When 89% of consumers are using search engines to make purchase decisions, being found in Google search results matters. A lot.

If families look for your business by name,
does your website show up on the first page of search results?

For many providers we talk to, the answer is no. So we asked our Search Marketing team for the latest tips on how to improve your visibility in search results.

1. Forget about shortcuts.

Google’s engineers are hard at work making their algorithm ever smarter, delivering ever-more-helpful search results. (For a geeky detour, check out more about the history of Google’s algorithm rollouts, including “Panda.”)

What this means for you: making a site that works for Google doesn’t have to be a specialized art. Make sure your site is helpful for consumers by offering unique content relevant to your business, and you’ll be on the right track.

Also: our experts recommend healthy skepticism if anyone “guarantees” high search rankings or promises they know any “secrets.” Keyword stuffing, doctored tags, and other practices that worked in 2010 don’t work anymore. In fact, trying shortcuts like these will likely drive your site lower in search results.

2. Launch your website.

Most of the providers in the Caring.com Senior Directory already have a website, but some do not. For those of you who’ve been putting it off, move your website launch to the top of your to-do list. According to our team, this is the single best thing you can do to increase your visibility in search results.

Launching a website doesn’t have to be expensive. Nor does it have to be difficult: You only need a small handful of pages to start. If you can work a keyboard and mouse, you can master the tools you’ll need. Find a reputable hosting service and you’ll see how easy it can be, with their friendly website-building tools, tutorials, and customer service to help you along the way.

A note about domain names: Your domain name is an important part of your brand. Just as you build equity in a brand name, the minute you launch your site your domain name will begin building online equity, especially with search engines. Be thoughtful about choosing your domain name, and whenever possible secure one that closely matches your DBA — and avoid changing it at all costs.

3. Put contact information on every page.

Every page of your website should include your business name, address, and phone number. This sends a signal to Google — you’re showing that your website is connected to your business address. That’ll push you higher in search results.

Our experts also recommend including a call to action on every page, because you never know what page a visitor will see first. Common calls to action include, “Call us today!” or “We’ll answer any question for free” or “Come for a free tour and lunch.”

4. Create pages to meet families’ needs.

Most companies create a “Home” page, a “Contact” page, and an “About Us” page. That’s a good start — but with a few tweaks, your website can deliver even more value.

Our team suggests branching out to create three or four more landing pages about your core services.

For example, if you know families find you because of your memory care services, be sure to have a landing page that describes those services in detail. Give the page a search-friendly title, and include your location: “Memory Care in Spokane, WA.” And don’t forget to put your contact information on the page.

Not sure what landing pages to create? Ask your current customers what first led them to you. Here are some ideas to get you thinking:

• Meal Preparation in Quakertown, PA
• Senior Companions in Mableton, GA
• Hygiene Assistance for Seniors in Ann Arbor, MI
• Respite Care in Plano, TX
• Broken Hip Rehab in Medford, OR
• Light Housekeeping in Chesterfield, MO
• Transportation Services in Louisville, KY
• Errands and Shopping Assistance in Mesa, AZ

5. Beware of jargon.

We talk about this a lot at Caring.com: There are many amazing services for seniors out there, but a lot of your potential customers don’t know what the services are called. Help them (and help your business) by paying attention to the words families use when they’re looking for you.

For example, you might offer a service you call “hygiene assistance,” but do all your customers know that term? Maybe some are searching for “bathing” or “bathroom help” or “toileting” or “getting dressed.”

We’re not suggesting that you rename all of your services. But do pay attention to all the words people use when they’re looking for you, and include some of those words in the content of your site.

Note: This isn’t the same as keyword stuffing. There’s no advantage to repeating words over and over to the frustration of your users. Only include words if they naturally fit into your text.

6. Make it local.

On your landing pages, talk about the areas where you provide services. Name the counties or towns. Mention local landmarks, if appropriate (“two blocks from the Veteran’s Memorial” or “around the corner from Hillsdale Mall”). Consider including a map. This helps families know where you are and whether you’re convenient to them, and it also sends more signals to Google about the service.

7. Create original content.

Another way to signal Google that your site is valuable is to provide helpful, original content. If you’re producing paper newsletters, be sure to publish that content online, too. (For more ideas about writing content, see our blog post How to Make the Most of Internet Leads.)

8. Don’t skip the details.

Title Tags:

Make sure every page of your site has a unique title tag. This is your page’s headline, and it’s the bold title consumers will see in their search results. You have only 60 to 70 characters to catch someone’s eye. For your homepage’s title tag, we recommend including your business name, city name, and state. For all other pages, make sure your title tag is relevant to the content on that page. (If you’re not sure how to edit your title tags, check with your hosting company.)

Meta Description Tags:

Every page on your site also needs a unique meta tag of 100 to 150 characters. Your goal is to entice someone to click. What benefit will they receive when they visit the page? What problem will you help them solve? (Again, for help editing your meta tags, check with your hosting company.)

Example:

Memory Care in Spokane, WA | ABC Assisted Living | (800) 555-1212
Get help caring for your loved one with memory loss. We offer in-home care services, adult day programs, and residential options. Certified memory care practitioners. Free consultation.

(For more about SEO optimization, we recommend the Beginner’s Guide to SEO from SEOmoz.org.)

9. Claim your listing in the Caring.com Senior Directory.

So far, we’ve been talking about how to get your own website to show up on that first page of search results. Google’s algorithm also gives priority to well-established sites with lots of backlinks and social mentions. This means that Caring.com has a good chance of showing up for searches relevant to your business. Claiming your listing on Caring.com offers a way to double your exposure and get your business to show up twice on that first page of search results.

Your basic listing in the Caring.com Senior Directory is complimentary. (A one-time set-up fee may apply.) Odds are good we’ve already got you listed — we have more than 25,000 businesses so far and we’re growing every day.

To help your Caring.com directory listing move higher in Google search results, give us a call. We’ll recommend two key updates to your listing:

• Photos. As a provider, you can post a photo on your free basic listing. (Enhanced Listings can include up to eight photos.)

• Custom descriptions. Write a custom description of your services for your Caring.com listing. (Don’t reuse the same content you’re using on your own website — that hurts both your website and your Caring.com listing.)

You can make these changes at any time. Just call your Caring Advisor at (866) 824-9209.

It’s also a good idea to claim your business listing in other online directories, especially Google Places. To learn more about claiming listings everywhere, visit GetListed.org.

10. Get reviews.

Google’s algorithm rewards reviews. It’s one more signal that your website and your directory listing are connected to your business and that real people find you helpful. We make it easy to collect reviews from your customers at Caring.com: Find out more about getting reviews now.

11. Monitor your progress.

At least once a month, search for your business name and city. Once you’ve done everything described here, you’re likely to see your own website (and your Caring.com listing) rise to the first page of results. Ask families how they’re finding you, and see if you’re starting to get more Internet leads. Make these metrics part of your monthly management meeting.

Want to dig deeper? Learn more about how to improve your search ranking.

Ready to make updates to your basic listing?

Contact your Membership Advisor today at (866) 824-9209.

Kate Antheil Boyd is VP of Content at Caring.com, the web’s #1 source for senior care reviews. We help families find information, support, and local services to help with their caregiving journey. We also help senior service providers connect with the families who need them.

More and more families are finding Assisted Living, In-Home care, and other senior services through the Internet. To help you make the most of your Internet leads, we’ve compiled some best practices:

Let families know you received their request.

Set up an auto-response e-mail confirmation to go out the instant you get a lead. Your message can be short — just “Thank you” and “We’ll be in touch” — but it needs to be immediate so the caregiver knows her request has been received.

Be sensitive to communication mode.

A lot of factors might affect a customer’s choice to submit an online lead form instead of picking up the phone to call you. For some, it’s just a matter of convenience — they’re not near a phone or are too busy to talk in depth.

For others, though, the online form offers a discreet way to reach out. Perhaps they’re researching while they’re at work. Or perhaps they don’t want their loved one to overhear the phone call.

To be safe, be sensitive when you reach out to the customer. Ask if it’s a convenient time to talk, and if it’s not, schedule a better time. And if the customer writes a note in her care request that specifically asks you to respond by e-mail only, respect that request.

Answer their questions — fast.

Make sure to send a thoughtful response to each lead or care request as quickly as you can — within the same day if at all possible. We’re not kidding about this. We’ve talked to several major partners who’ve done formal studies of their online leads, and they all say that there’s a major drop-off if you even wait one extra day to call. (One partner reports a 7X lift in connect rate for calls returned on Day One versus Day Two.)

In addition to that phone call, we recommend that you write a detailed follow-up e-mail to each care request. Personalize this e-mail and refer back to the information you’ve learned about them so far from their care request notes or from your phone conversation.

Did the customer tell you she has an 89-year-old father? Let her know how many of your clients are that age. Did your customer’s mother break her hip? Write a sentence or two about your amazing physical therapy program. To save time, draft a set of standard answers to the most common questions. Topics frequently mentioned in care requests on Caring.com include:

This first e-mail should also tell the customer what the next steps are. Help set expectations and move him or her forward in the decision-making process. You might say, “Call me to schedule a tour” or “Please come to our community picnic this weekend” or “I’ll be calling you tomorrow to schedule a time to talk more about your mother’s needs and our availability.”

Prioritize.

In these initial communications with families, try to determine which ones are closest to making a decision. These are the families you’ll want to keep at the top of your priority list. Some will tell you their timing; other factors for you to watch for are:

• Loved one is dealing with memory problems (if you provide memory care)
• Loved one is taking large number of prescribed medications and/or requires help managing medications
• Family is caring for loved one 10+ hours per week
• Loved one has experienced a recent accident or incident

Check in.

Our partners at one major assisted living chain tell us they send a follow-up e-mail after one week. They send another one after three weeks. When you check in with your customers, revisit the topics you covered in your first e-mail and ask again, directly: Can you schedule a time to talk further? Would they like to take a tour? What other questions do they have?

Nurture.

If the lead hasn’t blossomed into a relationship from the first phone call and the first few e-mail messages, it’s time for your e-mail nurture campaign.

When to send: Send e-mails to prospective clients every 2 to 4 weeks.

How to send: If your business is small, you might manage your nurture campaign from your regular e-mail client — Outlook, Gmail, etc. As your list grows, you’ll want a tool to make sending e-mails easier. Tools such as Constant Contact, VerticalResponse, iContact, and others can help you manage your contacts, create e-mails, send and deliver e-mails, and monitor responses. Do some research to find out what option is best for you. (Many offer free trial periods.)

What to send: The best way to build a relationship is to deliver value. Make sure your message is useful and provides an immediate benefit to the family reading it. Good messages also convey the warmth and personality of your organization.

Here are a few of our favorite blog posts about effective writing for e-mail messages:
HubSpot | copyblogger | MarketingProfs

If you’re still not sure what to write, here are some links that might spark ideas:

• Check out Caring.com to see resources families love. You can’t reprint our content without permission, but you can link to us. (Let us know if you’d like more guidance about linking to us.)

• Set up a Google alert for keywords like “Alzheimer’s” or “elder care” — you’ll be notified whenever something new gets published. If you see something you think will interest your families, write a few sentences about it and provide a link.

• The “New Old Age” blog in the New York Times has great articles. Again, if you see something you like, you can write a couple of sentences about it and share the link.

• Keep an eye on your local news — is there anything happening near you that you can talk about? Are there special events for seniors in your town? If there’s a snowstorm, can you give tips for navigating snow in a wheelchair? Always be on the lookout for opportunities to share your expertise.

Not getting enough Internet leads?

Next to your own website, the best way to help families find you online is to set up your Enhanced Listing on Caring.com. To get your Enhanced Listing and begin receiving care requests, call your Caring Advisor at (866) 824-9209.

If you opt to buy leads from other vendors, make sure to do your homework. Know how they’re generating their leads: Search Engine Marketing? Online banners? Know what they’re doing with those leads — are they giving them to only a few providers, or to dozens? All this information can help you modulate your marketing efforts (and judge the quality of the leads you get).

Your to-do list:

• Set up your auto-response confirmation for all Internet leads you receive

• Schedule time each day (or several times a day) for follow-up phone calls and e-mails in response to incoming Internet leads

• Schedule time each day for follow-up e-mails to families at the top of your priority list

• Draft template responses for the most common topics in the inquiries you receive

• Determine whether you need an e-mail campaign management tool, and select a vendor

• Develop content for your nurture campaign

• Make sure you’re getting enough Internet leads: Sign up to get automated care requests from Caring.com

Reach your Caring Advisor today at (866) 824-9209.

Kate Antheil Boyd is VP of Content at Caring.com, the web’s #1 source for senior care reviews. We help families find information, support, and local services to help with their caregiving journey. We also help senior service providers connect with the families who need them.

Let’s be frank: We’re not talking about restaurants here. We’re not talking about dry cleaners, or beauty salons, or any other service where all a customer might say is that he didn’t like the appetizer.

This is the senior care industry. Families trust you to take care of their loved one’s every need. Lives are in your hands. It’s also an industry that serves families when they’re going through some of the most difficult transitions life has to offer. Even if you do everything right, the families you serve aren’t always happy.

So do online ratings and reviews even have a place in senior services?

Absolutely. Our research shows that ratings and reviews provide families with tremendous value and play a strong role in affecting a caregiver’s selection of care. Ratings and reviews might even be more important to senior care services than to other industries.

Here’s why:

Families like reviews.

Choosing senior care for a loved one is challenging. Yes, families want to choose an excellent service services provider — they also want peace of mind. They want to know that they’ve made the best possible decision for their loved one. The more information they have, the better.

These days, reviews are a key source of information about products and services. 83% of consumers say that reviews influence purchasing decisions. And people trust reviews. Even if they’re posted by strangers, reviews are trusted even more than TV, radio, newspaper, or magazine ads. The only thing consumers trust more is personal advice from a friend.

Reviews help families narrow their choices (and save time).

We know time matters a lot for many caregiving families. Some families have to make decisions quickly because their loved one’s needs are progressing rapidly. Other families are trying to make decisions from a distance. For these families, anything that increases efficiency in the search for senior services is a welcome help.

Reviews can help busy caregivers right from the start. Research says that 38% of consumers look for reviews when they start looking for new products and services. Reviews help families figure out which providers to call, what to look for, and what to questions to ask.

Reviews convey unvarnished information.

We know how hard you work to describe what makes your business special. You’ve sweated over every word of your marketing copy, polished your descriptions, and chosen your photos so that you can give families the best impression of your staff and services.

But no matter how wonderful your website’s copy, reviews bring something different. They aren’t always pretty — they may have typos or grammatical errors, they may use ALL CAPS, or jump around from topic to topic. They may even mention a few things you’d rather they didn’t. But reviews are often heartfelt, convey emotion, and contain stories with little details that bring your business to life.

Here are a few examples of great stories from reviews:

“We were pleasantly surprised at the loving care given to our elderly father as he was dying. The staff was kind, went about the physical care aspect without negative comments and one of the staff made this comment, “It is a privelage to care for your father.” Our mother is there, also, and she is clean and happy when we go to see her. We are very pleased with our overall experience.”
- West Village Care Center, Independence, IA

“Hate to say it, but I needed a last minute “sitter” for my dad. I called Lido Senior Care and they were able to come in one weekend and be with my father. The caregiver they sent over was a nice young man who kept my dad entertained with conversation, puzzles and even took him for a walk around our complex. I definitely keep Lido in my phone book and use them regularly.”
- Lido Senior Care, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA

“This assisted living facility is clean and nice. My grandfather lives there now. He says it is well kept and the faculty is nice and patient with the residents. He says the food is not superb and they are meager rations. Overall, he is enjoying it and has made some new friends in his experiences there.”
- The Brunswick at Attleboro, Langhorne, PA

Reviews build trust.

It’s probably no surprise that good reviews help people trust a brand. (Research shows that 55% of U.S. consumers trust a local business after reading positive online reviews.)

Negative reviews can help build trust, too. Consider:

• 68% of consumers trust reviews more when they see both good and bad scores, and 30% suspect censorship or faked reviews when they don’t see bad scores.

• According to The Economist, John McAteer of shopping.google.com says “a small proportion of negative comments — just enough to acknowledge that the product couldn’t be perfect — can actually make an item more attractive to prospective buyers.”

• Negative reviews offer you an opportunity to demonstrate your customer service capabilities. “How a business handles negative feedback says volumes about the integrity of the business and how much the business values its customers,” says Rachel Strella of Social Media Today.

• TrendWatching.com has coined a new term for businesses in this modern era: flawsome. These are brands that are ” . . . still brilliant despite having flaws; even being flawed (and being open about it) can be awesome. Brands that show some empathy, generosity, humility, flexibility, maturity, humor, and (dare we say it) some character and humanity.”

Still not sure about negative reviews?

“When someone has something bad to say about your business, they’re going to find a way to say it,” says Denise Graab, Director of Social Community for Caring.com. “If they complain to friends out of your earshot, you’re entirely left out of the conversation. But if they say it in an online review, you have an opportunity to reflect on the feedback and respond as necessary.”

Graab recommends keeping a close watch on what’s being said about your brand. If something negative comes up, don’t always try to get it taken down, and don’t ignore it. When necessary — such as in the case of a factual error, or when you can politely and professionally convey your commitment to quality service — participate in the conversation.

On Caring.com, providers may post a response after any consumer review. You can see great examples of how an effective provider response demonstrates customer service here and here. For more ideas about handling negative reviews, check out Strella’s blog post. (For more information about contesting a review based on a factual error or violation of our Review Guidelines, or for information about posting a provider response, call your Membership Advisor at (866) 824-9209.)

Reviews help families finalize their decisions.

Even after they meet with you or visit your community, you can expect that some families will look for reviews online. They’re seeking confirmation (or contradiction) of the opinions they’ve formed.

• 27% of consumers look for reviews when they’re trying to decide between two or three products or services.

• 21% look for reviews to confirm that they’ve made the right decision.

Reviews help make services better.

Families aren’t the only ones who can gain important knowledge from reviews — you can, too. In reviews, families are telling you exactly what’s important. By paying attention to this feedback, you can make your services better:

• Take a look at the reviews on your competitors’ listings. What are they doing well — and does that inspire any ideas for improving your business? To see Caring.com’s favorite new reviews each week, visit our LinkedIn company page every Monday afternoon.

• See our 2012 Caring Stars award winners. These are providers recognized for service excellence based entirely on customer reviews.

• Check out Caring.com’s assisted living best practices, based on our analysis of five-star reviews of assisted living communities.

Reviews can also help you understand your position in the marketplace. What can you do better than your competitors? How can you describe what makes you different?

As we read in a recent New York Times article about reviews, no one of us is as smart as all of us. Reviews represent “collected knowledge” that can help families — and your business, too.

Not seeing any reviews for your business?

Get your free* basic listing in the Caring.com Senior Directory, the leading source of senior services reviews online.
*All directory requests will be reviewed and confirmed.  A one-time set-up fee may apply. 

For ideas on how to reach out to the families you serve, check out our video, Essential Tips for Getting Reviews on Caring.com.

Remember: You, the provider, can’t write a review of your own business.
(See Review Guidelines for more information.)

Kate Antheil Boyd is VP of Content at Caring.com, the web’s #1 source for senior care reviews. We help families find information, support, and local services to help with their caregiving journey. We also help senior service providers connect with the families who need them.