Google My Business is a free tool offered by Google that allows organisations and businesses to instantly manage their online presence in Google search results and Google Maps. This allows for better visibility at a local level, as users are shown a list of businesses in their area when searching. Thus, they can locate and select one of their nearest ones, having at their disposal a wealth of information, such as:
- their address
- their working hours
- their website
- photos and videos
- reviews
For 2021, "Google My Business" was the marketing asset of every business!
Publish your Google My Business Listing
In order to get the most out of Google My Business Listing, you'll need to use all the features it offers by filling in the listing details.
Let's look at some basic, but important tips that can optimize your listing:
1. Fill in the full details of your business in the Listing
Local search results tend to favour the most relevant search results. Therefore, businesses that offer the most detailed and accurate information make it easier for Google to display and prioritise them in search results.
In any case, this is not only important for Google. It's also important for users, among whom are your potential customers. The more information you provide in the Listing, the more likely they are to choose you over the competition. Don't force your prospective clients to guess or assume.
In your Google My Business Listing it should be clear what your business does, where it's located and how people can get the products or services it offers. Also, mentioning additional features of the business, such as whether wifi is provided or whether there is disabled access, can differentiate you from the competition.
2. Add photos
Another good way to stand out in the market is to add a sufficient number of quality photos, depending on the type of your business. We recommend adding at least 6 photos, and for businesses with facilities, such as restaurants, for example, at least 10. The more, the better! Photos help business listings pay off much more than marketers and entrepreneurs would expect.
According to Google, businesses with photos in their listing, accept 42% more questions about location directions from Google Maps and 35% more clicks that lead to their website, compared to businesses that have not posted photos.
Make sure your photos meet Google's specifications:
File format: JPG or PNG
Size: From 10KB to 5MB
Minimum analysis: 720px height, 720px width
Quality: The photo must be stable, well-focused, sharp and well-lit, and not subject to distortion or excessive use of filters. It should also be true to reality.
It goes without saying that an attractive Cover Photo is equally essential.
3. Optimize Google Business Description
As you write the description, you should focus on two main objectives:
1. Convince a potential client to choose you
There is no magic trick here. Make sure you use the 750 characters available to you to accurately describe your business, exactly what it offers and give people a good reason to choose you.
2. Help Google understand you better
Just like traditional SEO, Google uses a range of cues to decide what to display in search results. That's why it's very important to include as many relevant keywords and phrases to your business for search as possible. It's not as complicated as it sounds, in fact you're more likely to add more keywords than you need, rather than the other way around. For example, if you have an Italian restaurant, it's enough to include the description "Italian restaurant" once.
4. Use local posts
A great way to connect with your audience is to upload various information in the form of posts, while keeping your Google presence active.
You can post offers, products, services, events and events directly to Google Search and Maps, via Google My Business post.
Follow some tips to get more out of posting:
Text range: Posts have a 1500 character limit, but we suggest you keep the text short and "to the point". Only the first 7 or 8 words are visible and users have to click to read more, so make sure you get your message through as quickly as possible.
Images: Any photo or video you upload should be of high quality. And videos are a particularly powerful tool for capturing the interest of your audience, so if you have the footage, make sure you make the most of it.
Follow the guidelines below:
- Image size:
Minimum: 400 width x 300 pixels high, 10kb
Maximum: 10,000 x 10,000 pixels, 25 MB
- Video size: file size (AVI, MP4, MOV, etc.) can reach 100 MB maximum
Call-To-Action: Google My Business offers a number of CTA buttons that you should definitely take advantage of. The options offered vary and depend on the type of post you have, and there are some CTA buttons that are commonly found, such as: Learn More, Order Online, Buy Now! Buy now, buy now, buy now, etc. It is important that links lead the user to an effective and relevant landing page.
5. Get and manage Customer Reviews
Another category that users visit in order to decide is the reviews. These are an important help to convince your potential customers to choose you. The simplest and most effective way to start getting some reviews is to simply ask for them!
However, many businesses stop there. The way you contact your customers by responding to their reviews shows that you value them and their feedback. Positive reviews will have a correspondingly positive impact on potential customers when they search for your business. But how you handle negative reviews can have an equally positive effect. Plus, they increase the visibility of your business in search results.