It all started with Pay-Pass at the gas pump and convenience stores. Remember the commercial of the guy running in the marathon and he buys a drink while he is running the race using a card he swipes? Well Google has partnered with Sprint, First Data, Citi, and MasterCard to test Google Wallet, a similar type of digital contactless payment option that allows Wallet-enabled Smartphones (right now only the Samsung Nexus S from Sprint) to tap to pay. The application works for both online and offline in-store purchases.

Contactless payments are processed by a special terminal. Only terminals with the universal contactless symbol will work with Google Wallet for in-store purchases. The terminal must be an ISO 14443 or 18092 standard. Merchants interested in getting a contactless terminal can contact First Data at 888-265-8147. To take advantage of Google Wallet, merchants must sign up to become a Google SingleTap Merchant. An additional benefit to you is the free listing you get on Google’s Where it works map. Because the program is still in beta, Google is taking inquiries at wallet-b2b@google.com.

From customer loyalty programs to special promotions, there are lots of opportunities to develop custom marketing programs around Google Wallet to drive traffic to your brick-and-mortar store or to get targeted buyers to take advantage of the convenience it offers them for online purchases. I suggest you also look into another Google program in beta called Google Offers, where Google markets participating businesses’ offers to its registered Offers members (just like Groupon does). If you want more information, about Google Offers, submit an online inquiry here.

Google Wallet is more than just a digital credit card. It is designed to replace the kinds of purchasing items a person may carry in their wallet, such as credit cards, coupons, advertisements, and so forth. The application allows consumers to save offers and apply them when they are ready to make an in-store or online purchase. It saves them the hassle of looking for the right coupon, counting their cash, or even retrieving a credit card. Bottom line for shoppers is Google Wallet is faster and more convenient. So ultimately it offers you a great way to reach out to mobile users and convince them to buy from you. For example, consumers searching for products or services in your area can save your offers in Google Wallet and then redeem them in-store, which allows you to analyze ‘online marketing to in-store purchases.’ It’s a powerful way to ensure you market effectively online to reach your targeted mobile audiences so you can generate sales both online and offline.

To get started with contactless terminal transactions, please contact First Data at 888-265-8147 or visit their site. Send inquiries about Google Wallet to wallet-b2b@google.com.

Just like carpentry, the tools of a professional search engine marketer are available to anyone.  However, the skills involved are not readily apparent until you find yourself spending a lot of money and time without achieving your goals. SEM campaigns can get expensive very quickly. There are many tasks and many variables. A professional search engine marketer understands such things as:

• How to set goals – again and again
• Performance-based and branding-based objectives
• How to determine and manage budgets
• How to understand and communicate with audiences
• How to develop keyword lists and use them effectively
• How to write effectively
• The stages of the online/offline buying cycle
• How to guide audiences at each stage
• What the variables are
• What the competition is doing
• How to balance against what the competition is doing
• How to measure and interpret information
• How to test and experiment
• Which tools to use for each task
• When and how to make fixes to improve results
• The importance of foresight and flexibility
• How the various search engine marketing programs and applications work

Like any skill, it takes time to become familiar with all of the items mentioned above. And then it takes more time to hone your skills and get creative. The most successful search engine marketers have developed their skills by putting in lots and lots of hours. The question for you is: do you have that kind of time? If you don’t, you will save yourself a lot of money and frustration by hiring a professional search engine marketer who already has the requisite skill-set to not only help you meet and manage your online marketing and advertising goals but to save you a lot of wasted money and time.

Populated exclusively with member sellers, the engine is designed to deliver quality results based on matching exactly the term searched with the keywords, or tag, used by member sellers to identify their products and services. Having done away with category search altogether, it aims to keep results narrow and focused only on viable sourcing options. 

In an effort to continue to provide buyers and sourcing professionals with the results they are after while membership grows, the search engine’s new features offer additional sourcing options that also represent quality results. If the system does not make an exact match, the buyer is presented with a number of useful options that he can act on right away without having to leave the page he is on.

First, a buyer can click on one of the suggested tags that is fitting to the term he originally searched to get a list of member sellers who may carry what he needs. He can also click on any of the listed results provided by the integrated Google Custom Search. Industrial Web Search controls the quality of results and maintains service to its member sellers by selecting criteria that delivers results indexed by Google that represent actual sourcing options, including member sellers, and not informational sites like Wikipedia, for example.

If a buyer is accustomed to using the major search engines Google, Yahoo and Bing to conduct his search, he can do so right from within Industrial Web Search without having to visit each one of the engines independently. Saving the buyer time and providing him with convenience, the engine automatically enters the term used in the search into a search box for each of the major search engines. All that is left to do is for the buyer to click on the ‘Search’ button for the corresponding engine he wants to use to continue his search. And lastly, the buyer can elect to click on a sponsored ad from Ads by Google.

With all of these options, visiting IndustrialWebSearch.com first to start the sourcing process makes the most sense. You get everything you need from a single resource, saving you time and effort.

Sellers interested in becoming members and taking advantage of the great promotional offers effective until December 31, 2010 should call 800-399-9859 now. Introductory memberships start as low as $150.

Keeping Industrial Search Simple - IndustrialWebSearch.com

Boost online search ads are created directly within your Google Places account. Although Google states that “no ongoing management is needed after the initial set-up,” this is not advisable. No matter what form of advertising you engage in, you must always check to see that what you are doing is cost effectively bringing you the results you need. Eligible to appear in the “Sponsored Links” section of Google.com and Google Maps, just like AdWords ads, the format works well for both desktop and mobile search. Your ad includes your company name, address, phone number, and website. Additionally, it may also include the number of reviews you have received, average ‘Star Rating,’ and a link to your Google Places page where customers can learn even more about your business. You can help your ad to stand out by using Google Tags, which are “yellow markers that help business owners to promote important aspects of their business.” Right now Google is offering 30 days of free advertising with Google Tags as a special promotion.

Creating your ad within your Google Places account requires you compose a short business description, select the business categories that best fit your business, and set your monthly budget. Unlike Google AdWords, where you get full control to manage the keywords that will generate your ad, Boost ads are automatically generated by Google’s system based on what it determines as a relevant search. You will only be charged when someone clicks on your ad. Your Google Places Dashboard will display basic ad performance data. Listing placement depends on a variety of factors such as your ad’s relevance and quality.

Google is still testing the Boost format so it remains available only to select businesses in San Francisco, Chicago and Houston. You can receive notification when Boost becomes available in your area by filling out this form.

The study reports that local searches are up 14 percent from 2009. This number is expected to continue to increase as users become more familiar with social-local and mobile search. “Sixty-nine percent of respondents are more likely to use a local business if it has information available on a social network. When using social networks, consumers most frequently find local business information on a company’s brand page (56 percent), followed by recommendations from connections (55 percent).” Gregg Stewart, president of 15miles, says the study shows “that social recommendations have enormous influence on consumers’ buying decisions. In fact, 74 percent are more likely to use a local business if a connection recommends it.” The study also shows that over 40 percent of social network and mobile search users have submitted “between two and five reviews in the past 30 days.”

Additionally, among the local searchers surveyed who are using social networking sites to find local business information:

• 81 percent believe that it is important for local businesses to respond to questions and complaints on social sites.
• 78 percent want special offers, promotions and information about events.
• 66 percent think that company photos are important.

Local search is also being greatly influenced by the growth in use of internet-capable phones, particularly SmartPhones and iPhone. 39 percent of local business searchers have used their mobile phones to research a local business. “The majority of mobile users still depend on the mobile browser with more than 29 million users in June 2010. However on a percentage basis, apps show the greatest growth in popularity, as 61 percent more users are accessing apps than last year,” claims Stewart.

So what does this mean for the industrial marketer? Developing and managing your business presence online for local search, mobile search, and social networking sites is imperative if you hope to take advantage of the lead generating opportunities they present. Start by opening a Google Places account, which integrates with Google maps. Read my recent article on Google Places to learn how to use it effectively for holiday marketing. Establish a profile on social networking sites, particularly Facebook, where you communicate with your targeted audience groups by responding to complaints or questions, providing information about events, offers and promotions, allowing for customer reviews, and by including photos to help users familiarize themselves with your products and services. If you want to help your social media pages to perform better for you, read my blog post on optimizing your social media pages for search. And lastly, familiarize yourself with all of the available online directories, search engines, and websites where your presence ensures you are reaching your targeted audience groups.

If you don’t have the time to learn what’s available, give us a call (800) 399-9859 at Industrial Web Solutions. We’ve already done most of the legwork for you, making available to you ways and resources to ensure you are able to benefit from online local marketing opportunities. We also invite you to discover the benefits of IndustrialWebSearch.com, offering industrial sellers the most affordable targeted online selling tool while providing industrial buyers with the most targeted search tool that delivers 100% accurate results based on keyword search.

There are many online local search and marketing opportunities available to help you reach your targeted audience groups as they actively search for what you offer from their desktop and mobile computing devices. To provide you with the greatest reach and lead potential, develop an online local marketing strategy that incorporates both desktop and mobile search platforms.