Google My Business (GMB) is a powerful, free tool that’s a must-have for businesses of all sizes. It’s like a snapshot of your business that showcases your best features and makes it easy for potential customers to find, learn, and engage with you—all from the SERP!
By optimizing your local search listings, you can make the most of your online presence and attract more customers. Find out how in our guide.
How Important Is Optimizing Your Google My Business Profile?
Did you know that 52% of all searches never leave the search engine results page? That’s because most of the information people need about a business can be found right there on the results page. And a lot of that information comes from the business’s Google My Business page.
Local SEO has never been more important to a small business and never has one platform (Google My Business) exerted such a huge influence over who gets seen and who doesn’t.
If your customers want to locate your new operating hours or contact you about your health and safety guidelines, you can bet they’re not going to riffle through the Yellow Pages. Instead, they’ll Google your company’s name and look in the right-hand panel for the information they require. If it isn’t there, chances are they’ll go somewhere else.
By optimizing your Google Business profile, you are telling Google that you are a relevant search result for those customers.
Find Out More on >>>> Local SEO Checklist – 10 Ways To Dominate Local Search Results
Create a Google Business Profile Account
Simply follow the steps and slider provided below
1: Go to https://www.google.com/business/ for the first step.
2: Select “Manage Now”.
3: Enter your business name and location.
4: Enter your company name and main business category.
5: Add a Google Maps location for people to visit.
6: Enter your company’s address.
7: Locate yourself on a map.
8: Answer all of Google’s questions
9: Enter your company phone number.
10: Select a method of verification.
Select a method to verify the page on Google Business Profile Set Up.
And there you have it! You’ve set up your Google Business Profile and are on the road to success.
Complete All The Sections
Research has found that 76% of people performing a local search on their smartphone visit a physical location within 24 hours, and 28% of those search queries result in a purchase. So if you want to get the most out of your Google business profile, it’s essential that you complete every section. Businesses that provide more detailed, up-to-date, and relevant information typically perform better in Google local search results.
Provide Your Actual Business Name And The Right Basic Information
It’s important to use your actual business information and nothing else when you’re creating your Google Business Page (GBP). This includes your business name, address, phone number (NAP), and other contact information.
Although some SEO strategy practitioners think that adding keywords to your business name will improve your ranking, it’s not necessary for ranking. If you do a quick search for keywords like “pizza”, you’ll notice that several of the businesses that come up don’t have the keyword in their name.
Instead, be sure to include your keywords in your business description and on other parts of your GBP. This will help you rank better and show potential customers that you’re relevant to their search.
Choose The Correct Business Category
When you create a Google Business Profile, you’re asked to choose your main business category. Most people are unaware that you can have up to ten different business categories.
Because Google pre-defines the categories, you can’t just enter your own, but it’s important to use the categories that best describe your business. You don’t want to use all ten categories because it will look cluttered. Instead, keep your categories to two or three.
A pizza restaurant, for example, may select “pizza restaurant” as the primary category, but “pizza delivery” as a secondary category and “catering” as another category. This classification allows you to appear when someone searches for “pizza near me” or “pizza delivery near me.”
Make Sure Your Opening Hours Are Always Up-to-date!
The bottom line is that you want people to be able to find your business when they need you. If your Google Business profile says you’re open but you’re actually closed, that’s a major problem!
You’re essentially setting an expectation with the customer that they can (1) reach you, (2) visit you, and (3) buy from you. If you’re not available when they need you at that moment, then you’ve lost their business.
Fortunately, you can update your hours at any time, and even add holiday hours in advance.
Add Photos
Want to make your business more visible online? Adding photos can help draw in potential customers and get you started on the path to success.
Google reports that businesses with photos see 42% more requests for driving directions and 35% more clicks on their website link than businesses without photos. Adding photos to your listing is an easy way to make your business more visible and engaging, so why not give it a try?
You don’t have to be a professional photographer or video editor. Sometimes even cell phone photos can do the trick. Google recommends that photos should be at least 720 x 720 pixels and saved in jpg or png format. They should also be no larger than 5MB in size.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Take photos of the exterior and interior of your business
- Showcase your most popular products
- Capture happy customers enjoying your products
- Take team or employee photos
Make A Video
Google also allows you to upload videos to a Google Business Profile profile.
Videos are a great way to show off your business, and they can be a maximum of 30 seconds long and 100 MB in size. For the best quality, make sure your videos are 720p or higher in resolution.
Verify Your Address
Don’t miss out on all the great features for your Google Business Profile- make sure to verify your business location!
The verification process is simple: you request a postcard be sent to a mailing address of your choice. Just make sure it’s a legitimate address with a dedicated mailbox – no P.O. Boxes or mailbox at a Postal Annex or UPS Store.
If you own a home-based business, don’t worry. You can hide your address and set a service area (either by mile radius or listing specific towns, cities, and zip codes) to show up in appropriate local searches.
Bottom line
Google Business Profile is a powerful tool to help you show up in the moments when your leads, prospects, and customers need you most.
Make sure you get the most out of it by following the steps above. Optimizing your profile GMB profile will help you attract more leads and convert them into customers. So what are you waiting for? Create your GMB account today.