June 2018 | The Web Authority

June 27, 2018June 21, 2018

Should You Worry About the July 2018 Chrome Site Insecure Warning?

What to do when July comes about the Chrome browser warning.

Coming to the Web in July is a change to the Google Chrome browser that will now mark any website that is not using https as insecure. Should you be worried if you are not selling online?

Personally, if you are not selling product online, I would not worry about the site insecure warning. This warning will appear on your site if you have a contact form, but I personally do not feel that your submissions will drop.

In most cases now, my clients and prospects contact me by phone or by chat. I have very few customers who contact me via my email form. Most like the immediacy of a call.

If you are flush with cash, moving to https could be good for you to prevent any insecure site warnings to be ultra safe. Cost for an SSL certificate is about $149 to $199 yearly. You will typically need to have a dedicated IP address which will run $7 to $15 a month and your web host will most likely charge installation fee for the SSL certificate. So, there are moderate costs associated with the move to https.

If you sell online https is mandatory. No consumer will buy and provide their credit card information via http.

So, the bottom-line is that really you have an option if you are not selling online as https and the additional costs are not a requirement to continue to have website traffic. Your site will still appear in the Google search results and other browsers will not trigger a warning.

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June 25, 2018June 21, 2018

E-Newsletters Still Provide Value to Your Client Base

E-newsletters have not gone out of fashion with savvy business owners, they are still a great way to keep your name in front of clients.

I cannot begin to tell you how many phone calls I get after sending out our newsletter where we feature an important website issue. Case in point is after our last newsletter on the European GDPR, we had many past clients who were not regular customers ask us to implement the updates on their website.

Customers past and present do read your newsletter – but, only if the content provides value. By explaining an idea, analyzing a new strategy or highlighting a new technology in your newsletter you help clients to stay informed in a low pressure manner. Unless you are selling products online, I do not recommend making the newsletter content all about your services.

Becoming the “go-to” person for your clients builds repeat business and garners you referrals. If you have not subscribed to our own monthly e-newsletter, I invite you to subscribe right now.

June 20, 2018June 3, 2018

It’s Easy To Use Bing Ads Structured Snippets

There’s something new you may have missed in Bing Ads in the extension tab – Structured Snippets.

They are easy to set up and Bing Ads likes to display them under your ad like Callouts. There is no link with the text, but the Snippets give you a chance to quickly let your clients know what else you do or offer.

Here’s how to set them up:

Go to the “Extension” tab.
2. In the drop down select “Structured Snippets”
3. Select your category – I typically use Types.
4. Add up to 20 Snippets.
5. Make sure to click save.

I usually set these up at the campaign level, but you can set them up at the ad group level too.

If you are looking for a savvy Bing Ads account manager, make sure to check out our services and pricing.

June 18, 2018June 3, 2018

Site Suspension in AdWords – Explained

Site Suspension! If you are an AdWords advertiser, know that Google is watching you – very carefully. What you state in your content and the images you show are all reviewed by the Googlebot and flagged for review if you are in the medical, plastic surgery, and dermatology fields of business.

CoolSculpting and Dermatology Advertisers Be Aware

Case in point, if you are promoting CoolSculpting and you state on your website that this treatment provides permanent fat loss, Google will be coming for you – soon. I’ve now crossed paths now with four doctors in different areas of the US that have all received site suspensions in AdWords.

A site suspension simply means that Google will not allow you to promote your business in AdWords, at all! They simply shut down your account. Only the account owner will receive an email about the issue and Google will point to its terms of service and rules. Account Managers will see next to the accounts ads a speech bubble which will state Site Suspension.

What Would Be Noted in a Site Suspension?

I recently saw a site suspension in AdWords for a Dermatologist and Vascular doctor with this information:

Site Suspension due to:

Restricted Medical Content
Restricted Drug Terms
Misleading or unrealistic promotions

I’ve seen several doctors remediate their site, get up and running, and then get a second site suspension. As sometimes the issues take a while to correct and there are numerous communications with the Google team before the site can even be submitted for a higher level review (which is not immediate), I recommend moving your program to Bing Ads while Google is futzing around with your site review to remove the suspension.

Your entire program from AdWords can be picked up and moved to Bing Ads relatively quickly. At least this way you will continue to have a flow of leads while Google does your review and lets you know things that need to be further changed in each communique.

A site suspension is serious business. In two cases it took 6 and up to 8 weeks to remediate the problems. That’s nearly 2 months off of AdWords with no leads coming in. In all cases to remediate the problem, all content had to be updated and images updated. Wording like permanent, immediate, fat loss had to be softened to reduction, over time, and fat reduction.

If you need help resolving a site suspension or moving to Bing Ads while your staff is working to remediate an AdWords site suspension, call us today to get fast help and get rolling on Bing Ads.