Why an Optimized Google My Business is a MUST Have for Every Business

Without an optimized Google My Business profile, it's very difficult for your business to be listed on the first page of Google and nearly impossible to get to the top 3 positions. Google My Business helps your website rank better and pop up first when customers are searching for things related to your business. If your business is not optimized on Google My Business, you can learn more about why Google My Business is a must-have for any type of business throughout this article.

How Google My Business Affects Local Search

Having an optimized Google My Business profile allows your business to pop up when customers are looking for things related to your business, or when a customer is searching for things near your business’s location. For example, if you search for “Mexican restaurants near me” they will find results in places like maps and search, by having an optimized Google My Business profile, it will allow your business to rank higher in searches. Google looks at three things to determine a business’s rank. The first is relevance, referring to how well a local Business Profile matches what someone is searching for. The second is distance, referring to how far each potential search result is from the location term used in a search. And the third being prominence, referring to how well known a business is.

Control Your Information and Service Offerings

By having an optimized Google My Business Profile, you can control every aspect of your business, one being your information and service offerings. With your Google My Business account, you can control your hours, details about your business (wheelchair accessible, parking, etc,) as well as your service offerings. With your Google My Business account, you can let customers know what products and services you have to offer. When local customers search on Google for a service you offer, that service may be highlighted on your profile. Customers on mobile devices can also find all your services under "Services."

Manage, Highlight and Respond to Reviews

By having a Google My Business profile, customers can leave reviews about your business. Reviews from your customers can provide valuable feedback for your business. You can reply to reviews, which can help build customer trust.

A few tips for responding to customer reviews:

• Be nice and don’t get personnel

• Keep it short and sweet

• Thank your reviewers

• Be a friend, not a salesperson

Learn About Customers

Having a verified Google My Business profile, helps your business gain trust. Customers are 70% more likely to visit a business with a Google My Business Profile. Trust is a huge factor when it comes to purchasing decisions, the more confident a customer is, the more likely they are to make a purchase. Another key factor when it comes to learning about your customers is reviews. You always want to be sure to respond to customer reviews, even if they are negative. Research by Think With Google found that 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personnel recommendations.

Use Insights to Optimize your Marketing and Website

Insights on the Goole My Business dashboard lets you know how customers find your business online within the past 28 days.

With insights you can learn:

• Where users came from

• Actions taken

• Common words that led people to your profile

• How your posts are performing with potential customers

Insights can also help you with your business marketing strategy. You can see what works, and what doesn’t when advertising your business online by looking at your business’s insights on Google My Business.

How to Get Your Business Listed on Google My Business

It can sometimes be a tough task getting your business listed and verified on Google My Business. The first step in this process is to get verified. To get verified, you will need to get into Google My Business, sign up, and review your business’s information. After this you will be asked to verify, to do so Google My Business will send a postcard in the mail to your location, and it should arrive within two weeks. When you receive the postcard there will be a code you type in on Google My Business to get verified.

The following is a list of materials a business needs to properly fill out the listing information:

• Images – We recommend 10 images ready.

• Your Name

• Your Business Name (do not add location-specific information.)

• Business Address – Make sure this matches what’s on your website and also what is on your Articles of Incorporation. Don’t ever add your suite number to the 1st address line and don’t use the word Suite or Apartment, just use # sign (#1010)

• Phone number – be sure this is your BUSINESS line, not a cell number or a toll-free number.

• Website URL

• List of Keywords

• Email account set up in Google

Advice when completing your listing:

• Better to use ZIP codes than a radius when selecting the areas your business serves.

• Don’t have overlapping service areas on the map.

• Better to put “call for appointment” if you don’t keep standard hours or work from home.

When Completing the description area about your business:

• Use bold for the brand name and services, but use sparingly.

• Use bullet points and not comma-separated lists.

• Link to specific product pages within the description, not just your website.

Get Help Setting up and Managing your GMB Account

Here at Illuminate Digital, we have been helping business owners listed and found by customers since 2017. We are here to do the same for you. Would you like to learn more about Google My Business set up and management services for your business? Call us today and get a free consultation and learn how GMB services bring more customers to your website and increase your bottom line. Call today 319-310-4648 or visit www.illuminatedigital.net