Some were about Bing’s listing center being down for too long, but to Bing’s credit, maintenance issues for a listing system that big can take a while.

But the more and more I looked over the complaints, the more this issue reared its ugly head. It’s a problem I’ve ranted about many times: The arduous wait for your confirmation letter.

Bing’s listing response time is equivalent to that friend of yours who responds to a text message question a day and a half later, where not only do you forget what the question even was, you’re a little peeved it took so long.

The only exception being that message is your business listing. And since you’re queued up waiting for the letter to be delivered on horseback, the opportunity to be noticed on a search engine that generates immense traffic is being held captive.

Why it’s taking so long to address this is anyone’s guess. It would be in Bing’s best interest to have a listing center that goes toe-to-toe with Google. Not only does Bing have a pretty and diverse home page presentation to draw people in, their listing center is very beneficial for helping small to large businesses get their face out there.

As for the solution, well it’s pretty obvious in some areas (get a better delivery carrier, create an extension number addition for phone verification), but the one area that’s in need of a makeover is the means at which to wrangle in Bing’s customer support.

There’s this method, but I’ve been waiting in line on that one, too. Here’s hoping someone breaks through to them…

We’re all familiar with the idea of a website sitemap. It’s generally that convoluted page that has all the links that really don’t help you navigate to where you want to be because it’s not structured very well and it just goes on and on and on kinda like this sentence. Well, as hard as it is for us to figure out, the search engines just love ‘em (at least a version of them).

When our Google, Bing, or Yahoo overlords send out their robots to crawl the interwebs, the purpose is to gather all the information stored on your website. In an oversimplification, this is accomplished by starting at one website. Then they follow the links that are embedded within that site which lead them to another site. Those links are then followed and eventually they have a pretty good layout of the entire internet.

So what if you have a page that no one links to? Or you have some pages that you don’t want to be included in the search engine listings. This is where you can take control of your content. The first thing a search bot does when it visits your home on the web is look for a little file called robots.txt. This file should be located in the root folder of your domain. It is within this robots.txt file that you give the search bot either its all access pass, or a cease and desist order. It is also where you can point it to your xml sitemap.

The XML sitemap is the roadmap to your world but written in a format that computers can easily understand. The search bots like that XML part. We won’t go into details regarding exactly how to read or write XML, but if you’d like more information I encourage you to learn more.

Providing the search engines with this “map to your stars” will help you keep your entire site indexed. This is true whether the page in question is linked to from another site or not. Bear in mind though that the XML sitemap is not a magic pill. The XML sitemap won’t necessarily help this page rank higher within the search listings, but at least it will be accounted for.

So how do I make an XML sitemap?

I’m glad you asked. The easiest and most powerful way to include a sitemap in your Worpress powered site is through a plugin called Google XML Sitemaps. This plugin will not only make a map of your site but also notify each of the major search engines whenever you update your content. As an added bonus the plugin also adds the location of the XML sitemap to your robots.txt file. Overall it’s a win win for both you and the search bots.

What if I’m not using WordPress?

Well, that’s not ideal, but all hope is not lost. For Drupal you can find a module here. For those of you still using Movable Type the process requires more work but you can start by looking at this page.

The benefits of helping the search engines index your data far outweigh the time it will take to get an XML sitemap up and running. I encourage you to add this task to the top of your website priority list and help your search engine overlords help you.

Why’s he so excited?

Well, picture him riding in from the skies atop a link. Now put him aboard 1,000 more of those and his cowboy hat waving starts to be a bit more joyous, almost hitting a peak of excitement that makes you question his sanity. He knows the advantages link building can have on his business, and (pun intended) business is booming.

While there are a few minor annoyances to link building (i.e., some link directories have way too many guidelines, while others say it’s free to submit, only to queue your URL without further notice), you’ll start to see how much exposure your website can garner after obtaining a number of links.

Here are just a few reasons why you should stop worrying and fall in love with the link:

1. Google Ogles You: Not just them, but the other major search engines will start to take notice of your website with more links. More links to other sites, directories or mentions from an online blog can make you relevant and give you a rankings jolt.

2. Quality Links Earn Major Kudos: If Mr. Sellers’ cherry bomb helped quiet the mice problem in the basement of a local high school, the online student paper might reference his “heroics” and put a link to his website in the article. Getting links from well-established online websites like a school, your local government or any other major organization can push your presence up even further.

3. As Easy as 1,2, LSV: The process of filling out a link form is somewhat along the lines of entering your business into a local search directory.

4. …Or A Simple “Please”: Whether through email or over the phone, a simple request to a website for a link can get the job done.

In the end, link building can be seen as beneficial gossip for your business. It’s like a simple joke that gets passed around, and with each turn, new layers are added until eventually it ends up becoming a grandiose event that everyone’s in on.

There are numerous directories out there waiting for your gossip. Why not let them in?

How is that, exactly? Well, a citation is a reference to a listing’s credibility. How you gain that credibility is done in a number of ways—some by your own hands and some are even created outside your own doing.

David Mihm’s wonderful account goes into great detail about this. In fact, if you’ve clicked onto that link, you might have just helped create a citation. With that aside, here are two of my favorite guidelines to keep in mind when making sure your listing’s “citation-worthy”:

1. Exact Information – The biggest nail in your listing coffin can come about because your address is different on five different online directories. Not only does that hurt potential customers searching for your business, but citations will vanish into thin air because of it. Conflicting phone numbers and incorrect city/state entries might as well be replaced with a big, red banner that reads: “Out of Business”.

2. Reviews or Blogs – Even if the story about your business doesn’t have an in-bound link directing readers to your website, any mention of your name, address or phone number is seen as a tip-of-the-cap for your listing, and thus, a citation is born. For instance, you’re newly-constructed hot dog stand business has made headlines with every online news outlet or blog because Jimmy Hoffa’s body was discovered underneath it. Every mention of your business name or address within each online retelling can return a bevy of citations to your website.

First and foremost, it’s pretty important to take care of the first guideline. Afterwards, why not try and get creative with a blog about your business? Whether it’s Squidoo, HubPages or any other blog service out there, your stories (or some other author’s blog about your services) might just toss a very lucrative citation your way.

Here are a few reasons why iBegin can be your next local listing playground:

1. Fluid Categorization: Now I know I’ve talked over and over about how important keeping your business associated with the proper category is, but a categorization process that has multiple branching paths until you find the best one? That’s nearly customization at its finest. Plus, it’s almost too easy to navigate…which brings me to #2.

2. User-Friendly Layout: Entering in contact information is nearly identical to Google, but iBegin’s business description opens up more. Products, Service and Brand sections? iBegin finishes your thoughts for you by giving a bunch of options suited to your business.

3. One, Glorious Page: Everything you need to increase the online exposure of your business is all on one page. Short, sweet and effective.

4. Citation-Creating Machine: iBegin generates a number of important online citations for your website. With the proper contact information entered, a citation acts as a tribute from another webpage, meaning the more credibility your listing carries, the more search engines will start to love you.

After the dust settles, you’ll start to see that iBegin’s welcoming arms can be one of many perfect endings with local search marketing.

What’s the hubbub with HubPages and why should it matter to you, me and everyone we know?

Well, for one, HubPages has many characteristics in common with Squidoo. Every published Hub Page is like a Squidoo “Lens” with informative tools about either your business, a product you carry, or some completely random topic to help generate visitors and link juice to and from your Lens and the website of your business. Secondly, you can include photos, videos, and other decorative background displays to give your Hub Page an identity all its own. And the most obvious similarity between HubPages and Squidoo is the shared community in which your page resides.

Ummmmm. Ok. What if I’m lazy and I don’t want to create another page?

Suffice it to say, procrastination’s not the answer. Not for you or the online marketing potential that HubPages brings to the table. That’s generally just a bad outlook all together.

Yeah, but where’s the bells and whistles?

That comes in the form of tags and proper categorization. If you’re the owner of an amusement park and you want to write off a number of detailed pages inviting the viral community on down, you can zero in on a variety of specific interests. Want to write an article about your new water slide, “The Hydra”? Your category will be setup as so: Sports & Recreation…Theme Parks…Water Rides. Your amusement park’s had a sparkling safety reputation since opening. Why not create a page detailing your park’s illustrious history and the proper safety measures your company has taken over those years? Suprisingly, there’s a third tier category titled, History of Theme Parks & Famous Accidents, that would fit that page.

It’s almost as if HubPages is psychic, eh?

No, they’re just properly organized. They present a number of great marketing methods available for small businesses, large businesses and everything else in between to make their presence known. Instead of confusion, it’s an orchestra of voices that can help promote what your business has to offer. Just put a little creativity towards your articles and you could be establishing a plethora of quality links back to your business’ website.

That’s it?

That’s just for starters. For now, here’s a starter kit to chew on until then.

Here are my top 10 web sites I attend on a daily basis. (Not including the large amount of social media and networking sites I seem to live by)

Smashing Magazine
Get your daily tech fix! Check out the top 100 on anything media related! Catch some new design techniques! The site is ENDLESS on tutorials, best of the best, and eye candy

Logo Pond
My daily logo inspiration

Design Observer
This web site is great for catching up on news in the arts, media, and and advertising/marketing. This site holds an endless amount of topics that range from popular culture to technology.

Design*Sponge
Oh heavens, the mother of design blogs. Interior design, colors, patterns, and much journalism

Vectips
Get BETTER at vector! And look at pretty posters + creatures!

Web Creme
Want a reference/inspiration site about web design? Sleek, Contemporary, Functional Web Design. Period. Helps you define how you want YOUR site to look.

G4TV
Get caught up on everything TECH! Well, and viral.

Kuler
COLOR SCHEME! Pick out your palette for anything! FUN and EASY.
Get that guest room painted and decorated the right way.

Wooster Collective
Get urbanified! Check out whats going on in the Graffiti Artist world. ( I wish KC was woostered-up )

Ads of the World
You like cleverness, don’t you? Check out these wonderful ads showcased internationally. You’ll get some smiles, promise.

Get in touch! Get updated! Get involved! Get better! Hopefully these sites will get you there.

I was giddy with excitement today to find out the one area lacking in Local.com’s previous version, the business description’s limit, has been freed from the 155 character shackles and given room to breathe. How much room has yet to be determined, but so far, it’s more than enough to insert the necessary information about your business. With that much space, your description can be given some much needed SEO keywords, phrases and other strategies to call upon a customer’s keyboard stroke against the search engines. Not only that, but the general layout for entering information has dramatically improved, making it easier to fill every required category with ease.

For example, nothing creates a bigger headache than a local search site that completely erases everything you entered from the previous page of your listing. A majority of online directories are pretty good at saving your previous information, but for some reason, there’s a couple out there that love to play Houdini and just decimate the information you spent a good amount of time entering in. Local.com’s new version was never the case. In fact, if you took a break from finishing the listing, the session itself will time out, but one click backwards will happily return your ammunition.

Also, finding an optimal way to categorize your business has been cleared up. Nearly identical to Google’s outstanding setup, Local.com suggests a myriad of possibilities, letting you decide exactly which customers you’re trying to flag down.

Same goes for the Services, Products and Brands sections. The previous version gave you tiny boxes to cram in what your business offers, but the outcome looked like a bunch of fragmented words packed inside a sardine can. Now you have individual sections allowing you to easily see everything you’ve entered. Plus, the space itself is just as liberating as the business description.

Again, the format almost reminds me of Google Local, but imitation is a form of flattery. And seeing how important and effective putting your listing up on Google is, well that’s just another step in the right direction for visibility.

Update done correctly? That’s an emphatic “yes”.

Now, in the past I’ve written about how phone verification systems for local search sites are efficient at claiming your listing in a timely manner. That’s still true. The only minor detail pushed aside is the simplistic template for verifying your listing. In one corner, you have your complicated “Confirmation Letter” icon that mails your PIN number out to you—it’s just too bad you have to wait almost a week to two weeks for it. In the other, you have the straight and narrow icon to claim your listing over the phone—but, what do you do if a recording answers that line?

Okay, the first annoyance is very easy to fix: Speed up the mailing times! How come I can mail a birthday card to my friends halfway across the United States in less than three days, but some local search site’s letter will sometimes take nearly 10 times as long to reach a business? Think about it, that’s almost identical to the shipping times of a product you’d buy on T.V.

As for the latter issue, here’s my solution: Follow in the footsteps of Yelp. There are many businesses that have automated recordings running as their main line. That means more than likely you’ll have to enter an extension number to directly get to a specific person, which for some reason, only Yelp has figured out. Yelp’s verification system will effectively punch through the automated recording and end up right where it’s supposed to be: a human voice. The real head-scratcher is every local search directory is a high-tech force of nature for online marketing, yet they sometimes treat businesses as if their phone system hasn’t escaped the rotary dial age.

That being said, to all you other local search sites, please throw a helping bone to the business you help promote by polishing up your verification system.

Sure, you can close your description with clichéd phrases that consumers have been beaten over the head with for decades, but that’s not pretty productive in the end. For one, your listing might seem like HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey dropped by and threw a bunch of nonsense together. You know, the one where all those incomplete sentences are pushed next to each other: 100%Guarantee!While Supplies Last!Great Finish!Call TodayYippie!.

Or, I’ve sometimes run into what I call “Sequel Listings” where the description just ends without telling the customer how everything previously stated correlates into why they should come by or pick up the phone immediately. I know all the contact information is above, but your local search listing should grab their attention and never let go. Don’t pull the rug out from under your customers.

So, what are some ways to have your customers clamoring for an encore? For starters, you could end by appealing to everyone through geo-targeting. Let’s say you’re a carpet cleaning business in Ames, Iowa and you just expanded into five states recently. Success is hitting on all cylinders and you want more. Here’s how you could close your local listing: “There’s more to our carpet cleaning. From Ames to Austin, TX, come see how we’re spot-on with spot cleaning”.

You’ve done two things here. Rather than run off 50 cities that you service, you’ve come up with a concise geo-targeting system that reads well. Also, you’re smoothly transitioning your number one keyword, carpet cleaning, into Ames, giving the listing a little more added SEO meat to it.

Imagining new ways to close out your audience can make your business listing and your business prospects seem intriguing for going the road less traveled.