I have added a new service for Social Media promotions. Partnering with an extensive network of social media experts I can add this service at a relatively low cost. Here are the types of social media promotions that are offered:

1. Facebook
   
2. Twitter
   
3. Pinterest
   
4. Google+
   
5. Stumbleupon
   
6. YouTube
   
7. More to come

Check out the services here: Social Media Promotion
With the integration of social search and social signals in the serps it is becoming more important to promote your products, services and brand on the major social networks.

Google+ Local
I like to dig deep into any kind of Social Analytics to see how I can further market a local clients business or give some insights to a future client. We all know by now Google+ Local has a rating system depending on the reviews (Local Citations) and it helps with the display of Rankings and also helps drive foot traffic.

For this little exercise I'm going to use Google+ Local as I have stated above already. This wonderful platform lets you drill down into niche markets and target potential clients, customers and followers.

Lets start by opening up Google+ Local and Discover some Sports Bars Located in or near Lake Havasu City, AZ. This is football season and competing for those sports enthusiasts that like food & drink will help increase foot traffic and gain some much needed citations.

For the Search Query I used "Sports Bars" and for the location I used "Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Now you can scroll down the list and check out to see how many reviews and what the overall score is for an establishment. I chose the one that came up in the first listing (Mad Dogs) as I have been there many times before at the Bullhead City, AZ location.

After I clicked on mad dogs, I looked down to check out the reviewers and scroll over to see how many reviews that persona has given to local businesses.

Donald Cook has rated the establishment Excellent and has 83 reviews. If I owned Mad Dogs I would extend a thank-you and maybe a coupon for maybe the next time he stops in, also I would ask him to check-in with FourSquare and let him get a deal on something every so often when he checks in.

Now Donald has many reviews so we are interested in the ones he has written on for "bars". Type that in the query and Google+ drills down deeper to show you exactly what your looking for. Donald has many reviews on bars, 18 to be exact. This is the kind of data (analytics) that Businesses and Local marketers should be looking for and Google+ Local is a great platform for Social Marketing.

Mad Dogs should use this data to increase the number of +1's by asking patrons for reviews if they liked the service and provide a link to their Google+ Local Business page or a QR Code they can scan with their mobile device that will take them right there or to their website. With Social Signals being integrated into the Organic Search results these citations on Google+ and Zagat are increasingly becoming more important especially according to the recent research on Mobile Search that says "64% of mobile restaurant searches convert within the hour".

Facebook
On Mad Dogs Bar & Grill Google+ page is a link to the business website. I check to see how the website is socially connected and noticed they have a big plugin for facebook with 345 likes. On the bottom of the page is a twitter and Google+ button.

Facebook is a great place for Local Businesses to connect with their customers and I found one local patron (Sean kerns) that looks like a happy customer.

Mad Dogs can ask him for a citation on Google+ and a Tweet since he already liked the business on Facebook. Sean Kerns has 451 friends and 99 Likes, you can drill down further to engage his friends by sorting through the ones that live in Lake Havasu and friend them, Facebook already lets them know that Sean Kerns likes the business.

Facebook lets you sort through his friends by the city from the drop down list. Immediately you see Mallorie Baker holding a shot Glass and Tricia Rill Jandrew who is a Food & Beverage Manager. This is targeted data that Facebook allows marketers and Local Businesses to use in order to create a bigger fan base and increase foot traffic to brick and mortar establishments. You can use the same techniques on their profiles and search their posts to see if they have also frequented Mad Dogs or any other Sports Bar in Lake Havasu.

Facebook already breaks the ice for you, now its up to you to offer coupons, Drink & Food Specials, deals etc... and hopefully, they will recommend, Like, Tweet, +1 and give a citation as well come in and visit your business increasing the bottom line.

Bing has integrated Social Search with Foursquare and Facebook. This is another reason why businesses need to be socially active, writing posts, making comments, asking for citations etc.....

You can use these Social Networks to mine data for any business. The goal here is to create relationships, Increase Citations and foot or web traffic to your Local Business. The benefit of citations and social signals helps with an increase of organic rankings in local search and helps people find you in social applications for mobile devices.

I recommend adding Google Authorship for Google+ and joining Bing's So.cl Network. The key is to share, Re-share, Comment, Circle, Like and +1 content that is directly correlated with your niche. Become the so called "expert" and you will see your rankings, relationships, citations and business increase across the web as well to your Local Business. Don't forget to sign up on FourSquare, its growing tremendously and allows businesses to offer coupons and discounts with check-Ins. Showcase your businesses products and services on Pinterest, you would be surprised how much traffic this social network is driving to websites and Local Businesses.

There are many Social Networks out there. Here is a list of the ones I joined and try to stay active on, feel free to sign up, add me and more!
Facebook
FourSquare
Google+
Linkedin
Manta
Pinterest
Reddit
So.cl
Twitter
Webmaster World
Yammer
Yelp
Yahoo
YouTube
Zurker

The Panda Update was launched on February 24th 2011 and was known as the (Farmer Update) because  people published dozens of low-quality, keyword stuffed articles, or their site was rife with spelling errors, duplicate content etc.  Google went page to page on a given site and if it thought there was significant spam it devalued the site.

The Penguin Update launched on April 24 2012 and according to Google "Penguin is an important algorithm change targeted at web-spam. The change will decrease rankings for sites that we believe are violating Google’s existing quality guidelines.” This effected sites that used link farms, has to many backlinks with the same keywords etc.

Local Search
Local Search has gone Social and Mobile, integration of Maps and Mobile Search into Smartphone devices, Tablets and Vehicles through applications are skyrocketing. More people are using their Mobile devices for online access every day and this trend will continue to grow for years to come. If you are looking to drive more foot traffic to a brick and mortar store or increase the visibility of your brand, optimizing for Local Search is the right move for search engine rankings and conversions.

So what do we need to do now to make sure we clean up our sites and gain back our Organic Rankings? This is the question I get constantly emailed and phone calls on every day.

First create a link report to see what sites and keywords are used to link to you with. Here is a Tool called Open Site Explorer that will do that for you. Visit those sites that you do not want linking to you anymore and email the administrator or webmaster asking if they can remove the link pointing to your site.

Second is to do on page and off page Search Engine Optimization, then submit a webspam re inclusion form (Link at bottom of post) to Google.

There are two important factors here we are going to look at, On-page and Of-page SEO. I know you have heard about this before and I'm probably sure you know how to do this but after the Penguin update there are a few tweaks you must add to these factors in order for you to gain back your Organic listing in the SERP's

*Update, Here is a Video called "SEO for Startups in under 10 Minutes" by Maile Ohye a Developers Tech Lead at Google.

On-Page Search Engine Optimization

• Title Tag
• One of the most important factors in on page Search Engine Optimization is your Title Tag, put your keywords before your brand name or Location, when someone uses those keywords in a search query, Search Engines show a snippet of The title, description, and those keywords are highlighted in the results. For Local Search it is much easier to rank for popular keywords with your address in the title.
• Social Integration
• Social Buttons are a form of a call to action. When someone shares your page or post on Social Networks, the Link to your site generally has the Title of that page with those keywords.
  
• Context
  
• Context in a page matters because some words have multiple meanings and with Google's Knowledge Graph  and Bing's Entity & Social Search Integration Search Engines are getting smarter so word Meanings and Intentions play a greater role.Your keywords and keyphrases should be spread out about 5-7% in your web copy with nice paragraphs that explain your niche market. I would say no more than 2-3 keywords per page as well
• Keyword and Keyphrase Variations
• Use variations of your Keywords and Keyphrases, Use them in different sentences spread out through your site or the page you are trying to optimize. Variations tell Google and Bing that your content is relevant to the topic and not just keyword stuffed.
• Fresh Content
• You always want to add fresh content, update old pages or even add new pages. Fresh content lets the search engines know the site is being maintained and kept updated.
• Keyword Density
• According to Google Keyword Density does not matter, however if you look at most of the top ranking sites for their niche keywords, they have a density around 5-7% You can check out the Keyword Density with this tool: Keyword Density Tool
• Semantic
• Supporting text for your keyword or keyphrases is important for search engines and readers as well. Search Engines use Semantic Search to determine what keyword or keyphrase you searched for and what that page is about
• Pictures
• Include at least one picture with a description and use the alt image tag with either your keywords or the keyword describing the picture. We live in a visual world and pictures make your content stand out. Search Engines read pictures by their supporting text and alt image tags.
• Call To Action
• Use links in your web copy for call to actions to other pages or your services. What is the use of providing good content and just have your visitors leave without them knowing more about what you have to offer.
• Contact Info
• Your business name, address and phone number on the Main page is one of the most important factors in ranking your page higher in the search engines organically for local searches.
• Internal Linking
• Search Engines use internal links to determine what the site is about and determine the relationship between pages. Internal links have Anchor Text with keywords and description of the page that correlates
  
• Site-Map
• For your readers Site-Maps offer a easy way of finding your pages and gives your page structure. For Search Engines Site-Maps give page hierarchy and lets search engins know all the pages to your site so they get indexed.
  

Offsite Search Engine Optimization

• Link Building
• Link Building is one of the major factors that search engines use to rank a website in the organic results. Link Building helps create brand, Authority and credibility. Link should come from sites that correlate with your site and from sites that have high authority. Link should be natural and dripped out over time
• Authority Links
• You want sites that are popular and that have good page rank  to link to your site. Authority sites give better credibility and can drive allot more traffic to your site. Search Engines see these types of Authority Links and rank your site higher in the organic results because Authority sites are trusted and usually have been around  a while. Write the webmasters or website administrators and ask for a link. They may be interested in a Link Exchange. Search Engines like Google and Bing are adding Authority Links to organic listings, Google+ Search Your World uses the Authorship Tag and Bing shows "People Who Know". Authority Links give better credibility with a picture and help increase the click through rate.
• Do Follow Links
•  Links that are do follow pass on Link Juice or Page-Rank. These types of Do Follow Links coming from Authority sites share this juice and search engines see that the links pointing to a certain page must be relevant and important
• Social Links
• Links coming from Social Networks are a word of mouth link. People care enough to share your content and spread the word. Social Links are targeted and contain Keywords and a description of the content they are linking to. Social Networks are including Local Search into their Network and Applications and as well including them in Organic Listings. This is why putting your keywords or keyphrase in the title tag next to your address or brand are important for local search.
• Correlating Links
• Correlating links is one of the most important factors in offsite search engine optimization. You want sites that are based on the same subject or niche  to link to your site. Search Engines read these correlating links and follow them, its kind of like saying here is more information based on what you were just looking for so come check it out.
• Anchor Text
• When building links make sure your Anchor Text is the keyword or keyphrase you want to rank for that links to your main page or any page you want to rank higher. Add a description to your Anchor text to add further correlation.
• Link Variation
• Use keyword variations in your Anchor Text. People tend to search using different terms, Link Variation gives your keywords a chance in ranking higher for multiple keywords. Search engines will consider it link spam if you have the same Anchor Text plastered everywhere linking to your site.
• Blog links
• Links coming from blogs are generally correlated as they have something to do with a certain niche, usually you can see these Blog Links in a blog roll in the sidebar of a blog. You can add links using keyword or keyphrase variation and leave a useful description in the comments. Add value to the comment!
• Forum Links
• A Signature link  in your profile gives credibility, allot of forums let you include this right away, however you may not be allowed to add links in comments till you have been active in the forums posting in threads.
• Directory Links
• For local search Directory Links are a must. Local Directories like YP.com, Manta, Yelp, and Google Places list your brand name with address and your keywords. Search Engines and Social Networks are using these directories and maps in their network and applications.
• Video & Photo Links
•  Video and Photo sharing services like You Tube, Chill and Pinterest allow you to add your address and keywords in the title of a video with a description, People can share, like and re-pin potentially turning viral creating lots of targeted links

Follow Up Form
After you have cleaned up the site using the Search Engine Optimizations guidelines above use the following Form from Google to explain what you have done and give an example of your efforts.Here is the link to the  WebSpam Form for re-inclusion.

Conclusion
Ranking higher in the Organic Listings for Local Search can be achieved pretty quick as you are only competing with other Local Businesses. The use of Long-Tail Keywords also help as most of them are not as competitive as 1 and 2 word keywords. With everything going Social and Mobile, its a good idea to optimize your site for fingers and thumbs<----easy navigation.

There are much more factors in ranking a page in the organic listings and in fact Google has 200 such signals. No one knows the true algorithm except for search engines and the coders themselves. The best option is to keep up with the latest information  in search engine news. Join Forums, Blogs and Social Networks that have Search Engine Marketing groups.

Remember, No true Search Engine Optimization Specialist can guarantee you first place rankings in the Organic Listings. While many claim they can, they probably could when it comes to non competitive keywords and for Local search it is much easier to rank. Let them show you results of their work and check out their following on social networks, this will give you a good idea of reputable companies!
By "Shawn Lippert"

Additional Resources:
These are the 10 Videos Webmasters must watch according to Google, Thanks to Chris Crum form WebProNews
Google Webmaster Videos

I Just got done reading Guy Kawasaki's Book "What The Plus, Google+ for the Rest of Us"let me tell you, this guy has done his research and if you don't start using Google+ for personal and business use, you are missing out on one of the most advanced social networks on the Internet!.

There is so much to go through in the PDF version which I have uploaded here for you to read, however since I'm a Search Engine Marketer and SEO kind of guy. I immediately took interest on the part of "How to Optimize for Social Search" and "How to Optimize your Posts for Search Engines". Scroll down to page 87 where he explains How to optimize for Social Search.

How to optimize for Social Search.
What I take from it is that you should write about what your niche is and quite often so your name stays on the list of  "Suggested People" in the right  Sidebar (This increases your Authority and Gives Higher click through rates) Give tips and help other people, the more you comment on your niche the more likely your posts and comments will show up in search results. He calls this SED: Search Engine Duhism.

How to Optimize Your Posts for Search Engines.Pg 147
Guy Kawasaki basically says "Write Good Shit", write stuff people will enjoy and want to share with others. If it is good, Google will find it and index it accordingly.

I will ad on to the above subject since it was short, however he is right on the mark about writing good content.
From my personal experience with optimizing Google+ Business pages, I listed the following Tips to increase your visibility in Google+ and on the SERP's

Authorship-Include Google's Authorship on your blog and add it to your Google+ profile, this increases click-through rates and gives better credibility. Instructions on how to do it are explained here: Google Authorship
Hash-tags-Include Hash-tags like this: #SEO to make it easier to find your posts in search.
Pictures-Google+ is a visual world, people click on stimulating pictures and tend to comment on them the most. Provide a description and tag your pictures.
Videos-Short video clips no longer than 30 seconds should keep peoples attention, include a short description what the video is about.
Address-Include your address on your Google+ business page and in important posts as well, this is good for the Google+ Local Search Feature and it woks in the Google+ App for Mobile devices, I use it daily and it works (Brick and Morter stores take note) this will increase your foot traffic and Local brand.
Share-This is one of the most important things in Google+. Sharing other peoples posts and mentioning them by adding the + and their name or business like this +Guy Kawasaki will let them know you mentioned them, and increase your visibility and gain new followers

Be sure to check out Guy Kawasaki's Google+ page and his other books for that matter. He gives great advice and is a tremendous Content Curator with a big following.

About Guy Kawasaki Excerpt from PDF
"Guy Kawasaki is the author of eleven books, including Enchantment, Reality Check, The Art of the Start, Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way. He is also the co-founder of Alltop.com and a founding partner at Garage Technology Ventures. Previously, he was the chief evangelist of Apple. Kawasaki has a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA, as well as an honorary doctorate from Babson College."
By "Shawn Lippert"

Zurker (Referral Link) is a Social Network that gives it's members vShares like a digital stock in the company. Although they call them  " agreements between the owners of a startup about the size of their stake in the enterprise to be incorporated". In order to join Zurker you have to be refered by a current member, I posted the referral link above. When you sign up you can get 2 for 1 shares for the first 24 hrs.Each member is allowed to have a total of 500 shares.

  Zurker is a member owned application and that means that big venture capitalist's won't be trying to squeeze every last penny from it's members. Zurker has an Open Books policy that displays it's financial data on the site and you can see where the money is allocated too.

  You can purchase additional vShares if you want, below is a Picture with the vShare Pricing schedule. You can see ownership can be purchased at a low price per share as there are still very few members. Complimentary vShares are provided to investors who invest more than $25. So you can get an additional vShare for $25, 3 for $50 and 10 for $100.

  Zurker's membership stats are quite low right now for a Social Network but are  growingat a steady rate. Here is a picture of the Membership page by country. These membership Stats are updated hourly and can be accessed here: Zurker membership Stats.
  When you sign up you can connect to like minded individuals who are as passionate as you are about being apart of something that may turn out to be big. You control and own your data. Other big Social Networks owns your digital content and we all know how big Content Marketing is going to be, it is already having an effect on Google's Search Algorithm with the recent panda updates.

  In closing, I say why not give it a try. I will purchase a few vShares as well. As the membership grows I can see more features added on.Get in now why the shares are still available and at such a low price.
  As a Internet marketer and a webmaster I can promote a product that I own a part of and not have to worry about keeping up with the maintenance of full ownership on a digital property. Like I said above, you can create content and take ownership of it. You will not have a big wig telling you what privacy policies you have to abide by and how much advertising should be targeted towards you.
  If you want an invite follow this referral link here: Zurker. Connect with JavaScript's and More and lets Market to the world.

Its's all about networking in your niche market, linking back to your site, your friends and followers giving you +1's and allowing your content to show up in Google Search results. You can connect your Social Networks, your blogs and websites with the  Google+ Gadget as you can see I added to the right of this page. you can create a local business page, a brand or product page and more. Create more than 1 page for all your business aspects. It's all about your business connects.