SearchLab Digital

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SearchLab Digital Show up where your customers search. Local automotive SEO and PPC for multi-location brands. We love to teach people about search marketing and paid media.

SearchLab is an agency built by passionate and curious marketing professionals. We love our work, the clients we get the opportunity to work with, and our network of industry friends and partners. SearchLab’s mission is to cultivate long-term mutually beneficial relationships. That’s the way we approach relationships with our clients, employees, vendors, partners, and friends. We frequently share videos, post on our company blog, and provide workshops about SEO, Paid Media and Analytics. If you’d like to collaborate with SearchLab, or if you’re just curious to learn more, let’s connect. How this whole thing got started…
SearchLab started as a moonlighting gig. Our founder, Mark Bealin, was looking for ways to make a little extra money to support his growing family. It wasn’t long before the “nights and weekends” job became more than he could handle alone. By March 2017, SearchLab was off and running – working out of a tiny shoebox of an office in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago. In the first year, the business grew quickly. Really quickly. SearchLab developed a reputation locally throughout Chicagoland. Our Local SEO and paid search services were in high demand and our success generated attention. By September 2017, SearchLab moved into our current Chicago headquarters on the north side of Chicago. Before long, SearchLab began receiving awards and recognition from industry sites like BrightLocal, Clutch, Manifest and Built in Chicago. In 2019, SEO expert Greg Gifford joined SearchLab as Vice President of Search. You can see Greg speak at industry conferences all over the world. Greg’s deep industry knowledge and connections within the SEO community are a huge benefit to SearchLab’s team members and clients. In 2020, paid media expert Mark Irvine joined SearchLab as Director of Paid Media. Mark’s depth of experience has earned him the attention and recognition of the world-side search industry. PPCHero has recognized him as one of the top PPC Influencers every year since 2015. In 2019, Mark was recognized as the most influential PPC Expert by both PPCHero and Microsoft. Today, SearchLab offers Local SEO and Paid Media services to small and medium sized businesses all over the country. We are laser-focused on helping local businesses – in fact, that’s all we do. We’re proud to have built an agency that offers large agency capabilities but with the enhanced attention of a boutique agency.

10/21/2026

Your response to a negative review isn't just for the person who left it.

It's for the next 100 potential customers reading it. 👀

When someone leaves a negative review, it's tempting to defend your business or explain why they're wrong. But how you handle criticism publicly can say more about your business than the review itself.

The goal is simple: acknowledge the customer's frustration without automatically accepting blame, and offer a clear way to continue the conversation privately.

You don't need to win an argument in the review section. You need to show future customers that you listen, take concerns seriously, and handle difficult situations professionally.

When was the last time you reviewed how your business responds to negative feedback?

Save this tip for your next review response. 📌

https://searchlabdigital.com/webinars/13678/

100 reviews from two years ago or 3 fresh reviews every week? ⭐Both might look good on paper, but when it comes to Local...
10/20/2026

100 reviews from two years ago or 3 fresh reviews every week? ⭐

Both might look good on paper, but when it comes to Local SEO, consistency matters.

A steady flow of recent reviews shows potential customers that people are actively choosing your business and sharing their experiences. It also keeps your Google Business Profile relevant and gives customers fresh feedback to consider before making a decision.

The goal isn't just to collect as many reviews as possible. It's to build a consistent, authentic review strategy that strengthens trust over time.

When was the last time your business received a new review? If your review strategy needs some attention, let's talk.

🔗searchlabdigital.com

The "fire your agency and replace it with AI" posts have been circulating for a while. Someone tries a few AI tools, sav...
10/20/2026

The "fire your agency and replace it with AI" posts have been circulating for a while. Someone tries a few AI tools, saves money in month one, and announces they've let go of their marketing team after one month with AI.

The part those posts leave out is where (and how quickly) it stopped working.

We took an honest look at what AI tools actually do well in a marketing workflow, where they fall apart for local businesses specifically, and how to tell whether what you're currently paying for is worth it.

https://zurl.co/vDWYY

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Your PPC agency should be helping your dealerships compete with other dealers, not each other. Managing paid advertising...
10/19/2026

Your PPC agency should be helping your dealerships compete with other dealers, not each other.

Managing paid advertising across multiple locations comes with challenges that a generic PPC strategy won't solve. From stores bidding against each other to ads promoting vehicles that have already sold, small mistakes can lead to wasted budgets and missed opportunities.

And there's another important question: Who actually owns your advertising accounts and data?

The right PPC partner should bring industry experience, smart campaign coordination, accurate inventory management, and complete transparency.

👉 Swipe through the 4 questions every dealer group should ask their PPC agency, and save this checklist for your next agency review. 📌

🔗searchlabdigital.com

10/16/2026

Your marketing reports might look great, but are they telling you the whole story? 📊

More traffic, lower costs, and an increase in leads can all look impressive on paper. But if those numbers aren't translating into actual customers and revenue, something isn't working.

Effective digital marketing goes beyond surface-level metrics. It's about understanding where your budget goes, attracting the right audience, and optimizing campaigns for results that actually matter.

Want to know if your marketing is delivering real value? Let's take a closer look.

🔗searchlabdigital.com

Cheap clicks might look impressive in a report, but they don't automatically translate into sales.A low cost per click m...
10/15/2026

Cheap clicks might look impressive in a report, but they don't automatically translate into sales.

A low cost per click means very little if the people clicking aren't interested in what you're offering. You could be driving hundreds of visitors to your website without generating a single qualified lead.

Effective PPC isn't about finding the cheapest traffic. It's about reaching the right audience, matching their search intent, and turning those clicks into actual business opportunities.

Want your ad budget to deliver more than traffic? 📈

Let's talk about improving your PPC performance!

🔗searchlabdigital.com

Every agency told you reviews matter. Google just changed how they work in 2026, and most of those agencies have not sai...
09/24/2026

Every agency told you reviews matter. Google just changed how they work in 2026, and most of those agencies have not said anything about it yet.

On this episode of Local Search Tuesdays, Greg breaks down exactly what changed, why it matters, and what you actually need to do about it. This is the episode that keeps pulling views because the update is still catching businesses off guard.

Watch it on YouTube, or catch it wherever you listen to podcasts. 🎙

https://zurl.co/YdaLF

Join SearchLab's very own PPC expert, Susan Yen, at Hero Conf for "Stop Scaling Broken Campaigns," where she'll break do...
09/13/2026

Join SearchLab's very own PPC expert, Susan Yen, at Hero Conf for "Stop Scaling Broken Campaigns," where she'll break down how to identify the issues holding campaigns back before you throw more budget at them.

If you're responsible for paid media performance, this is a session worth adding to your schedule.

📍 Hero Conf 2026
📅 September 16 at 9:20 AM

See you there!

More ad spend doesn't always mean more revenue.In fact, sometimes it can even be the opposite.That's exactly what Susan ...
09/07/2026

More ad spend doesn't always mean more revenue.

In fact, sometimes it can even be the opposite.

That's exactly what Susan Yen will be diving into at Hero Conf with her session: 🎤 Stop Scaling Broken Campaigns

Instead of chasing bigger budgets or the latest platform hacks, Susan will share how to diagnose why campaigns break at scale and what to fix before investing another dollar.

If you've ever wondered why performance falls apart as budgets increase, this session is for you.

📍 Hero Conf 2026
📅 September 16
⏰ 9:20 AM

Hope to see you there!

Address

720 W Randolph Street LL
Chicago, IL
60661

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

+13122561574

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