charles
1319 St. Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Royal Sonesta
300 Bourbon St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Royal St. Charles
135 Saint Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

The Hotel Modern
936 St. Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

W French Quarter
316 Chartres St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Inn on Bourbon
541 Bourbon St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Prince Conti
830 Conti St.
New Orleans, LA 70112
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

W
333 Poydras St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Westin New Orleans Canal Place
100 Rue Iberville
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Best Western
3636 St. Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70115
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Doubletree
300 Canal St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Sheraton
500 Canal St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Harrah’s Hotel & Casino
8 Canal St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

LaFayette Hotel
600 St. Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Hilton Riverside
2 Poydras St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Bourbon Orleans Hotel
717 Orleans St.
New Orleans, LA 70116
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Hotel Royal
1006 Royal St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Prytania Park Hotel
1525 Prytania St.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

Parc St. Charles Hotel
500 Saint Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70130
NewOrleans.com Reservation Hotline: 1-855-639-6756

February 15, 2012
Results Pagination in Google Places View

For a while now, Google has been showing “Related Places” AKA “The Competition in places view.

Google Related Places – AKA The Competition

While looking at the results for one of our clients who has recently opened a new office for his law practice in a New Orleans LA suburb I came across this.

Paginated Google Places Results

Clearly Google is trying to offer some alternative results for “Metairie Divorce” than our guy Will Beaumont at 3814 Veterans Memorial Blvd #302, Metairie, LA 70002 – (504) 834-1117.

You’ll have to click through as I can’t figure out how to link directly.

Beyond going down the page to look at the “Related Places” (AKA “The Competition”) you can now conveniently scroll through them. And, better still, hovering over your searched for phrase at the top of the page gets you this drop-down list.

Select Your Competitor – Google Places Drop-Down List

June 21, 2011
Small Business SEO Basics: Rank for Your Own Name!

Have you ever searched for a business by its own name and come up empty-handed? What about searching for its own name PLUS the city it’s located in and still no luck? It happens! Google definitely makes stupid choices at times, but most of the time this happens when we are not telling it the most basic information about ourselves — as redundant as it might seem.

Alligator dogs from Dat Dog's Yelp page.

As a stereotypical New Orleanian, I’m obsessed with great food. I have always noticed and been upset when a business doesn’t rank #1 for its own name, or even in the top 3. Recently I saw the phenomenon three times on the same weekend, so I had to blog about it.

I was hungry for something inexpensive, but really good and meaty, which means I had approximately 1,298,450 locations to choose from in this city. Many of these will never have websites. Somehow it came down to Courtyard Grill, Cowbell and Dat Dog (I have been to only one of these restaurants but can tell from the reviews that I’m going to love the other two). Since I only trust hours of operation posted on official websites, I searched for the restaurant names with city names behind them. These were the results (from 3/28/11):

Search Term Rank/Page

dat dog new orleans 15- About

courtyard grill new orleans 05 – About

cowbell new orleans 02 – Home

Aesthetically, most would agree that these sites are beautiful, but since Google is a robot, it does not share this opinion. Of course I don’t expect a year-old restaurant to rank #1 for the term Courtyard Grill, but including the city name should be enough to make that happen. Same goes for the other two. Why are these restaurants not ranking first for their name?

Who dat? Ain't Dat Dog.

Yes, they all are getting outranked by Yelp and Urban Spoon pages with a bunch of reviews, but the big problem here is a lack of on-site optimization. Breaking the most fundamental rule of on-site SEO, Dat Dog and Courtyard Grill both fail to include any content on the home page. Furthermore, they all lack meta-descriptions and only one has a decent title tag. Cowbell performs the best in the results because “cowbell” and “new orleans” are mentioned next to each other twice in the text of the home page; not to mention the address is in text at the top of the page.

Unless you have a unique name, or a URL that perfectly matches your business name — (Bouligny Tavern has both, as you can see here) — you will need on-site optimization to save you from these problems. On-site optimization is so important that even Google, which is secretive about their search formula, has written a guide to this which can be found here. I highly recommend it to web designers and webmasters because it expresses the minimum that you should do to be favored in search results.

Who cares if my site isn’t first? I have 4 stars on Yelp!

You should be concerned about making sure that when people are looking for YOU that they can find YOU, and not another site that is talking about you. Otherwise, why would you have a website in the first place? You want to be in control of your own destiny, and it helps to lead the conversation. Let’s say you have 4/5 stars overall on Yelp, but the most recent rating was a 1; do you want a potential customer to have this information branded in their head so early in the relationship? Even if a customer has a good experience, reading bad reviews can lead to Yelp-fulfilling prophecies. Yelp is a great site, and if you want people to see your Yelp page, link to it with a banner, just like Lock Busters did.

I know I’m not first for my name and city, but x means the same thing as my city.

Even though I am talking specifically about NOLA, it’s a lesson we can all learn: think about the words people are saying when they search for your business, and optimize based on those words. Locals often call New Orleans Louisiana “NOLA” (and it happens to be a component of the URLs for the 3 sites we are comparing), but chances are that when someone is looking for you they are not using this word. The screenshot below is from Google Insights. Not only are people searching for New Orleans a lot more than NOLA, but as you can see at the bottom of the image, people are searching for “nola jobs” and “nola news,” which undoubtedly refers to our friends at www.nola.com, and the term “nola restaurant” probably refers to the Emeril’s establishment called NOLA Restaurant.

Nola What? Nola Who?

On-page optimization does not guarantee you will rank for your name, but you don’t have much of a shot at ranking for anything without content and metadata on your home page. There are other ways, like being linked to via anchor text from an awesome blog, which we are glad to do for 3 great local businesses, but small business owners should go for the low-hanging fruit first.

March 29, 2011
No Drip (GNODRP) – Hurricane Preparedness and Hurricane Recovery Partnership
GNODRP ("No Drip") Greater New Orleans Disaster Recovery Partnership

“No Drip” (GNODRP) – Hurricane Preparedness and Hurricane Recovery Partnership

Greater New Orleans Disaster Recovery Partnership (GNODRP)

Formed in November of 2005

Gulf coast residents know all too well what June – November mean: Hurricane Season!

Thankfully all has been calm out in the ocean water but that does not mean New Orleans isn’t engaged in serious preparation. The Greater New Orleans Disaster Recovery Partnership (GNODRP) pronounced “no drip’ is just that. In the coming months the greater New Orleans area will need to be on guard and preparing for tropical storms and hurricanes. GNODRP offers services to help the community prepare before a disaster and to recover after. GNODRP is also working in many ways with people still recovering from hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The Mission of the Greater New Orleans Disaster Recovery Partnership (GNODRP) is to regionally support long-term recovery and preparedness.

What You Should Know Now

The GNODRP is working on two large projects that benefit the greater New Orleans area.
1. RECOVERY SUPPORT: GNODRP provides long-term recovery support to victims of Katrina and Rita. The number of people still needing recovery is extensive and GNODRP wants to get the word out that they’re here to help.
2. FUTURE DISASTER PREPAREDNESS: GNODRP will be serving as the central point of contact for nonprofit organizations for preparedness and recovery efforts of future disasters. GNODRP will serve as the leader in organizing nonprofit recovery efforts in the event of a future disaster. Referred to as Greater New Orleans Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (GNO VOAD)
Hurricane Katrina Satellite Image

Who and What GNODRP Serves

GNODRP currently has 7 member parishes: Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Washington & the River Parishes: St. John the Baptist and St. Charles.

GNODRP offers services to aid in the disaster recovery process, these include but are not limited to rebuilding and repairing homes, case management, advocacy, emotional and spiritual care, donations collection and distribution, preparedness and volunteer coordination.

Through the GNODRP Donations Warehouse Program, rebuild agencies and case management agencies can pick up furnishings and materials on behalf of clients still in need of recovery. The materials are donated from a hodgepodge of sources. The partnerships that GNODRP has are extensive.

Who Is Involved?

GNODRP is made up of a coalition of over 70 organizations who give support by meeting community needs in the recovery process that have gone un-met by other sources The coalition is made up of faith-based, non-profit, government liaisons and long term recovery organizations.

A full list of member agencies and resource partners can be found by click the corresponding link. Some representative members include the United Way of New Orleans, the Red Cross and Catholic Charities and there are many more.

How You Can Get Involved

The GNODRP is always looking for people and organizations to join in their effort to collaborate and share resources. There are many ways to support GNODRP some include putting your name on the mailing list, signing up to volunteer, or making a donation. GNODRP is looking for many skill sets including social services, construction expertise, grant writing, PR, and most of all friendly and passionate people who want to make a difference in the local community.

For more information about GNODRP and to get Involved visit their site at: http://www.gnodrp.org/

or email: [email protected]

Keywords: disaster recovery, disaster preparedness, hurricane, New Orleans, GNO
July 18, 2009