Setting yourself up with a Google Business profile is now an essential part of any digital marketing strategy.
Originally set up in June 2014, and at the time called Google My Business, it replaced Google Places and the now defunct Google+ Local dashboards, giving users the power to control all their business information in one place.
What is Google Business?
Google Business is a free online tool that you can use to manage and optimise your business profile on the world’s most used search engine. It allows you to display relevant information about your business on your business profile, such as:
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Business hours
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Description
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Contact details
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Business address
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Physical location
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Customer reviews
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Business name
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Images
Google uses a verification method to prove that a business listing is yours, and verification comes with significant benefits. A Google Business profile can not only help people find your business and services but verified businesses on Google are twice as likely to be considered reputable.
Why is a Google Business profile so important?
A Google Business profile allows you to control the information that people see regarding your business. A well-maintained Google Business profile can help customers discover your products and services, contact information, locations, ratings and reviews.
It also allows the user to manage how their business shows up across Google’s suite of products, like Ads, Maps and Search. These are an important trio of modern business marketing functions, and the latter is particularly important, for those all-important ‘near me’ searches.
What are the benefits:
Highlights your business
Many businesses use Google Business to boost their search visibility and facilitate discovery searches. This is incredibly effective, as more than half of shoppers say they use Google to discover a new brand.
Having a Google Business profile is great way to boost your Google SERP. It's also easy to update your free business profile to keep your information as accurate and up to date, so you can avoid any confusion when customers find your business online.
Improves your search ranking
It's essential that Google Business is a part of your local SEO marketing strategy. Businesses with a location are far more likely to appear on search engine results than businesses without a location.
Listing your business location means you can be found more easily against local search results.This is because the Google algorithm favours complete business profiles, ranking them higher in local results.
Taps into local SEO even without a location
If you don't have a physical address customers can visit, you can still find value in having a business profile.
A business that covers a certain service area can benefit from SEO rankings by providing a location. You can also benefit from increased web traffic by linking your business website to your business account.
Improves physical location visits
The amount of people using the search term 'near me' or 'close by' has increased exponentially over the last few years. 46% of all Google searched are seeking local information and over the last two years ‘near me’ or ‘close by’ searches increased in popularity by over 900%.
Build trust with consumers
More and more customers want reassurance before they make a purchase or make use of a businesses’ services.
Your Google Business profile can convey up to date, complete and accurate information to your customers. It can also allow you to regularly publish posts, pictures and update the cover photo of your existing business profile.
Boostcredibility online
Google Business profiles also show reviews, positive and negative from your customers and patrons.
Positive Google reviews can give you a massive boost of credibility and may make your business more appealing to customers. Likewise, negative reviews can negatively impact your online credibility, and the likelihood of people utilising your business.
Provide useful data and feedback
As a business owner, you may be worried about negative reviews appearing on a popular public platform. Negativity to a certain extent is inevitable online, but a bad review can be treated as an opportunity to improve or develop your services.
Google finds that a combination of bad and good business reviews to be more trustworthy. By responding consistently to bad reviews on your business listing, your customers will know you value their feedback, and that you react accordingly.
Gain insights and form a strategy
Google Business profiles have their own insights tool that offers valuable analytics. These analytics offer a breakdown of critical information, such as your customer demographics and how visible your business is.
Insights such as these help you understand the sorts of customers your business is attracting and why. With this information, you can modify your communication and marketing strategies and optimise your Google Ads for greater success.
Utilise category-specific features
The features included with your Google Business profile will vary with each primary category. Features such as class ratings and amenities, for example, are only available for hotels.
Using your Google Business profile manager, you are allowed to select up to ten categories for your business. This is especially useful if you have a multiple category business, such as a hotel and spa.
Categorising your business appropriately will have greater results from the get-go, as it will immediately place you and your business within an appropriate online peer group.
Google Business is more than just here to stay, it has become one of the most crucial modern business tools for both business owner and consumer alike.
A well-built and well-maintained Google Business presence can be the difference between a customer going with you, or going with your competitor.
Both small and larger businesses can benefit greatly from an official business profile on Google my business.
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