Think of it this way, if you could market your business or services for free with the most popular search engine, why wouldn’t you. I would argue that if you are going to only spend your marketing budget in one place (i.e., paying someone else to do the digital marketing for you), Google My Business is the place.
We see instantaneous results with our clients. It’s a great ‘outside the box’ angle for terms that you may have tried to rank for with website on-page SEO and failed. Let’s face it some search terms in some industries are incredibly competitive. Even in those cases, when we’ve hammered the keyword phrases throughout Google My Business in the posts, Services, Products Pictures, Description, meta tags and more, we get results. Those results can be quantified by seeing exactly what search terms people use to find your site in GMB. A nice offshoot is you can then use those search terms for on-page SEO of your website.
Those results also translate into phone calls . In GMB Insights, you can see exactly the number of phone calls. Also website visits.
On the Home page of GMB, note that there will be a description of what percentage views have gone up for Map Views and Search Views in the past month. So you can immediately see how your work is paying off. We’ve seen increases of as much as 70%. Of course sometimes views go down compared to the last time period. But generally, if some work is done, there is a pretty dramatic increase in views. Google themselves say that they like to see activity, so even a couple of cleverly SEO named images every so often can make a big difference.
We’ve also noticed that often the blog posts that are short, like a paragraph short, with a nice image and a link get the most views and clicks. So it’s not like you have to spend a lot of time crafting blog post copy worthy of Jane Eyre.
Here is an overview of the super info on Ten Proven Benefits of GMB and How to Use It from BUSINESS 2 COMMUNITY:
1. Google My Business is Free
One of GMB’s best features is that it’s free! Simply click here to sign up and fill out your profile with all the needed information such as contact numbers,a website, pictures, location, etc. (I’d like to add that it is intuitive and very easy to use.)
2. Google My Business Makes You Visible
Google is one of the largest search engines in the world. Google receives over 63,000 searches per second on any given day.
GMB listings get priority on the first page of local Google searches and Maps queries.
For example, when we searched for “Coffee shops in New York.” You’ll notice that a section of GMB listing appears before ranking websites. (Or Web Designers in Vancouver, BC for that matter. 🙂
3. Google My Business Ensures Online Consistency
As your business grows or undergoes changes, you want to be able to keep your customers informed and educated simultaneously.
One of the seven things that can make customers hate your business is searching for your contact details and jumping through hoops to find you.
(I can attest to that. And can putting Social icons linking to your profiles on the top left of the page become convention please? I’m not sure how many businesses and bloggers I’ve bailed on after spending time trying searching their website in vain for the FB or Insta icon to follow them)
4. Google My Business Images Provides a Great First Impression
Having a GMB page adds a digitally savvy touch to your online branding because it shows customers that you’re willing to stay updated and modern. Catering to their digital needs so they can quickly call/connect, purchase, and repeat.
5. Google My Business Improves SEO
Your Google My Business can be one of your most powerful SEO tools. But it’s not enough to add a few contact details. You’ll have to optimize your Google My Business to see the best results. (Honestly, we’ve seen big results with not a lot of work. It may be that after I’ve done 40 GMB pages for various clients it seems easy, but I do think it is easy for beginners.)
This looks good too: Optimize Your Business for Local Searches with These 8 Google My Business SEO Tips.
6. Google My Business Easily Host Customer Reviews
Google My Business allows customers to leave ratings, reviews, and images on your listing. Think of it as a more modern and personalized version of Yelp.
Don’t wait for customers to go to your Google My Business Account. Instead, share a short URL with customers on your online and social media platform to drive reviews your way.
Also, respond to reviews, the good and the bad.
7. Google My Business Helps Gain Customer Insight
Get customer insight from your GMB listing and use it to improve your business.
Google’s GMB insight focuses on how customers find your listing on Search and Maps, and what they do after they find it. This data includes information like:
- How many views your listing had.
- How and where customers find your listings.
- Actions customers take on your listings.
- And other interactions customers have with your GMB listing.
(You’ll see it on the left of your business profile – Insights.)
8. Google My Business Completes Your Google Profile
Google has created the holy grail of digital marketing for business. Having a Google My Business Account helps you to complete your Google Profile.
Having your GMB account is connected to Google Maps, Google Adwords, Google Analytics, Tag Manager, and more.
Having access to these high powered tools allows you not only to rank and optimize your brand but helps to keep your business up to date with digital trends.
(Let that one sink in. Basically what I was trying to put to words in the intro, but succinct and effectively done.)
9. Google My Business could be a source for a basic website for your Business
We spoke about SEO and customer reviews, but did you know that Google My Business also has a website creation feature?
Best of all your website is free to create!
Once you’ve created your Google My Business account, your website will auto-generates info from your profile, plus you can customize it with text, photos, and design themes.
All you’ll need to do is purchase a domain and connect your Google Analytics account. (There are some limitations to this type of website, though).
10. Google My Business is the Future of Online Marketing
Google is constantly expanding and growing in data and online features for consumers and business.
They’re already a billion dollar giant that has scratched the surface creating online tools to help small and big businesses to increase sales and brand awareness.
Don’t wait until it’s too late to start tapping into the power of Google, start by creating a Google My Business and take your steps into the new form of online branding.
Summary
Signing up for Google My Business is a small step into a brighter future. But at the end of the day, GMB is just a tool until you put it to work. Remember to optimize and update your GMB listing weekly, monthly or quarterly.
Take care of your Google My Business listing and it will take care of you.
Here’s a quick recap of the ten benefits of using Google My Business:
- Google My Business is Free
- Google My Business Makes You Visible
- Google My Business Ensures Consistency
- Google My Business Images Provides a Great First Impression
- Google My Business Improves SEO
- Google My Business Easily Host Customer Reviews
- Google My Business Helps Gain Customer Insight
- Google My Business completes your Google Profile
- Google My Business Offer an Official Website For Your Business
- Google My Business is the Future of Online Marketing
Thank you for the clear and informative post BUSINESS 2 COMMUNITY, we couldn’t agree more! Read the full post.
More…
We’ve found this great pieces at SEMRush.com: https://www.semrush.com/blog/google-my-business/
About Us
Lara Spence web design in Vancouver, BC caters to small to medium businesses that are looking for good-value services.
We know how to make the most of a frugal budget. We will write an engaging SEO’d blog post for your website, complete with SEO’d images and metas. We will use that content to create a blog post on GMB with images, upload the images to the Pictures section, use the content in the Services and Products sections where applicable. Also, the same content can be posted on your social media platforms and /or even used in an enews letter!
We specialize in all things digital marketing including copy writing, enews creation, ecomm website design, brochure website design, social media marketing, graphic design, google adwords campaigns, google analytics reporting (we use other tools too) and of course fleshing out and maintaining Google My Business profiles.
Contact Lara Spence Web Design in Vancouver, BC today!
Email: lara@laraspence.com
Phone: 604-828-4249
Contact Form: https://laraspence.com/contact/https://laraspence.com/contact/