Have you heard?

Facebook gray verified badges for business pages are officially gone! So, what does this mean for you?

According to a study conducted by Microsoft, the average attention span of a human is 8 seconds, which believe it or not has declined from the 12 seconds reported in 2000. This means users are taking less time to evaluate:

- Is this content relevant?
- Is this content reliable?
- Is this content readable?

So, what can you do to grab the reader in that 8 seconds? 

Google, being the enigma that it is, seems to subtly remind us how intertwined it is in our everyday lives. Whether it's by showing you an ad for something that crossed your mind 2 hours ago or giving you a suggested search for something you discussed with your coworker yesterday, Google never fails to impress with its…. observant…. abilities. 

However, when it comes down to it, being in Google's good graces is one of the best things you can do for your business. If you think about it from a consumer standpoint, the first thing you do when you are searching for a service is "Google it". From there you look in the sought-after "box". This lists the service providers closest to you in order from closest to the city center outward. You might glance through the reviews, maybe click the company with the most or highest reviews. Then you work your way down the search results, usually stopping when company websites that haven't been updated since 2010 start popping up (maybe around page 3?). So how do you keep out of the Flash Mob era crowds on the web? 

Do you remember those huge Yellow Pages® books from the past that were delivered to your doorstep? If you needed a plumber, a doctor, an HVAC company or a full-service business technology company, it was the only way to find one before the internet came along. But what was it that made you choose the one you chose? Most likely it was a full-page ad or a catchy logo instead of a printed name and phone number. A picture or a logo held a lot of power in the Yellow Pages because they represented the very first visual impression of a company.

Now, when people search the internet for a business and land on your website, the same concept still holds true: what is going to set your website apart from all the rest? Your logo. It's your identity and it needs to personify who you are and what your company represents. A strong, well thought-out logo will capture the attention of potential customers and they will most likely want to hang around and get to know you better by taking a closer look at your website. This is how branding gets started.