Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket

The ultimate status recognition for a company is when its name becomes a verb. When we copy something, we “Xerox it”. When we overnight mail, we “Fedex it”. And when we search for something, we usually “Google it”. Google is hands down the dominant search engine – and by a large margin. Full disclosure – I used Google to research this information. And I have written numerous blog posts on the importance and benefits of a dental practice securing Google reviews.

But a flurry of new business activity has definitely started to modify my thinking. Yelp recently signed a deal with Bing, the Microsoft search engine, in which Bing will now display Yelp reviews and ratings similar to Google+Local. Apple also recently announced a departure from Google Maps, lending even more importance to Yelp, as Yelp reviews and ratings are already factored into Siri search results. Siri is Apple’s phenomenally intuitive voice activated assistant app.

Apple’s new mapping software will be featured in all iOS6 devices, from iPhones to iPads. Apple’s share of the mobile device market is extraordinary. In just the first Quarter of 2012 alone, Apple sold 37 million phones worldwide!  Their mapping software will display local businesses similar to Google Maps. However, Yelp reviews will now be displayed and given preference in search results.

Because of these new strategic alliances, I anticipate that Yelp will be playing a larger and more prominent role in search results rankings. So while Google reviews are still important and desirable, and a dental practice should still continue to make the effort to accumulate them, Google is no longer the only game in town. My recommendation is for dentists to begin gathering reviews on Yelp prior to the launch of Apple’s new iOS anticipated in October of 2012.

Next time – I will discuss the mechanics of accumulating Yelp Reviews.