Improved Search Results

The silver bullet that Burke was pedaling is called Google Places. Some may remember Google Places through its previous name, Google Business Center. But the online offering underwent a name change in April.

Google Places is an online directory compiled by Google that shows up on search results in the form of map listings. If you own a business, chances are your business is listed in Google Places with inaccurate information. And that’s bad, because Google Places data is oftentimes displayed at the top of basic search results that use geography as a filter.

For example, if you Google the phrase “Worcester printers,” the first item displayed will be a series of Google Places listings for printers in the region. If your company is listed correctly in Google Places, there’s a good chance it will show up on the map at the top of search results.

As Burke noted in his conversation with me, traditional search engine optimization (SEO), which involves fairly detailed search term analysis, programming and content generation, takes at least several months to have an impact. Setting up your company on Google Places with correct information is much quicker.