So, what is Google Business Profile?
Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business) is a tool that lets you manage how your business appears across Google Search and Maps. As well as letting potential customers know the physical location of your business, a Google Business Profile listing will increase your visibility online.
Google is the world’s most-visited website. The site currently holds more than 92% of search engine market share. Creating a Google Business Profile is important to get new customers for your business in 2022
Why you need a Google My Business account
Get discovered in Google (and Google Maps)
Whether you’re looking for foot traffic or web traffic, Google is the ultimate search referrer. A Google Business Profile helps ensure that people find your business when looking for products and services like yours in their local area.
Your Google My Business listing shows searchers where and how to visit your business. A Google Business Profile also improves your local SEO. In particular, a listing for a local business is more likely to appear when people search for a nearby business using Google Maps.
Build trust through reviews
Reviews are a key element of social proof, and a meaningful way to build trust and credibility.
Google’s combined star rating and space for detailed reviews allows customers to share as much or as little information about their experience with your business as they like. All of it helps future potential customers decide which businesses to visit and products to buy.
It can be scary to think about reviews coming in on such a public platform, especially since you can’t pick and choose which Google My Business reviews to share. (Although you can respond to all reviews)
But don’t panic: Google finds that a combination of positive and negative reviews is more trustworthy than page after page of glowing recommendations.
Google My Business improves your SEO
SEO, or search engine optimisation, is the process of boosting your website’s position in search engine results pages with organic web traffic and other ranking factors.
Having a Google My Business listing is one of the main drivers of local SEO success, helping customers not only to find your physical location but discover your website too. Put simply, Google My Business will help your website’s visibility.
Control your online business information
Your Google My Business profile allows you to control and update your contact information, business hours, and other essential details as needed.
You can post updates to share that you’ve expanded services, temporarily closed, or fully reopened (an especially useful feature during emergencies like COVID-19). Google Business Profiles have strong local SEO, so the information you share will rank above third-party sites that might have out-of-date details.
How to optimize your Google My Business profile
Google determines local search ranking based on three factors:
- Relevance: How well your Google My Business listing matches a search
- Distance: How far your location is from the search or searcher
- Prominence: How well-known your business is (based on factors like links, number of reviews, review score, and SEO)
Here are some steps you can take to maximize your score for all three factors.
Complete all elements of your profile
Customers are over 2x more likely to consider your business reputable if you have a complete Google Business Profile. They’re also 70% more likely to actually visit your location.
Google specifically says that “businesses with complete and accurate information are easier to match with the right searches.” This improves your score for relevance. The key here is to tell Google visitors “what you do, where you are, and when they can visit.”
Verify your location(s)
Verified business locations are “more likely to show in local search results across Google products, like Maps and Search.” Including a verified location also helps improve your score for the distance ranking factor.
If you skipped over verifying your location in the account creation steps above, request your verification postcard now at https://business.google.com/.
Add real images and videos of your business
Your Google Business Profile includes a logo and cover photo. Use images consistent with those on your social profiles to make it easier for people to recognize your brand.
But don’t stop there. Add images and videos to showcase your location, work environment, and team.
If you run a restaurant, post pictures of your meals, menus, and dining room. Make sure they look appetizing, professional, and aren’t low res. According to Google, businesses with photos receive more requests for directions and more clicks through to their websites.
Food For Thought
Make sure to edit your business profile if you change your hours of operation, contact information, etc. Nothing annoys customers more than showing up within operating hours only to find you closed.
If you have special hours for holidays or even as a one-off, make sure they are reflected in your Google Business Profile.
For our Google Business Profile(Google My Business services) consult us today and we can get your business up and running in no time!