The Latest News From Melon Local
Stay in the know with the latest news in digital marketing, best practices and updates from Melon Local.
4 Questions to Ask Before Granting GBP Access
Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is one of the most valuable digital assets your business owns. It’s often the first thing potential customers see when they search for your business, making it a key driver of organic calls, website visits and foot traffic. In fact, a fully optimized GBP gets
Insurance Ads for Your New Agency
New to your market? Insurance ads can help you alert your community that your agency is open for business! The goal of insurance advertising is to get your agency in front of potential policyholders when they’re searching for services like yours. Following these tips, you can make the most out of your insurance ads. 1. Set attainable goals. Before creating ads, you first need to decide what your goals are
Guide to Google’s Search Engine Results Pages
When you plug a search query into Google, millions of results populate in the blink of an eye. Depending on your query, the format of the search engine results page, or SERP, can vary. If you were to submit a search for a local restaurant, then you’re likely to see Google Business Profile listings at the top of the page. If you search for a pair of leather boots, then
How to Respond to Reviews at Your Agency
We probably don’t have to tell you that reviews are important to your business, but just in case you missed it, we’ll say it again. Reviews are important to your business! In fact, an incredible 93% of people say that online reviews have impacted their purchasing decisions. To capture the attention of an increasingly online crowd, you’ll need to wow on review sites. Getting reviews isn’t the only factor necessary
What is the Google Algorithm, Anyway?
Our Las Vegas roots tell us it’d be a smart bet to put money on where your insurance agency’s clients come from. Primarily, you’re getting word-of-mouth referrals from previous happy clients. And the second-largest group is from Google searches for “insurance agency” or “insurance agent near me”, right? If so, you’re doing something right. If not, it’s probably time for some adjustments to your insurance agency marketing plan. Either way,
Interview with an Agent: Mike Paffhausen
Prior to becoming an insurance agent, Mike Paffhausen lived another life as a civil engineer working in water resources and environmental services. However, with a family full of agents, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the insurance industry was his calling. Flashforward, Mike is a captive agent with six years under his belt at his Butte, Montana agency. Throughout his years in the industry, Mike has counted himself lucky to
Spring Cleaning for Your Marketing Campaigns
It’s official! We’re now in Q2 of 2021. Where has the time gone?! Now that quarter one is behind us, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the performance of insurance marketing campaigns past. Here at Melon Local, we provide our clients with monthly updates on their insurance marketing campaigns. However, it’s important to remember that some campaigns take a little more time than others to yield results (such as
5 Business Tips for New Insurance Agents
Our expertise may be in digital marketing for insurance agents, but we know there’s more to building your business than gaining new leads. So, we caught up with multi-office insurance agent Chris Jones from Bothell, WA to pick his brain about growing a new insurance agency. With years of experience, a large team, and multiple offices, Chris knows a thing or two about what it takes to thrive in the
How to Optimize Local Directory Listings
Online local directory listings are essentially an advanced, tech-age version of the Yellow Pages. These websites help people find business information, compare companies, and browse reviews so they can get the goods or services they need. If you’ve searched for a local business using a query like “Thai food near me” or “plumbing services in Bend, OR”, then you’ve likely come across local business directory listings. As a local business,
What Makes a Good Advertisement?
We’re surrounded with advertising every day. Between logos on t-shirts, social media ads, and mailers from our favorite fast-food chains, they’re almost impossible to avoid! As someone who comes across various types of ads on a daily basis, you probably have opinions about what is and isn’t effective. But have you thought about the why behind this interest or aversion? While there isn’t a fool-proof formula for creating great ads,
Latest Blog Posts
Melon Spotlight: Liz Anguiano
Since joining our team as a Social Media Content Creator, Liz has brought fresh ideas, creativity and a true team spirit to everything she does. Her passion for crafting scroll-stopping content, hopping on calls to ensure our clients’ social presence is always on point and helping agents shine online as local legends made her an essential part of the Melon Patch. We caught up with Liz to talk about her
Soaring Eagle Agent Study Group Coming Back Stronger in 2026
The Soaring Eagle agent study group isn’t just back for 2026 — it’s bigger than ever. More than 400 agents and team members from across the U.S. are already set to attend from January 28–30 at the Soaring Eagle Resort & Casino in Mt. Pleasant, MI, making this the largest gathering the study group has hosted yet. Founder and insurance agent David Arce says even as the room expands, Soaring
Melon Local Wins Best Service Award at BizX North America 2025
At this year’s BizX North America conference sponsored by ActionCOACH, more than 400 entrepreneurs and business coaches gathered from Oct. 26–28 in Houston, TX to talk about leadership and what it really means to grow. And in the middle of it all, Melon Local proved once again that it’s possible to build a digital marketing agency around quality hospitality over hype. In a full-circle moment, we’re proud to announce that
Melon Spotlight: Ernie Ron
From guiding clients as a CSM to now leading a full team as Director of Client Success, Ernie’s journey at Melon has been inspiring, to say the least. Over the past four years, he’s helped shape how we connect with clients, drive leads and deliver results that truly matter.Whether he’s coaching his team, educating our clients on Melon Max or stepping into the spotlight during live demo videos, it’s safe to
What Our Team Loves About Melon Local: 5 Perspectives
At Melon Local, we believe our greatest strengths come from our people and the forward-thinking strategies we develop together because that’s what keeps our clients ahead of the game. Every relationship is an opportunity to embrace fresh ideas, adopt new technologies and build momentum in a digital space that’s constantly evolving. But beyond the tools, it’s the community that we’ve built — the support, collaboration and encouragement — that makes
Black Hat SEO Tricks That Can Come Back to Haunt You
Black hat SEO might look like a treat at first — a quick fix promising fast rankings, sudden traffic boosts and easy wins. But just like a haunted house, those misleading shortcuts are filled with hidden traps that can spook your business for years to come. At Melon Local, we’ve seen firsthand how these rule-breaking tactics may give businesses a temporary boost but almost always ends in penalties, lost visibility
Meet Melon Local’s Marketing Team
At Melon Local, our marketing team’s first priority is telling Melon’s story — making sure our brand, content, and resources stay fresh, consistent, and impactful. Every ad we create, every Melon University webinar we host, every blog we write and every piece of branded content we design has a purpose: to showcase what makes us different and to keep clients connected with the latest best practices in digital marketing. While
How to Connect with Gen Z Social Media Users
Gen Z — generally defined as those born between 1997 and 2012 — is the first generation to grow up entirely online with social media at their fingertips. From catchy TikTok dances to viral memes, this is how they connect. They value authenticity, speed and connection — they’ll “highkey” scroll past content that doesn’t resonate. And if your content doesn’t pass the “vibe check” in the first few seconds, it’s
Beyond Keywords: How ChatGPT-5 Redefines Search
OpenAI’s recent launch of ChatGPT-5 marks a significant shift in online search behavior. Even this blog’s feature image was created using ChatGPT-5 — a fitting example of how AI is no longer just a tool we talk about, but one we actively use to create and communicate. Originally kicking off the AI revolution with its previous large language model (LLM) ChatGPT-4 in 2023, OpenAI will likely continue to shape how