Not too long ago, Moz commissioned its first ever survey into the secret lives of… …people who read and write online reviews. Because so much of what we do is marketing for law practices and healthcare providers, we focus on local marketing best practices and that includes helping our clients build out solid review gathering workflows. I know without a doubt that reviews are the secret sauce of SERP success. The average consumer reports reading a lot of reviews (more than 20 if they can!) before deciding to use a business. It’s pretty clear. Reviews matter. You need to have a plan to get reviews that are: • Relevant • Recent • Real You need to make sure your reviews provide details that future clients crave. You can make helpful recommendations about what to include in a review but be sure that nothing you are doing runs afoul of a platform’s rules or reviewing standards. You need reviews from last week, not last year (although it’s January…so for this month “last year” gets a temporary pass 🤣) You can’t have employees (or your mom) write you glowing reviews. Spam reviews are a trust killer. Plus, your employees (and your mom) have better things to do to support your business. The service you provide should always aim for delivering a 5 ⭐ experience but be realistic when it comes to reviews…44% of consumers report distrusting “perfect” businesses. And 34% of people will give a 3 ⭐ business a chance. Especially for medical specialists or niche law practices. Plus, it’s an opportunity to get a better review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from a satisfied new client. Help me out here: when you’re researching a business or looking to hire a new doctor or lawyer what details do you specifically look for in a review?

Lawyer thoughts in January...

Strava did a study a few years ago that pinpointed the day most people give up on their New Year’s resolutions… …and it might surprise you how far into the “new year, new you” most people get. 🗓 They make it to January 12th. I was pretty shocked by this revelation, honestly. But then again, the people I hang around with personally and professionally are DRIVEN. You don’t study to get the grades or give yourself permission to fail forward and then give up on something twelve days after you make a commitment to yourself or your business. I also know that the people I associate with know how important it is to have a little woo in your pocket for those times when it feels like you’re out there doing it all on your own. People who think mindset is 🐂… tend to be the people who need to work on mindset the most. Am I right? Maybe you’re a traditional resolution person. Maybe you’re not. Maybe you spread your goals out over the entire year and don’t see January as a hard reset point for your ambitions and dreams. Maybe we can even inspire someone to hang on to their resolution a little longer Because one thing I know about you – by virtue of your connection to me – is that you have a few tricks up your sleeve for staying committed to your goals or focused even when times get tough. So let’s build up a big playlist of tips and tricks to get the woo working when we need it the most – I’ll start: I’m an affirmations guy. Seriously. Self-talk. The more powerful, positive, and purposeful the better. Now it’s your turn ⤵️

I am energized in ways I haven’t been in a while. Talking to clients and our in-house creatives about everything that is new and trending in marketing. It always makes things interesting when something major happens in your space and everyone has an opinion about it (Yes. I’m talking about ChatGPT 😆) Human-generated content isn’t going anywhere any time soon. But the smartest marketers and content creators will harness the power of AI to cut down on research time. Experienced writers will use AI writing tools to quickly create rough drafts that give them more time to deliver even better content for publication. Investing in people powered content creation – whether it’s webpage copy, emails, social media posts, or articles – is going to continue to give you the advantage over your competitors. Because robots and algorithms don’t know what you know. They haven’t seen the things you’ve seen. They can’t capture the unique spark that lit the fire behind your passion. No matter what AI can scrape from the web and reformat into new content, robots have a hard time conveying genuine emotions in the nuanced way we humans do it. AI doesn’t empathize with your prospects. I used ChatGPT to write a listicle about mountain bikes for kids. You know, the whole “Top 10 Best” type article – most of which already felt like they were written by robots. Was it great? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Was it accurate? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Does it matter? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ But when your husband has been hurt in a car accident and you’re being badgered by an aggressive insurance adjuster…do you want to read an article that is a machine’s best guess, or do you want to engage with an article from a local lawyer who understands the real stress you’re under and who can point you in the right direction to get the help your family needs? I’m guessing you want to feel like you matter to a real person who can help you. So, for now, we’re not changing much about how we produce high quality content for the law offices, healthcare practices, and other small businesses we represent. Google is continuing to rate content quality using their EEAT and YMYL standards and we’re not leaving that up to algorithms to get right.

The other day I watched a reel that made me go 🤔 Did you know that the second hole in a soda pull top… …is there to hold your straw in place? Me either. And after that reel, I’m still not sure I buy it. After all, bean cans with a pull tab have a second hole and I feel pretty confident when I say no one is looking to put a straw into a can of pinto beans. What that reel does illustrate quite effectively though, is that there are a lot of acceptable differences in content quality. Some content creators can get by with making random, unsubstantiated statements and the algorithms love it. Others have to be subject matter experts. Google demands it. They refer to it as “your money, your life” content or YMYL. The trouble is, not all subject matter experts have time to be content creators. After all, they’re doctors, lawyers, or financial professionals. That’s sort of a full time gig. That’s where a dedicated team of professional content creators comes in. Experts in writing and research who can handle meeting the high standards for producing engaging and informative – and accurate - social posts, articles, podcast show notes, and other collateral as part of a comprehensive content marketing strategy. Writers who can take a topic and turn into content that meets your potential clients exactly where they are – whether they’re looking for information or looking to hire. Relatable content that engages an audience, builds a loyal following, and becomes a revenue engine for your business. 😉 It also makes your competitors wonder how you find time to do it all and make it look so easy. Is 2023 the year you finally make the personal commitment to producing pieces for your content calendar or are you open to hiring it out?