Whether you’re just getting set up as a new business or you’ve been trading for a while, there seems to be no end to the various websites you need to sign up to or have a profile with. Today I’m going to tell you why you should definitely have a Google My Business profile!
You don’t need to me to tell you that Google is the most visited website in the world. In fact, it has a 92% majority share in the search engine market. You’re probably already obsessed with ranking high organically within search results and well as running Google Ads to attract more customers. But here is a FREE and relatively low maintenance way of doing so.
Google My Business is a FREE business listing
Creating a listing won’t cost you anything and can enhance your visibility within search results, on Google Maps and Google Shopping. On your Google My Business profile you can provide a wealth of information about your business such as:
- Your website address
- Your opening hours
- Your contact details
- Your products
- Your services
- Your physical location or where you provide your services
- Photographs
- Status updates, special offers and more!
Who should have a Google My Business Profile?
Google My Business is available to those who:
- Have a physical location that customers can visit (like a shop or café)
- Offer in-person services or deliveries (i.e. electricians or takeaway restaurants)
Basically so long as you have the capacity to offer customer/client-facing services then you can definitely sign up to Google My Business and take advantage of the increased visibility on offer.
What are the benefits of being on Google My Business?
Google My Business is a great tool for businesses big and small because that’s where the majority of us go when we’re trying to discover information about anything – be it a local business who can provide a service for us, a specific product or whether a certain store is open on the day we want to visit in-person. Other benefits include:
It’s great for local SEO
Did you know that 50% of people who conduct a local search on their smartphone visit the physical store within a day and 34% of people using computers or tablets do the same? If you’re looking at increasing your footfall to your brick-and-mortar store than you want to do everything you can to ensure people know where to find you! With a Google Business profile, you’ll appear in both search and Google Maps results when people are looking for businesses like yours or even for you directly.
Even if you don’t have a physical storefront, you’ll still benefit from local searches – just make sure you fill out the area(s) your services cover when completing your profile. This is great particularly for consultants, tradespeople and freelancers wanting to get word out about their offering in the local area.
Get reviews
Reviews on Google are the online version of word-of-mouth that:
A) Let’s people know you’re a legitimate business (i.e. you’re not a fraudster and someone has bought something from you/engaged your services)
B) Influences the decision of prospective customers as to whether they buy from you or not
Take control of your business info
Providing you regularly update your Google My Business profile, those who find you online will be able to see when you’re open (including at crucial holiday times), what offers you have on, how to contact you and where to find out more about you. There are also some great features that come with Google My Business such as the ability to get instant messages from prospects and a feature to easily create a landing page/mini website for your business if you don’t have an existing one. All of these together ultimately make it as easy as possible for you to communicate with your target audience and help them to trust in your business.
List Products
If your business sells products then you can upload them to your Google My Business profile and they may appear in Google Shopping results – essentially creating a bit of free product advertising for you!
Showcase Your Services
Fear not, service providers! You can populate your Google My Business profile with all of the services you offer to boost your visibility within search. Try to use the terms that your customers would be looking for when filling this section out to maximise your chances of appearing for said services!
So will you be setting up a Google My Business profile if you don’t already have one? Let me know your thoughts below in the comments and don’t hesitate to get in touch should you need any assistance in getting started or optimising your profile as part of your digital marketing strategy!