Your Search Results Customer Service Rep

When you walk into a Home Depot or another home improvement store, there is someone in an apron waiting to ask you a few questions and direct you to the aisle, shelf or bin you need.

The first question of “Can I help you find something?” let’s you reply “I need a screwdriver”.  Then your expert asks you a follow-up question to make your quest more likely to succeed.  Maybe it’s “Power or hand tool?” or “Standard or Phillips?”.  The point is that a secondary communication takes place further defining your need and where the answer is.  This is a real life AdWords sitelink.

Mobile Sitelinks To Clarify, Build Trust, Define and Locate

Sitelinks in paid mobile search ads on Google are able to meet the needs of many users and the best place to start with what sitelinks to create lies within understanding the possible intent of your searcher.

A mobile search for “Minneapolis Hotel” displays a search ad with sitelinks for Most Popular Hotels, to give a user social proof of what other users select, and Budget Hotels for the price driven user.  These examples help those looking for a hotel in Minneapolis make a trusted choice or a price driven choice.

A mobile user might search for “Luxury Hotels Minneapolis”.  The example below shows that the sitelinks are helping the user by better defining what luxury means to them … is luxury a 5 star hotel or a 4 star hotel?

Let’s include in my night out in downtown Minneapolis that I want to catch a play on short notice.  I search ” Theatre Tickets Minneapolis” and the Fitzgerald Theater uses sitelinks to wisely put me onto their Upcoming Events to see what’s on stage and helps me with understanding their seating chart, a likely piece of information I’ll want before purchasing tickets if I already have a show in mind.

Mobile E-commerce & Store Location Sitelinks

Another example is a user searching for “Popular Hoodies” finds a result for Macy’s offering sitelinks of Find A Location to get you into a nearby Macy’s or Sales & Clearance for the deal minded online shopper.

Not all sitelinks are carried out with the users intent though.  Searching “Hoodies for Men” gave me an ad from Ralph Lauren that was poorly written but displayed sitelinks for Women and Children.  I had already defined Men as my search, but they wasted their sitelinks on categories of hoodies I wasn’t interested in.

Google Enhanced Campaigns Improve Sitelinks

These types of errors should hopefully happen less with sitelinks now enabled at the ad level with Googles new Enhanced Campaigns.  Even though the majority opinion of search marketers seems to be negative on Enhanced Campaigns, I do think the added control and reporting of sitelinks is a plus.  Many search marketers have shared other positives on sitelinks recently.

I’m hopeful that reporting from Google on what sitelinks are clicked and the result of that user is as granular as possible to help search marketers create better sitelinks to help searchers find the best results.  I really think that sitelinks’ success hinges upon users getting the right sitelink options and forming a trust in clicking them over the ad headline.

While meeting the searcher’s intent with your sitelinks is the top benefit in my opinion, also consider that your sitelinks save users clicks, give you more characters to market with and help your ad occupy more screen space.

I’m well aware I might be over focusing on this aspect of mobile search marketing, but I’m OK with it. I love mobile sitelinks and I’m proud to shout blog it.

The post Mobile AdWords Sitelinks, I Love Them appeared first on Aaron Weiche.

Over 20 events have taken place in the last 3 years across the U.S. and Canada and 2013 already has 3 events on the schedule for Austin, Corpus Christi and a Local U Advanced in Baltimore.  With a strong focus on local search marketing, Local U events give businesses real world, practical answers and processes to improve their business online.

Top local search and online marketers presenting include Mike Blumenthal, Mike Ramsey, Mary Bowling, David Mihm, Matt McGee, Will Scott, Ed Reese and yours truly.

Local University – All Grown Up

With the 2012 GetListed.org acquisition by SEOmoz, Local University is now it’s own organization, but the speakers, quality and value all remain the same.  Sponsors for these first events include Google, Bing and Nokia; speaking to the level of information and accuracy that Local U brings attendees.

Of course I’m biased in speaking with the Local U series for the past 3 years, but when you have conversations with attendees and see the amount of information that they are able to take on and instantly move forward with, you really understand the need and the value of the event’s content.

Local U Advanced – Baltimore

If you are a seasoned local search marketer or thirsting for a day long dive into local search, mobile and more, then Local U Advanced in Baltimore on March 9th, 2013 is for you.  This event will feature an incredible line-up with Bill Slawski and Darren Shaw joining the Local U team.  I’ll be presenting on mobile and taking a look at mobile search marketing and responsive web design to help business meet the growing mobile segment of their audience.

Connect With Us

Along with the new website for Local University, you can find all of the expected social channels to stay up to date with our events:

• Twitter: follow @LocalUniv
• Facebook: like Local University
• Google+: add/circle Local University

I look forward to seeing you at a future Local University event!

The post All Over The Map, Helping Businesses Get On The Map appeared first on Aaron Weiche.

Mobile e-commerce is on the rise and the power for consumers to stand in front of a product in a retail store and then use their phone to price compare and then buy it from their device is growing.  A recent comScore study revealed that some 35% of consumers confessed to showrooming in Q2 of 2012.  That stat means they priced shopped using their phone, but doesn’t mean they executed a purchase online, that number is closer to just 6%.

How Easy Is Showrooming?

It’s crazy easy.  With the Amazon app on my iPhone I headed out to my local Walmart and quickly saw the ease and reward of this.  The 46″ LED TV I scanned the barcode of came up on Amazon at $50 cheaper than the price in Walmart (Store: $898.00, Amazon: $848.81) and the shipping was free.  The only way you’d pay more is to have that TV right then and there … but many online retailers are toying with same day shipping these days.

Mobile Commerce Is Not All “On The Go”

So much of mobile strategy in recent years has been made out to be about the context of the mobile user.  Where we are and what we are trying to do or go next was the focus.  That’s changing too.  Mobile usage at home, on the couch and even in bed is now a big chunk of where our smartphones and tablets are being used.  AOL and BBDO released a study that 68% of smartphone use takes place in the home.

There is no doubt that m-commerce is on the rise and only just at the start of it’s growth.  If you’re a statistic hound, then you’ll want to check out this recent comScore report on which retailers are carving out space in the m-commerce market.  The next step for many retailers is making sure their mobile shopping experience is great and that is where my job and talents come into play.

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Review of the Everki Concept Laptop Backpack

In my research and reading reviews of different laptop backpacks, these items are the  pros that really stood out to me in my decision when buying it and they have help true in now using it.

• Checkpoint friendly – You can see in the photo the laptop sleeve/holder folds down separate.   No need to remove it form your backpack, just unfold that compartment and scan away.  It also has padded corners to protect your machine. Nice little time saver.
• Lots of space and storage – I’ve already had to carry both my Macbook Air and my PC laptop at once and it holds both easily along with cords and so many other items.  This backpack has a ton of storage and compartments.
• Sunglasses hardcase – Right in the top of the bag is a sunglasses and/or cellphone compartment that is a hardcase to protect your glasses or smartphone.  Awesome little feature, especially for travel.
• iPad / tablet sleeve – The bag has a built-in iPad sleeve that is felt lined.
• Comfortable shoulder straps – Maybe it’s because my messenger bag was always digging in to my shoulder, but the comfort of this backpack is great, even when loaded down.
• Heavy duty materials – The bags construction is plain solid. Especially the zippers.  Ever have a bag with crappy zippers? They suck.

The bag is $300 and so far I’m 110% fine with it’s cost as it’s superior to many bags I researched and even evaluated in different stores.  If you need a business mode laptop backpack that looks great and works even better, the Everki Concept is a great choice.

Everki Website & E-commerce Shopping Experience

Since I’m a web design and usability guy, I pay attention to a lot of the little things in the product research and purchase process.

I was really disappointed in the online experience, it definitely doesn’t match their product quality.  The site makes you add the item to the shopping cart before they show you the price, almost as if they are ashamed of their price. Strange.

During checkout there were more than a few screens where even a savvy online shopper could get confused.  Lack of proper labeling of steps, directions and fields made it much harder and longer to spend my $300.  I can only think a few people have quit the process.

The products also have reviews for each, but having all of them be 5/5 stars didn’t really help in my decision. I don’t need to know you like posting 5 star reviews on your own site, but it would be nice if you had more and deeper reviews from past customers.

On the positive side their website offers great photos and a video overview of each backpack, a must to sell a higher priced item than most competitors.

So overall, the backpack is worth the hiccups of ordering and I’d have to think all of their bags match the quality of the one I purchased.  I’m a big enough geek that a laptop backpack is worth smiling and blogging about.

The post The Ultimate Geek Laptop Backpack: Everki Concept appeared first on Aaron Weiche.

The website’s new look is clearly aimed to be a more visual and flow based experience, not the standard screen, click and load.  Tablet experiences like the iPad have started to heavily influence desktop design in the last year and USA Today has embraced it at a fantastic level.

USA Today sites registered 38.7 million visitors in August 2012, up 48% from 26.1 million a year ago.  That amount of users and growth is part of what I like about redesign of this magnitude.  There is a lot of user data to consider as you define the strategy in your redesign and there is also a lot of audience to give feedback when you go live.

The Website Redesign Wins

In moving around the new design I’m really struck by the gravity of the visuals.  In both size and quantity, the site has become almost free of text and seems like a very cohesive media experience.  While the navigation and color schemes of the sections remain intact, the layout breaks away from the normal news site and definitely feels like a breath of fresh air.

The site even goes as far to allow controls over certain portions of content so you can change from a grid display to a list display of stories.

It’s Still All About Advertising

While the new design brings more visual real estate to the content, advertising seems to have a bigger and bolder offering.  Upon visiting the Travel section of the new design, I was met with this giant ad. Wow.

My first thought was “that’s an ad”, but my second thought was that it was visually appealing.  I’ll be interested to see how these ads perform and if they maintain a higher level of design quality.  Advertisers have to be excited about that kind of real estate and visual impact.

Just Jump

In closing, I think the approach to break the mold and be a bit bolder is really done well.  I wasn’t expecting this big of a shift for sure so maybe much of my excitement is due to the shock, time will tell.

Kudos to USA Today for jumping off, I’ll be watching to see where they land.

The post USA Today Website Redesign Is Beautifully Refined appeared first on Aaron Weiche.

Getting Started With Conversation Rate Optimization

My presentation focused on understanding how to get started with CRO and covered the fundamentals.  My presentation slides are embedded below.

I’d suggest you also check out the other presentations from that night.  Josh Braaten had a great primer on user psychology to boost your CRO and James Svoboda put together a slide deck packed with great CRO and landing page resources.  It was another incredible MnSearch event and I had a great time talking CRO with everyone.

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It’s no secret that outstanding service or product is the best way to get a positive review online, but you can take control past this.  The easiest review strategy, just ask your customers to review your business.

I recently stayed at Hotel Murano in Tacoma, WA for business and they are clearly winning more business by asking for reviews from their customers.

Within an hour of checking out I received an email from Hotel Murano’s general manager thanking me for my stay and asking me to share my experience online. Here is the email:

Dear Aaron,



Thank you for visiting the Hotel Murano. We know there are many hotels in Tacoma, but we’d love to make this the place where you feel most at home – or at least the most well taken care of. 

If you have a moment, please let us know how your stay went. We’ve also included a link to our Online Comment Card.

I personally read and respond to all feedback and I thank you in advance for taking the time. 

In addition, Yelp and Trip Advisor are great places to share your experience with other guests. We look forward to seeing you on your next visit to town.



Thank you for staying with us,
Stan Kott

General Manager

Reviews Of Quantity & Quality
Murano gets it and this type of simple follow up is helping them dominate their online listings like Yelp. Their profile offers up 70 reviews averaging 4 stars while no others have more than 15 reviews. Their credibility to the average consumer is miles ahead of the other area hotels.

This simple and timely email asks for direct feedback to the general manager, offers links to review them on popular travel and hotel sites and leaves the guest with a great final impression that Hotel Murano cares.

Take a look at your follow-up process and see how you can ask for reviews to better your online reviews and leads.

In case you are wondering, Hotel Murano is a great hotel, offers upscale rooms and has many nearby restaurants and bars.  I left my review on Google.

The post The Best Way To Get Reviews: Ask For Them appeared first on Aaron Weiche.

Aaron Weiche – Nerdery Overnight Website Challenge from TECHdotMN on Vimeo.

Great Event, Great Result

The event was a grind at times to be up for 48 hours straight, but our team accomplished some amazing work for our non-profit over the weekend.  A full website redesign, new CMS platform, email marketing, mobile website and a completely new brand and logo.

The post The Overnight Web Challenge Video Interview appeared first on Aaron Weiche.

The video below shows how your iPhone, an app and a print ad work together to “test drive” new Volkswagen features right from the ad.

Have you seen other examples of tech and print teaming up to do creative things?

The post Interactive Print Advertising Driven By Volkswagen appeared first on Aaron Weiche.

Yeah know it’s bad when Microsoft itself is leading the charge to kill IE 6.  They’ve launched ie6countdown.com to help the cause.

As the site states, it’ve been 10 years now since IE 6 was released, it’s time to move on.  It was time to move on 5 years ago!

The graphic and data on the site is an interesting look at the main culprits.  Here in the US, while we’re down to 2.9%, it’s big corporate that is the main culprit and many of us have them as clients.

Here’s to hoping the dream comes true in 2011 and we can focus more time on better things!

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