Local Business

Managing a Local Web Presence from an iPhone

I’m used to sending and receiving email directly on my iPhone. I don’t need my laptop to respond to someone. In fact, I sometimes go most of the day without using my laptop in any capacity.

But what about digital marketing activities? Is it possible to go without a laptop or desktop computer and properly manage a local online presence? The answer, I’ve discovered, is yes. With a few modifications to how you normally manage your businesses local online presence and its local SEO, its possible to do it all from your iPhone.

There are several main sites and tasks that help with this. It generally involves three parts: your website, your local business listings, and your social media presence.

Your Website

Assuming that you’re website is mobile friendly, making updates to it from an iPhone should be a snap. If you have a WordPress blog attached to your site, you can log into the admin panel and make changes using your iPhone since WordPress is mobile friendly. You would likely need a desktop or laptop to make design changes, but updating the content on pages or adding a blog post is typically easy.

The main page of WordPress's mobile-friendly admin interface. Clicking on the plus button is where you can add or change a blog post, upload an image, and even add a new WordPress page.

The main page of WordPress’s mobile-friendly admin interface. Clicking on the plus button is where you can add or change a blog post, upload an image, and even add a new WordPress page.

Local Business Listings

The next step would be to focus on the “off-page” factors: directory listings and local maps, mainly. I’ll focus on a few important ones here. There are hundreds of local listing directories and citations, but the main ones are:

  • Apple Maps Connect;
  • Google My Business;
  • Yahoo Local;
  • Bing Places for Business;
  • Yelp.

For these main listings, add an account, verify your listing, and then wait for it to show up. It can take from a few days to a few weeks. But, all of these listings, except for Apple Maps, can be acquired using your iPhone.

Apple Maps Connect. This one is frustrating. The iPhone is not yet supported — there is no iPhone app for Apple Maps Connect. So you’ll need to use a computer or iPad to set up your account. Log in with your Apple ID, then add your listing if it’s not there yet. It took me about three minutes to add the listing for my business.

Google My Business. Download the Google My Business app from the App Store. Setting up and managing your local listing on the app is fairly easy. You’ll need a Google account to log in.  Completing your Google My Business listing will enable your local business to appear on relevant Google search results.

Yahoo Local. Using the Safari web browser on your iPhone, go to the Aabaco Small Business site (formerly Yahoo Small Business). Click the “Local Marketing” link at top to find your business name and start your listing process. This will ensure, once completed, that your local business appears on relevant Yahoo search results. Beyond that, for a fee, Yahoo Localworks will add your listing to other directories.

Using the Safari web browser on your iPhone, go to the Aabaco Small Business site (formerly Yahoo Small Business). Click the "Local Marketing" link at top to find your business name and start your listing process.

Using the Safari web browser on your iPhone, go to the Aabaco Small Business site (formerly Yahoo Small Business). Click the “Local Marketing” link at top to find your business name and start your listing process.

Bing Places for Business. Use Bing Places for Business, by Microsoft, to claim your listing, which will appear on Bing search results. Download the app, complete your listing profile, and then verify it.

Bing Places for Business is where you'll want to claim your listing, which will appear on Bing search results.

Bing Places for Business is where you’ll want to claim your listing, which will appear on Bing search results.

Yelp. Yelp is so important, especially for local restaurants and other local businesses, that I included it in this list. Download the Yelp app from the App Store and use it to manage your listing. Alternatively, go to the mobile version of Yelp.com using the Safari web browser on your iPhone.

Social Media

Managing your social media activity is easy using the iPhone. This is mainly done via apps. Download and install these apps for keeping up with social media.

  • Facebook Pages Manager app (manage Facebook pages)
  • Facebook app (manage personal profiles)
  • Instagram app
  • Twitter app
  • Google Plus app

Typically those are the main social media profiles for a local business.

Regardless of the device you use to manage your local web presence, focus, first, on your website. Publish blog posts regularly, including photos when possible. Then share those posts on your social media accounts. Customize each post for each platform by, say, writing something unique for Facebook, something unique for Twitter, and so on.

Bill Hartzer
Bill Hartzer
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