Falcon Consulting & Marketing's blog

Small Business Job Creation At 18 Year High According to Report

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 14 Nov 2017 00:29:00 +0000

The National Federation of Independent Business issued a report on Thursday indicating that job creation among small businesses is increasing. The report is a marker that businesses see significant business growth in the US and abroad.

The percentage of U.S. small business owners saying they planned to add to payrolls in July exceeded those with plans to cut jobs by 19 percentage points on a seasonally adjusted basis, the NFIB data showed. That is a 4-point increase from June and the strongest reading since December 1999. Sixty percent (60%) of owners said they were hiring or trying to hire, a 6-point increase from June.

Although businesses are looking to hire, it appears that having skilled employees remains an issue in creating a more robust economy. Fifty-two percent (52%) of respondents said they had few or no qualified applicants for the positions they wanted to fill, according to the report. Around 35 percent of business owners said they could not fill jobs in July, a 5-point increase from the previous month and a 43-year record high on a quarterly basis.

Also an issue is the increase expenses associated with payroll. Bill Dunkenberg, Chief Economist of NFIB states “The tight labor market is driving up costs for small employers. More than a quarter of all owners reported raising wages in July, and the pressure was especially high in the construction industry.”

The report comes out at a time when the economy added 209,000 jobs in July while the unemployment rate fell to 4.3 percent, the lowest since March 2001, according to a government report Friday.

http://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/small-business-job-creation-18-year-high-according-report/

Google Has Dropped Instant Search

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 14 Nov 2017 00:18:00 +0000

Google’s Instant Search feature which automatically prompts search results while you type a query has been removed as a feature. The rationale behind Google’s decision is that search is now becoming mobile and as a result of this, there isn’t much of a need for it. According to a spokesperson speaking to Search Engine Land,

“We launched Google Instant back in 2010 with the goal to provide users with the information they need as quickly as possible, even as they typed their searches on desktop devices. Since then, many more of our searches happen on mobile, with very different input and interaction and screen constraints. With this in mind, we have decided to remove Google Instant, so we can focus on ways to make Search even faster and more fluid on all devices.”

Google Instant was a response to the fact that a lot of users are perceived as slow typers. On a desktop, Google’s search engine would help users by sending out text suggestions in the below the search field as well as constantly refresh the page as you type additional information. Faced with the fact that more people are using mobile as well as having to manage two search engines, Google decided to end the feature. Although the feature will be terminated, you will still be able to get search suggestions while you type and you can click on those suggestions to see the results. This means that pages will not load unless you click on the search or press enter.

http://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/google-dropped-instant-search/

New Jersey & New York Are Top States for Small Business Loan Approvals

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 13 Nov 2017 17:56:00 +0000

According to a new report by Biz2Credit, New Jersey and New York are ranked the top 2 States for the approval of small business loans. Biz2Credit which identifies itself as a leading online lending marketplace for small business owners analyzed over 50,000 loans over a 12 month period. During that period, 23.4 percent of loans in New Jersey were approved.

Rohit Arora, CEO of Biz2Credit attributes New Jersey’s top spot on several factors. He states “New Jersey business owners have the unique combination of high average annual revenues and credit scores with a close proximity to two of America’s biggest cities. Despite being sandwiched in between New York and Philadelphia, New Jersey-based businesses have much lower overhead costs while still enjoying the benefits of a high volumes of traffic.”

New York came in second in the report with loan approvals of 19 percent. “The high operating costs of running a business in New York City, which had the lion’s share of loan requests on our platform, had an adverse effect on entrepreneurs seeking funding. Businesses in New York City, however, typically have higher revenues, credit scores and are in business longer, which bodes well during the application process.”

The Top 10 States by loan approvals are the following according to the report:

1. New Jersey (23.4%)

2. New York (19%)

3. Illinois (15%)

4. California (14.2%)

5. Pennsylvania (12.9%)

6. Florida (11.1%)

7. Georgia (10.2%)

8. Texas (10%)

9. Ohio (8.8%)

10. North Carolina (7.9%)

For small businesses seeking financing and are not aware of where to seek information there are several options. Here are the most popular ways to get financing for your small business:

(1) S.B.A. Loans- The U.S. Small Business Administration

Government loans are generally offered through banks and credit unions that work with the Small Business Administration (SBA). The SBA is a U.S. government entity, with the motive of providing economic support for small businesses and entrepreneurs. The loans can be applied to a number of uses, such as:

Purchase of new equipment, machinery, parts, supplies and ancillary items

Financing leasehold improvements

Commercial mortgage on buildings

Refinance existing debt

Establishing a line of credit

(2) Non bank entities- Known more commonly as alternative financing, they provide financing that do not have the stricter loan requirements than a traditional bank. The benefits of this type of financing is that you have a higher chance of approval, however the terms of the loan such as interest rates and overall payments terms will be higher than a bank loan. More of these companies have been popping up and there are many opportunities to obtain financing through this avenue. Kabbage which extends businesses a line of credit have spent millions of dollars in advertising to bring awareness of their product.

(3) Crowdfunding- Small business in this instance gives the principals of a company the opportunity to raise capital through the collective effort of a large group of individuals, as opposed to a single entity.

http://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/new-jersey-new-york-top-states-small-business-loan-approvals/

Bill Introduced In New York State To Alleviate Small Businesses on First-Time Regulatory Violations

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 13 Nov 2017 17:50:00 +0000

Many small businesses are confused about certain regulatory regulations they need to comply with when they are opening up. The average amount of money small businesses spend in order to stay compliant with regulations in the first year of operation is roughly $83,000. Also on average, many businesses spend an estimate $12,000 a year in regulatory costs whether they be directly or indirect. Those include workplace upgrades, daily work routine changes and attorney fees, as well as time taken away from other business tasks to understand regulations and meet with specialists. A new bill has now been introduced to the New York State Assembly seeks to assist the over 380,000 small businesses in New York State by providing relief to small businesses from regulatory fines for first-time offenses. A business will still be fined and not exempt if the offense impacts health, public safety, or the environment.

The bill introduced by Assemblyman John T. McDonald can be read here in full. Its goal according to McDonald is “to find a meaningful way to help reduce the burden on small businesses and to hopefully foster a more productive relationship between the State and business owners.”

Mr. McDonald goes on to say:

“As a small business owner, I can tell you first-hand that between local, county, state and federal entities as well as the day-to-day happenings in a business, it is not easy at times to keep up with all of the rules and regulations, especially the number of new ones that change procedures and are issued on a regular basis. I have found at times that even in my role in government where I have a better vantage point than most, all of the new regulations are difficult to track and keep up with. It is virtually impossible to keep track of all regulatory changes that occur within the state of New York and I am someone who lives and breathes it every day. It is not unreasonable to assume that a business owner just starting out can make a good faith effort to stay up to date on regulatory changes but make an honest mistake or have a new guideline escape his or her attention while keeping up with the demands of running a business. This is the reasoning behind introducing this legislation.”

There is definitely truth to his statements and this can help businesses navigate the rough terrain of opening up a small business and not having to worry about making mistakes that can potentially close them down before they are able to make a name for themselves. There is tremendous support for this bill from the business community as well. The Business Council of New York State has heavily supported the bill. Lev Ginsburg, Director of Government Affairs for the Business Council intimated:

“In our heavily regulated state, it is crucial that small businesses be given the ability and knowledge necessary to comply completely with all government regulations and that the regulatory scheme of the state not simply act as a “gotcha” regime. This legislation would not only ensure reasonable regulatory enforcement practices but would also guarantee that businesses be provided with materials necessary to comply with all regulations into the future.” According to CNBC, New York is currently ranked 29th when comparing the top business states across the country, according to a 2016 survey. Hopefully this will assist New York achieve a higher ranking in the future.

http://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/bill-introduced-new-york-state-alleviate-small-businesses-first-time-regulatory-violations/

U.S. Consumer Confidence Hits High Levels Not Seen Since 2000

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 31 Oct 2017 16:34:00 +0000

U.S. consumer confidence rose to the highest levels it has seen in almost 17 years as Americans are continually growing more confident about the economy and job market, according to figures released by the Conference Board. Consumer confidence which gives us an indication of how individuals make economic decisions and is a key indicator that the economy is expanding. Consumer confidence rose to 125.9 in October which is the highest it has been since December of 2000 when the index hit 128.6.

Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board, said in a statement.

“The economic weight of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma pulled down the spirits of U.S. consumers in September, when the index was relatively flat. In October, “consumers’ assessment of current conditions improved. This was boosted by the job market which had not received such favorable ratings since the summer of 2001. The high level of confidence suggests the economy will continue to expand “at a solid pace” for the rest of 2017.”

The survey also showed that assessment of present day business conditions are upbeat. “The percentage saying business conditions are “good” increased from 33.4 percent to 34.5 percent, while those saying business conditions are “bad” rose marginally from 13.2 percent to 13.5 percent. Consumers’ assessment of the job market was more upbeat. The percentage of consumers stating jobs are “plentiful” increased from 32.7 percent to 36.3 percent, while those claiming jobs are “hard to get” decreased slightly from 18.0 percent to 17.5 percent.”

Other significant tidbits from the report are that 22.2% percent of consumers said they expect better business conditions in next six months, up from 20.9 percent in September. Buying plans of automobiles in the next six month are up with purchases of houses and appliances are down.

If you are interested in reaching your revenue and operational goals than Falcon Consulting & Marketing may be of assistance to your business. We are a full service digital marketing agencyheadquartered in New York City providing companies with online marketing techniques such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Pay Per Click (PPC) and Online Reputation Management. We also assist with day to day operational consulting. We assist one client at time.

http://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/u-s-consumer-confidence-hits-high-levels-not-seen-since-2000/

What Doctors Should Look For in Hiring the Right SEO Company

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 23 Aug 2017 19:56:00 +0000

The competition in the healthcare industry is competitive. In order to be in the game with attaining new patients and maintaining communication with existing ones, physicians are now relying on digital marketing companies to assist with their marketing. The problem is there are way too many marketers out there sending out unsolicited e-mails and phone calls to medical practices throughout the New York City region as well as nationally. This has created a souring effect where decision-makers are reluctant to speak with SEO consultants. Furthermore, this chilling effect leads to businesses making mistakes in hiring the correct SEO company.

Let’s face it, SEO is changing all the time, but having a focused SEO plan should remain a top priority for health care providers. Search engine optimization is for many businesses the magic bullet that turns that can turn a struggling practice into a powerhouse. Having a strategy that enables you from being an unknown to a thought leader in the online universe should be a priority. So how do you go about finding the right SEO agency for your type of practice? Here are a few things you should consider:

Digital marketing agencies can be as diversified as their clientele. Some specialize and they believe that serves them best as they can narrow their knowledge and use less resources doing so. For instance, some agencies just work with attorneys, home improvement contractors and dentists. Others take in all comers initally and cater their business accordingly. This means that agencies may start with working with all industries but vary it according to the types of businesses they have acquired as clients. For example, at Falcon Consulting & Marketing we have catered our business towards working with small and medium sized businesses. Some agencies work on only a specific area of SEO. Such as content marketing, link-building or PPC. At the end of the day, it really depends on what you are looking for in an agency.

Realistically what is the determining factors are what your business can afford with respect to online marketing as well as what you are looking to accomplish for you business. For instance, you might want to get new patients quickly but you are not doing your paid advertising campaigns correctly. It might be another instance where you are looking for more publicity in a highly specialized industry that may need investors in the future. For the first company, you might want to look for a PPC company that has knowledge of your practice. In the latter instance, you will be looking for an SEO specialist who can create content that will cater to your specific instructions leading to your end goals.

At the end of the day finding the correct SEO company takes more than taking the work of the person cold-calling your practice. It should involve an aggressive position on your end with respect to making sure that the company you decide on is the right fit for you. Picking your agency should involve multiple meetings where both parties should lay out their realistic expectations and commitments in achieving set goals. The key is to make sure there is a synergy between both parties and everyone understands your needs and whether the company you decide on is willing to put in the work according to what you have both agreed should be realistic goals. Your SEO company should also fit well with your company culture and you should always feel pride in your choice of provider.

Call Us at Falcon Consulting & Marketing – A New York City SEO Services Company

Are you looking for a SEO company in the New York City region? We suggest you give us a call at Falcon Consulting & Marketing. As suggested in above we would like to go discuss with you whether we are the right fit for you practice. We have worked with many industries and our track record is second to none. Call us at 516-350-9531 for a free consultation. We would love to see what we can do for you.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/doctors-look-hiring-right-seo-company/

Google Home Service Ads Increase Number of Categories and Locales

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 15:35:00 +0000

Google Home Service ads, which allows businesses to advertise their business on Google and receive service requests directly from potential customers is expanding to new locations as well adding additional service categories for customers looking for service providers. Google released the update in their small business blog. For those unfamiliar with the service, when you run a Home Service ad, it will appear at the top of a Google Search results page when people search for the services you offer in your area. Potential customers have the ability to either call you or send you a message request by clicking on your ad. You’ll get an email and notification from the Home Service ads mobile app when someone is interested in your service. You can then choose to accept, decline, or ask for more information about the lead.

Factors that affect your ranking include your proximity to potential customers’ locations, your review score, the number of review scores you receive, your responsiveness to consumer inquiries and requests, your business hours, and whether or whether there have been complaints with Google.

In order to become a Home Service provider, you must pass an extensive screening process. Because of the strict qualifying criteria, there is a level of trust and prestige by becoming a provider. The service has now been expanded and will be available in the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento, Stockton, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. Additionally there are new categories and services for customers under the product. They are as follows:

Plumber
House Cleaner
Locksmith
Handyman
Contractor
Electrician
General Contractor
Painter
Garage Door Pro
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
Roadside assistance service
Auto glass service

To become a Home Service Provider you can click here. As the product becomes more successful, we expect it to expand further into the Northeast and into the New York City region.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/google-home-service-ads-increase-number-categories-locales/

Small Businesses Double Up on Items Sold on Prime Day

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 15:31:00 +0000

Amazon.com has indicated that small businesses and entrepreneurs sold 40 million items during Amazon’s Prime Day event which lasts 30 hours. According to their release “small businesses and entrepreneurs offered deals on everything from apparel to toys, electronics, household goods, and handmade items, with many experiencing their largest sales day ever.” Sales for small businesses grew by 60% year to year according to Amazon as well.

Amazon initially launched Prime Day in 2015. The promotion is one wherein Amazon and many of the retailers operating on its site offer discounts exclusively to members of the company’s $99 a year Prime loyalty program.

Amazon sales surpassed both Black Friday and Cyber Monday with reference to the volume of sales. Industry analysts believe it is partly because Amazon extended the sale to 30 hours allowing more time for customers to shop and find deals. Also, Prime Day was opened up to more regions than previous Prime Days as their release indicates that 13 countries took part.

It should be noted that the best selling item during the Prime Day event was the Echo Dot. According to Amazon not only was the Echo Dot the best selling device during the vent but also the best-selling product from any manufacturer in any category across Amazon globally.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/small-businesses-double-items-sold-prime-day/

U.S. Census Business Builder Update Gives Key New Features For Small Businesses

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 15:27:00 +0000

The U.S. Census Business Builder, which is a suite of services that provide selected demographic and economic data from the Census Bureau tailored to specific types of users in a simple to access and use format has updated some key features for July 2017. Of particular note is some key features which will affect how small businesses can tailor their business.

The 2.2 Update will allow access to key demographics and economic research so businesses will understand their potential market better. The Small Business Edition has been created for small business owners who need key data for their business plan or to better understand their potential market. It presents data for a single type of business and geography at a time. There is also a Regional Analyst Edition which will be primarily be used for entities looking for a broader pictures of people and businesses.

According to the release here are the key features and what is new for the Census Builder Update:

Key Features

Easy to use menus and Search tools to select the location you’d like to research and nearly all types of businesses
Interactive maps to browse and download data about the selected area and type of businesses
A customizable dashboard that includes time series and geographic comparison charts
Interactive and downloadable reports (including charts) that can be easily incorporated into your research
Optimized for your smartphone or tablet

What’s New in 2.2

New and Expanded Content:

Agriculture data (for select Agriculture NAICS codes at the state level only)
International Trade data (for select Agriculture, Mining, and Manufacturing NAICS codes at the state level only)
Expanded Consumer Spending data

For individuals looking to start a new business or already have an existing business but want to expand to another region, this will be an important free tool to gain thorough research.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/u-s-census-business-builder-update-gives-key-new-features-small-businesses/

Alibaba Propels New Network Connecting U.S. Businesses With Their Customers

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 15:23:00 +0000

Chinese e-commerce giant and world’s largest retailer Alibaba Group has recently announced the launch of the Taobao Global US Merchants Network. The general purpose of the network is to serve American small and medium-sized businesses and create 1 million jobs according to their Chairman Jack Ma. The network will help U.S. small businesses easily connect with merchants operating within Alibaba’s network such as Tmall and Taobao. US small businesses on the network will have access to a centralised platform, “where they can connect with and sell their products to experienced Taobao Global merchants who sell to Chinese consumers”, according to the Alibaba statement.

Alibaba President Michael Evans said the following about the small businesses using Taobao:

“Alibaba created the Taobao Global U.S. Merchants Network to strengthen the connections between U.S. small businesses and Chinese consumers. The merchants who join this network are experts on Chinese consumers and are continually seeking new, unique American products for the millions of Chinese consumers they reach on Taobao.”

Taobao is akin to a Facebook of sorts in China in that there is significant engagement. People often share and view content, message their retailers and also live stream many different media. For the fiscal year 2017, the total amount of items sold on Taobao increased 17% year-over-year to $320 billion. Taobao claims to have over 500 million customers in their platform.

The move comes as Alibaba will shift their sights from courting the biggers brands such as Costcoand move to small brands that works on the periphery of customer awareness. The Network has an initial launch of over 300 U.S.-based Taobao Global merchant members. A matchmaking event at last month’s small business conference Gateway ’17 in Detroit connected 60 U.S. small businesses with 45 Taobao Global merchants.

Alibaba will also implement and encourage participation in training seminars on logistics and other ecommerce issues. This will also the merchants who are in the network understand trends in the Chinese market.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/alibaba-propels-new-network-connecting-u-s-businesses-customers/

Google My Business Messenger Has Launched

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 15:18:00 +0000

Google My Business Messenger, a feature which began testing in November of 2016 has officially been launched nationwide. It will allow Google My Business enterprises to go on their dashboard and turn on the messaging. Once it is live, you can click on the messaging option that it will allow customers to message you directly via text messaging.

Like most customer service options, you should account for time to learn the interface and begin communicating with potential customers. You would be able to delegate messaging responsibilities to another team member, however they must be designated as an owner or manager of the Google My Business listing instead of just having communication permissions. Customers will also have the availability to message you outside of normal business hours.

There will also be an analytics function which will roll out over time. It will show the number of messages, number of clicks to messages and your overall total number of messages.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/google-business-messenger-launched/

Google Banning Their Ads on Sites With Pop-Under Pages

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 15:14:00 +0000

Google has decided to give clarification around sites with pop-under pages. A pop-under page is one that pop up in front of your browser window. The page thus obscures the content that you want to read and have to click off of the pop-under page. You can read the full release here but in short Google states:

“Pop-under ads can be annoying as well, as they will “pop under” your window, so that you don’t see them until you minimize your browser. We do not believe these ads provide a good user experience, and therefore are not suitable for Google ads.

That is why we recently clarified our policies around pop-ups and pop-unders to help remove any ambiguity. To simplify our policies, we are no longer permitting the placement of Google ads on pages that are loaded as a pop-up or pop-under. Additionally, we do not permit Google ads on any site that contains or triggers pop-unders, regardless of whether Google ads are shown in the pop-unders.”

The policy should put webmasters and site owners on notice that Google is taking seriously ads that are unhealthy for both individuals reading content and advertisers. It will be the responsibility of the website owner to know whether they are compliant with Google’s rules. The failure for non-compliance may result in the banning of the user to place ads using Adsense.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/google-banning-ads-sites-pop-pages/

Internet Marketing for the Restaurateur

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 15:09:00 +0000

So you have decided to open up a NYC restaurant or NYC bar. You have done all of the preparation of your menu as well as the decor of your establishment. Now it is time to get customers to come in and enjoy your latest cocktail and tremendous dishes. Even the very best of restaurant and bar owners need to drive customers to their business. Some have the luxury of having been in the industry for many years and have a recipe of success. Some believe word of mouth is the most important ingredient but for many just starting out that isn’t a luxury. This is where internet marketing comes into place. It may be the a significant factor on whether your business may be profitable or not.

Many people now are using their smartphones in order to find where to find a great place to eat. Whether you are in Forest Hills or the East Village many people are typing in Google or Yelp and finding great new places to eat. They are looking at the online menu and checking reviews to see if the eatery is one that is suitable for themselves and their guests. That is why it is important to stay up to date with your website and other social platforms in order to make it more accessible for individuals to find you. As such, here are some tips we believe will help you establish an online presence to make hungry customers find you:

Use local maps like Google Maps- You should get on the search engine results that has a map feature. Many people that are looking for a restaurant are searching by location first. That is why it is imperative to do so. Google Maps is the most important of the searches as it dominates the searches. You should also invest in Bing and Yahoo’s map directories.
Make sure that your website is mobile responsive and updated- As you are aware, most searches will be done via mobile searches in the future. That is why it is important to have your site be mobile responsive and updated often. The reason why you would want to update your website is to inform your potential customers of any changes to your menu and any promotions that you have. Establishments do run promotions for specific occasions like Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day. It is important to give your customers up to date information to know so they will feel comfortable coming back to your site and finding out what you have been up to. It is also important that you use words to describe your menu. Optimizing your menu would allow the search engines to pick up particular foods so if somone is looking for “stuffed crabs” in Bushwick, they would be able to easiliy find your establishment.
Be proactive with social media- After claiming your listing on directories like Yelp it can be a battlefield for restaurateurs. Many people go to social media sites just to complain and rarely offer positive feedback. It is important to stay on top of the discussion of your business in order to resolve any potential public disaster nightmares. With respect to Yelp customers, it is helpful to ask to resolve whatever situation a customer had at your eatery and do so accordingly. This shows customers that you do care about what is being said about your business and are attentive to the needs of the consumer. A positive way social media can affect your business is if you ask customers to leave feedback on your Facebook page or leave a Yelp review. In order to make it easier for customers to complete these tasks is by making it simple by giving a discount such as a free drink if they leave a review or leaving information on the bottom of their receipt. We have found giving out something for a discount or free works better however.

Internet marketing for restaurant and bars is a challenge for many and shouldn’t be marginalized. The consumers of the present and future are using technology to find what they want and will do so with a flash or with a quick search. It is important that your business stay on top of the latest trends in the food service industry.

Falcon Consulting & Marketing is a digital marketing agency headquartered in New York City assisting businesses fulfill their SEO and overall marketing needs for many years. We assist one client at a time reach their revenue goals and understand the restaurant industry extensively.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/internet-marketing-restaurateur/

Google For Jobs Is Live and Looks To Become Top Search Choice For Hiring

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 23:39:00 +0000

Google has introduced Google For Jobs in the United States and is collaborating with other companies in order to roll out an interface that will likely be the most search way of searching for employment in the future. Google will be collaborating with Monster, Jobs.net, Care.com, Local Job Network, Jobing, Jora, Facebook, Linkedin, Careerbuilder, Glassdoor, Ziprecruiter and others. From all indication it looks like Google will be collaborating with the dominant employment sites instead of competing directly with them.

The service will allow you to type in the particular job you are interested in and thereafter turn on the alerts and receive notifications when a job that meet your criteria becomes available.

According to Google’s release which you can read in full here:

“Starting today in desktop and mobile, when you search for “jobs near me”, “teaching jobs”, or similar job-seeking queries, you’ll see in-depth results that allow you to explore jobs from across the web. For many people, a job needs to satisfy some key criteria, like commute time, job specialties they’ve honed or the hours they have available to work. For many jobs, you’ll also see reviews and ratings for the employer from trusted sites right alongside the job description, and if you’re signed in, for some jobs you’ll see how long it will take to commute to the job from home. We’ll continue to add filters and information in the future. Looking for jobs is a personal and complex journey, and one that we’re trying to support in this new search experience.”

Once you find an applicant finds a job that they believe they are compatible with, Google will direct you to the job site in order to begin the application process. For jobs that appeared on multiple sites, Google will link you to the one with the most complete job posting.

For employers, you can post on any of the sites that are collaborating with Google or use their integration guide which you can review here. In being consistent with their press release about it being a collaboration, employers will not be able to post positions directly through Google.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/google-jobs-live-looks-become-top-search-choice-hiring/

What To Do To Keep Your PPC Online Marketing Gleaming

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 23:35:00 +0000

Pay-per click advertising (PPC) is one of the most effective ways to drive traffic to your site and increase your conversion rates. For most, you will receive the fastest return on investment (ROI) and you can measure your results pretty easily. This online marketing feature can be vital for start-ups and other companies who have not invested in long term search engine optimization (SEO). Google AdWords is the leading platform for online marketers. Adwords is a system whereby keywords and search terms are bidded on by companies and ads are shown to your potential customers in search results.

While most digital marketing agencies use a formulaic system to manage your Adwords campaigns, there are some other ways to keeping your Adwords marketing up-to-date to keep up with the competition.

The one thing that all owners and marketing executives should keep in mind is that search marketing is ever changing. As a result light to dramatic changes need to be addressed in your current campaign. The reason for the fluctuations is because customer language changes and your competitors are always trying to adjust to societal norms that may reflect on the language that is being used. Just like life itself, your advertising is alive and constantly changing. Because of this you should address keywords and search terms accordingly in order to stay on top.

Here are some other tips you should use in order to stay current with your PPC marketing:

1. Advertising during business hours- if your business is only open during traditional hours such as from 9 a.m. through 5 p.m. then you should advertise accordingly. You will be losing a considerable amount of money if you do not have someone picking up the phone when your customers are looking at your ad. In the long term, it may affect your business if you have customers calling your business and you do not have a customer service team available to manage queries from potential buyers.

2. Rotate ads to keep them fresh- if you look at the ad customizer feature you have the option to rotate your ads. By rotating your ads, you will keep them fresh and customers won’t be bored by stale content. You should be aware that customers who are looking to buy your product or service are keeping up with your ads in order to get an idea to purchase immediately. Because of this you should always remain vigilant in updating content so your customer base believes you care about what you put out online.

Using these little tweaks will help your business grow. If you need assistance with managing your pay per click campaign then using a digital marketing agency with knowledge on the management side would be helpful for your organization. They will be able to maximize your budget by adjusting to changes in your niche.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/keep-ppc-online-marketing-gleaming/

How To Use Social Media To Recruit The Best Employees

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 23:28:00 +0000

Employee recruiting has certainly hit the digital age. With online sites such as Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter and Google out there, employers have a tremendous opportunity to reach qualified candidates for positions with low marketing budgets. Linkedin in particular is a strong flatform for finding experienced candidates. With a membership of close to 500 million, it is the go to place of finding like minded professionalsthat may want to transition into a new business culture. So how do you make your business attractive to these candidates? Here are some tips that we have seen through time that have worked.

1. Participate in groups that share your company’s goals- Being active and engaged in groups will spark communication with people who are in your field and may be highly qualified. By being constantly in the medium, your company will be a thought leader and once you do have an available opening candidates will be inclined to apply for positions with your organization.

2. Engage with current employees to gain trust- it is always a great idea to communicate and have communication with current employees. Current employees are a tremendous way of finding good candidates as they have their own networks of school chums and colleagues from previous employment that they still communicate with. Showing that there is a culture promoted by employees makes your business look like it has a great work environment that some candidates covet.

3. Share content that shows that your business is a thought leader- finding a great candidate is one thing. Most people would like to know whether your business is reputable enough to join. Creating and sharing interesting and relevant content through your social media platforms may be the tipping of the scale in having a potential employee join your organization. It is also a positive idea to share posts that embodies your company’s culture. Not only will that breed goodwill but also promotes employee engagement.

4. Create an attractive company page on Linkedin- once you have completed a page, it can be found on the search results. It will thereafter be the easiest way for candidates to see your page, culture and job openings that are available. It is important to highlight your company’s values and goals.

5. Be proactive- many experienced people are contacted by staffing professionals and other businesses via social media. It is important to stand out of the crowd. The best way of doing this is by being personal. Try not using template emails to prospective recruits. Instead be as personable as you would like your company to be. Most people engage when they believe they are not being hit with a generic sales pitch and it is important for you to stand out from the crowd.

Social media is becoming the pre-eminent way of finding new talent. However it is not the only strategy that you should be using. Some businesses may find it easier and efficient to use traditional media as well as online job posting boards such as Craigslist and Monster. The key is finding the right balance that will assist you in attracting the best candidates for your position. Don’t cut off all of your options when looking for your next star employee.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/how-to-use-social-media-to-recruit-the-best-employees/

Google Ranked as Best Global Brand According To New Report

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 23:24:00 +0000

BrandZ which is the world’s largest brand equity database holding data from over 650,000 consumers and professionals across 31 countries, comparing over 23,000 brands has released their annual list of Top 100 Global Brands. According to the report, Google has topped the list for the second year in a row beating out Apple which held the top spot for 5 consecutive years prior. You can read the report here. Besides Apple, Google has beat out perennial competitors such as Microsoft, Amazon and McDonalds. The value of Google has also increased with their estimates calculating the worth of the company to be $245,581 billion.

The impact that a brand has on future purchases or the perception about a product is what is considered brand equity. The word equity indicates that an asset has been procured. In brand equity, the asset is intangible and is measured in terms of the value attributed by a consumer or potential consumer to the product or service. Brand equity is thus overall transferred into consumer goodwill and propensity to prefer or buy a branded product or service.

In determining the worth of your brand, you should determine whether national sales are going up and at what rate. The size of the business, how much growth there is for it, and composition of your market also affects your overall worth.

According to a report by Search Engine Journal:

“Google’s growth could perhaps be attributed to greater interest in the company’s products and services. Over the past year Google has doubled down on its self-driving car project, introduced a virtual assistant, and released critically acclaimed consumer products with Google Home and the Pixel phone.”

If you are interested in growing your overall brand, you should consider using a digital marketing agency to assist you with your goals. At Falcon Consulting & Marketing we have helped many companies assess their overall brand and increase exposure and brand equity.

Falcon Consulting & Marketing is a digital marketing agency headquartered in New York City. We assist small and medium sized businesses one client at a time.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/google-ranked-as-best-global-brand/

Which Social Media Platform Fits Your Business?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 23:19:00 +0000

For most marketing execs, it is important to stay in touch with your customers and engage new ones. It is important to do so for many reasons but the two most important that seem to come to mind is for branding and customer service purposes. The best way to do is through using your options via social media. Social media networks are tremendous resources for all size businesses looking to enhance their image.

All of the social media platforms are free to use however, they also have a paid advertising function. This becomes important for businesses that want to spread more awareness of their brand or are running a new marketing campaign that may or may not have some sort of discount or promotion attached to it. One important aspect that every marketing specialist should look into is what social media platform they should invest their time with. It is not always the best idea to sacrifice your time and money in some social media platforms that will not get you the results that you are anticipating. Therefore, in order to be successful you should become familiar with the social media platforms that are available to your company. By understanding the medium, you can decide on whether the audience fits your company’s culture and whether you would like to proceed in spending time nurturing an online presence with the specific network.

You have to decide what type of exposure and how many clicks you will receive on the particular platforms. At the end of the day, you are trying to reach the most amount of prospective customers with the least amount of advertising dollars. The exposure you will potentially achieve will result in customer knowledge and retention. This “branding” exposure will also lead to longevity of your company in the long run.

Once you have decided on the particular platforms that you will engage in, it is important to post at optimal times. Let’s face it. There is alot of content out there. In order to get the most exposure it is important to post at the right time. With a platform such as Facebook and its 1.8 billion followers, it can be easy to not stand out in the pack. We have seen that posting between 1-3 p.m. is generally a good starting point. It has also been researched that the most optimal time to post is Thursdays from 1 to 3 p.m.

Another consideration that should be taken into account is who you are targeting with your posts. It is important that you are engaging with a targeted audience instead of a non-specific general audience. This is important because advertising to a targeted audience will allow your business to grow with customers who are more likely to purchase your product or service. It is important that your marketing team has done research into the demographics of your clientele and then attempt to reach them. Choosing the right platform is certainly part of the research that your team should do as different social networks cater towards certain demographics more than others.

If you are not sure where to start go to the ones that you are most familiar with. In the event that you are in need of assistance, you should look for assistance by choosing a digital marketing agency that can fulfill your goals. Falcon Consulting & Marketing is a digital marketing agency headquartered in New York City that can assist any business reach their full potential. We work with one client at a time reach their revenue goals.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/social-media-platform-fits-business/

Website Builder Introduced By Google

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 16:39:00 +0000

Google is coming to the aid of small businesses. According to a recent announcement by Google, 60% of small businesses globally do not have a website and will integrate a single page website builder which will be geared for small businesses. The tool which Google will call “Website” will be free to use and will have a simple integration and user interface. They are stating that owners will be able to create and edit websites in a matter of minutes and will be able to do it even on your mobile phone.

According to Google, 60% of small businesses worldwide do not have their own website. Google will be assisting to decrease that amount with the introduction of the new Google My Business extension which is a website builder.

Website will be incorporated through Google My Business and owners will have to register your listing with it. Google will then automatically pull the information from your listing to create the website. You will thereafter be able to personalize your website with themes, photos, and text. If you already have a listing with Google My Business, click “Manage location”, and then select Website from the menu in order to create one. Whenever you update your Google My Business listing, your website will be automatically revised as well.

The options with the feature will be extremely limited in nature. However it will assist companies initiate an online presence that is necessary in today’s business environment.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/website-builder-introduced-google/

Mobile Search Advertising Revenue Now Make Up More than 1/2 in US

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 16:33:00 +0000

According to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), mobile search advertising has hit a new all time high and is now more than half (51%) of all ad revenue spent in the digital realm. Overall, digital advertisements have hit an all-time high as well. Altogether $72.5 billion dollars have been spent on digital advertising in 2016.

Here are the important statistics we have gleaned from the report:

Video revenue increased 145% to $4.2 billion
Social media advertising increased 50% to $16.3 billion
Retail, representing 21.3 percent of internet ad spend in 2016, Financial Services at 13.3 percent, and automotive at 12.5 percent, continue to have the largest category share, with Media (5.2%) picking up speed, up 13 percent over 2015
Desktop search advertising was down 13% to $17.8 billion while mobile search advertising has increased 77% to $36.6 billion.

IAB 2016 Full Year Report
Comparison of 2016 and 2015 Data
(in millions)

Full Year
2015 Full Year
2016

% $ % $

Revenue (Ad Formats)

Search 34.4% $20,481 24.5% $17,756

Classifieds and Directories 4.6% $2,757 3.2% $2,345

Lead Generation 2.9% $1,756 2.7% $1,989

Mobile 34.7% $20,677 50.5% $36,641

Display-related

    – Digital Video Commercials 7.1% $4,236 6.8% $4,898

    – Ad banners / display ads 13.0% $7,745 10.2% $7,377

    – Sponsorships 1.1% $649 0.6% $422

    – Rich media 2.1% $1,251 1.5% $1,093

        Total display-related 23.3% $13,881 19.0% $13,790

Revenue (Pricing Models)

Impression-based 33.5% $19,942 34.6% $25,085

Performance-based 64.9% $38,644 64.0% $46,432

Hybrid 1.6% $965 1.4% $1,004

“Mobile, social, video, and programmatic trends combine to redefine the digital landscape, providing unprecedented access for advertisers to reach consumers,” said David Silverman, partner, PwC US. “Digital audio, generating $1.1 billion in 2016 speaks to the continued evolution of new formats that enable marketers to find audiences at home, behind their desks, or wherever they are.”

As we have reported in the past, there has been a shift in how users are connecting online. With an increase of users using mobile to connect, we expect ad budgets to adapt to the usage of their prospective customers as well as higher ad rates.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/mobile-search-advertising-revenue-now-make-up-more-than-12-in-us/

Digital Marketing Agencies Increase Your Business Presence

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 24 Apr 2017 22:07:00 +0000

Digital marketing agencies provides services such as SEO (search engine optimization) which helps to increase the amount of visitors to your Web site. This is done by obtaining high-ranking positions in the search results page of search engines. Small and medium sized businesses hire digital marketing agencies service to improve its Google, Bing and Yahoo search results and improve ranking in the listings.

Falcon Consulting & Marketing is a New York City based digital marketing agency that develops techniques, nurture your branding to increase search engine result pages (SERPs) and deliver the best Search Engine Optimization solutions.

A useful and effective content encourages visitors to link to your web pages and shows Google that your pages are interesting and useful. Backlinks are an essential part in having your website rank with the search engines so we take our time in developing content. Having more pages with great content will allow your page to rank at the top of the search listings. It promotes authority pages and places it among the top of its ranking. So, the job of a digital marketing agency is to develop pages that become authority pages.

Experienced digital marketing agencies always start their job with research and analysis. The consultants knows that every client and business purpose is different. It is also important to know that every niche industry is different and so is the need to work differently. Falcon Consulting & Marketing’s staff researches their client’s customer base, their online presence and then plan to work accordingly.

There are many intangibles in making a business succeed and it is the digital marketing agency’s job to determine what works and what does not for your business. One strategy may work very well with a client, but there is no guarantee that it will do the same with other clients.

Falcon Consulting & Marketing is a digital marketing agency in New York City that are experts who strive hard to solve problems associated with this and overcome challenges. A top notch digital marketing agency that performs SEO, PPC, reputation management and social media prepares and plan well in advance in order to avoid doing loads of work but never reaching the intended result.

Digital marketers that specialize in SEO work by identifying and researching keywords. This helps to recognize those which will produce the best results for the client once good rankings have been achieved. Keywords research is a prime tool used and is necessary in order to find the ideal keyword. They must be relevant to the client’s business, and must not being getting targeted heavily by competition.

Finding the right digital marketing agency is a tough choice for many businesses. It is usually an expensive proposition that many are reluctant to dive into head first without knowing what is to be guaranteed. Finding an agency that does the necessary due diligence on your behalf is a key way in know that you are on the right path in pick the right agency for you.

Falcon Consulting & Marketing is a New York City based digital marketing agency that assist small and medium sized businesses meet their marketing needs. We have helps numerous companies achieve marketing success one client at a time.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/digital-marketing-agencies-increase-business-presence/

Visit us at www.falconconsultingandmarketing.com

Google Image Search Introduces New Features

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 22 Apr 2017 18:12:00 +0000

Google Image Search has launched several new features that would allow you to obtain similar items suggestions on mobile and the Android Search app. According to the Google Webmaster blog the new feature is designed to help searchers find other products which compliment the one they were initially searching for.

Upon the rollout of the feature, the suggestions support handbags, sunglasses, and shoes. Over the next few months Google will add support for other items. The layout allows for price and availability as well.

In addition to the “similar item” suggestions, Google is also allowing you to find “style ideas” based on image searches that you have performed. According to their release, “With style ideas, you can see real-life options of what bag and jeans look stellar with those red high heels you’ve been eyeing. Or if running gear is more your speed, no sweat-workout ensemble ideas are just a tap away”.

Google is expecting that the new features will streamline the shopping experience of their consumers. This will allow Google to compete with Amazon in the future with respect to consumers searching for products in the future.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/google-image-search-introduces-new-features/

Visit us at www.falconconsultingandmarketing.com

NYU Professor States That Amazon Searches Are More Important Than Google

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 22 Apr 2017 17:54:00 +0000

As has been previously reported last year based on the State of Amazon study by Bloomreach, 55% of consumers start their product searches using Amazon. The survey based on 2000 U.S. consumers also found the following:

90% of consumers will check Amazon even if they’ve found their product elsewhere. 78% of these shoppers do this ‘often’ or ‘always’.
It works both ways though, with 70% checking products they’ve found on Amazon on other ecommerce sites.
50% of mobile shoppers try Amazon first, compared to search engines on 34% and other retailers on 16%.

According to CNBC, an NYU Professor stated that Amazon may now become a more important search engine than Google. NYU Stern School of Business professor Scott Galloway elaborated that “Amazon is becoming all of retail” and believes that people will only shop on Amazon. He further believes that it could lead to continued growth in the company’s ad business and would put them in the league of Facebook and Google.

This is all important for the small business owners who have a limited budget to invest in ad space in the future. Clearly this should be an option that must be considered going further and seeking advice from an expert in digital marketing may be advantageous in getting ahead of your competition.

If you are in need of assistance with your digital marketing campaign, including PPC or SEO then Falcon Consulting & Marketing may be of assistance to you. We are a digital marketing agency located in NYC assisting small and medium sized businesses one client at a time.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/nyu-reinforces-notion-amazon-searches-important-google/

Visit us at www.falconconsultingandmarketing.com

What is the Fred Update and How Will It Affect Your Google Rankings?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 22 Apr 2017 17:48:00 +0000

In the beginning of March 2017, Google released a new algorithm update that has torn the SEO apart. The new algorithm, which has been called Fred by Google has caused many rankings to drastically drop and have SEO practitioners to take heed of the changes being made by Google. Some websites have seen 90% of their keywords drop several places in SERPs. The common trait among the websites are a low quality link profile.

From recent scuttlebutt it appears that the algorithm update has been affecting websites that are spammy in nature with low quality backlinks. According to an article with Search Engine Roundtable, Google has indeed confirmed the Fred Update and has given some guidance as to how to recover from decline in your rankings. John Mueller of Google responded to a question with reference to how to recover from the Fred Update. The response was as follows:

“Essentially, if you are following the Google guidelines and you are doing things technically right, then that sounds to me like there might just be just quality issues with regards to your site. Things that you can improve overall when it comes to the quality of the site.

Which means there is no simple kind of answer, like there is no meta tag that would make your web site higher quality. It is just in general, you probably need to take a step back, get random people who are interested in that topic to review your site compared to other sites to kind of go through a survey to see what you can be doing better to improve the quality of your site overall. And ideally, don’t just like tweak things to kind of subtly improve the quality to see if you can get a little higher. Really take a stab at it and try to figure out what you can do to make a significant dent in the quality of the site overall.”

If your rankings have taken a hit from the Fred update, or you would like to avoid being hit with penalties from the new algorithm update then the experts at Falcon Consulting and Marketing can assist with your needs. We will create quality content for your website that will comply with Google’s Webmaster Guidelines. For more information about the Guidelines you can click here.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/fred-update-will-affect-google-rankings/

Visit us at www.falconconsultingandmarketing.com

How To Take A Break From Your Website Without Losing Your Google Ranking

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 22 Apr 2017 17:28:00 +0000

One of the biggest dilemmas SMBs have is taking time away from your website and worrying on whether your SERP rankings will drop as a result of it. Face it, if you do not have full time employees dedicated to blogging you may take some days off from creating informative information for prospective customers.

Well the answer to this questions may have just been given by John Mueller who i a Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google. In the Google Webmaster Central blog post, he breaks down how SEOs and webmasters can handle site outages or closures that last for a day or longer.

Mr. Mueller offers three separate options and solutions to them. They are the following:

Block the cart functionality from the site for users- If a site only needs to block users from buying things, the simplest approach is to disable that specific functionality. In most cases, shopping cart pages can either be blocked from crawling through the robots.txt file, or blocked from indexing with a robots meta tag.
Always show interstitial or pop up- Webmasters may want to take the whole site offline and offer a warning. Using an interstitial or pop-up with an explanation of why the site is not accessible will not be penalized Google interstitial penalty. The site should use a 503 HTTP result code to make sure that Google does not index the temporary content.
Switch whole website off- sometimes it may be necessary to turn off your website completely. You should first use a 503 code indicating that the service is temporarily unavailable. Thereafter the guidance given in the situation is the following:

Set your DNS TTL to a low time (such as five minutes) a few days in advance.
Change the DNS to the temporary server’s IP address.
Take your main server offline once all requests go to the temporary server.
… your server is now offline …
When ready, bring your main server online again.
Switch DNS back to the main server’s IP address.
Change the DNS TTL back to normal.

https://falconconsultingandmarketing.com/how-to-take-a-break-from-website-without-losing-your-rankings/

Visit us at www.falconconsultingandmarketing.com

	Full Year 2015		Full Year 2016
	%	$	%	$
Revenue (Ad Formats)
Search	34.4%	$20,481	24.5%	$17,756
Classifieds and Directories	4.6%	$2,757	3.2%	$2,345
Lead Generation	2.9%	$1,756	2.7%	$1,989
Mobile	34.7%	$20,677	50.5%	$36,641

Display-related
– Digital Video Commercials	7.1%	$4,236	6.8%	$4,898
– Ad banners / display ads	13.0%	$7,745	10.2%	$7,377
– Sponsorships	1.1%	$649	0.6%	$422
– Rich media	2.1%	$1,251	1.5%	$1,093
Total display-related	23.3%	$13,881	19.0%	$13,790

Revenue (Pricing Models)
Impression-based	33.5%	$19,942	34.6%	$25,085
Performance-based	64.9%	$38,644	64.0%	$46,432
Hybrid	1.6%	$965	1.4%	$1,004