Google has over 1.2 billion unique users every month and is a powerful marketing opportunity for businesses. One way to utilise this, is to optimise your Google My Business page. Google My Business is a free, easy-to-use tool for businesses to manage their online presence across the Google landscape. By simply verifying and adding the necessary business information, you can help customers find your business.
The benefits of Google My Business
With Google My Business, you can manage the information that Google users see when they search for your business or the products and services you offer. Businesses that have verified their information with Google My Business are twice as likely to be considered reputable by consumers - so when people find your business on Google, make sure that they have access to your business information like your website, opening hours, address and telephone number.
You can also read and respond to reviews from your customers using your Google My Business profile, as well as posting images to show off what your business does. Businesses that have added images to their listings receive 35% more clicks through to their website than other businesses that don’t.
Brand search vs. Non-Brand search
Brand search is your business name, while non-brand search is much broader and is made up of search terms that are relevant to your business. Google My Business plays an equally important role in the search visibility of both types of search. While your GMB alone is just one part of the complexity of Search Engine Optimisation, by optimising your GMB page, Google will have more accurate information about your business. As well as association with your website to help with non-brand search.
Google My Business has room to grow
Google specifically designed Google My Business to be easily managed by any small business owner, and new features are being added on a regular basis, so keep an eye on your dashboard for updates.
One great example is their foot traffic feature for store locations. Businesses that see lots of foot traffic may see the “popular times” information in the GMB panel. This feature gathers location information from smartphone users that opted-in to Googles’ location services and shows the locations busiest times. We expect that this kind of real-time information will become more common in Google products going forward.
We take a proactive approach to optimising Google My Business, establishing trust and visibility to the people near you. If you’d like to find out how Ascensor can help you get the most out of your Google My Business page, get in touch.