How to Optimise Your Google My Business Listing
Google My Business (GMB) is one of the most powerful tools brands have to attract and convert customers via the search engine.
Why? Because this free and easy-to-use resource allows you to add your company’s contact information and relevant content to Google Maps and local results of Google Search.
This surefire method for capturing attention from your target market allows you to drive consumers directly to your online and brick-and-mortar stores. This means a perfectly optimised Google My Business profile will help you outperform the competition.
However, optimising your Google My Business listing involves much more than simply adding the correct street address.
Why Optimise Your Google Business Profile?
Your Google My Business profile is one of the most common ways for customers to discover your brand.
By adding your most important contact information and implementing a range of Google business site SEO techniques, you can dramatically enhance your profile and ensure it climbs the local rankings.
The Google Knowledge Panel, Google Maps and Google Local Pack impact your company’s online visibility significantly. So appearing consistently in these types of search results helps you boost your bottom line.
Being amongst the lucky few when someone in your area searches for “best restaurants near me” or “top hairdressers melbourne” means your online and foot traffic experiences a massive surge.
Tips for Optimising Your Google My Business Listing
Google My Business profiles might look relatively simple, but there’s a myriad of ways they can be enhanced to deliver huge success. Here, we highlight some of the best local listing optimisation techniques that will make a tangible difference.
Be Consistent
Google has to do everything in its power to keep the Search product performing great. This means they are almost entirely focused on providing users with the most accurate information at every moment.
Therefore, you want to make sure the information you provide for your Google My Business profile is listed the same everywhere it appears on the internet. Known as Name, Address and Phone Number (NAP) data, you might have created pages on other citation websites like Yelp or TripAdvisor to capture more attention.
Ensure your NAP data is consistent wherever it appears online. This way, Google’s algorithms can verify your information and share it with people conducting relevant searches.
List Your Hours Accurately
Everyone has used Google to check whether a shop is open before jumping in the car. But there’s hardly anything more annoying than making the journey only to discover it was closed the whole time.
With this in mind, regularly updating your store’s hours is imperative. Across the average working week, during the holiday season and any unexpected closures, doing so ensures you maintain a strong reputation amongst your customer base.
If you fail to list your hours accurately, you can expect angry customers to leave one-star reviews on your Google My Business listing. Not only will this harm trust with your customers, but Google might also place you lower in the rankings.
Write a Detailed Business Description
Increase your Google business ranking by crafting a compelling description of your operation. Fortunately, Google gives you a rather generous 750 characters to get your ideal message across to customers.
This is your chance to pitch your services to your target market directly, so don’t create a lacklustre description that fails to highlight your brand’s strengths.
With a sharply written, keyword-driven message that sets you apart, you can drive more customers to check out your website or head in-store. Don’t be afraid to show off your personality to really solidify this connection.
Select a Business Category
You can improve your Google local listing optimisation using categories that ensure you can accurately convey what your business is about.
With around 4000 categories to choose from, a precise category alongside your listing signals what customers can expect when they click on your profile.
While this might sound like a small feature, selecting the most accurate category for your products and services ensures you reach a precise customer base.
You’ll also have fewer companies to compete against and avoid disappointing customers who got the wrong impression from a misleading category.
Upload High-Quality Photos and Videos
Whether potential customers are browsing on their desktop computer or mobile device, uploading attractive images and videos to your Google My Business listing adds another appealing dimension.
Naturally, high-quality photos are great for showcasing the aesthetic quality of your products. However, images can also be used to highlight the appearance of your shop so customers never have a problem identifying it from the street.
You can also upload videos to your Google My Business listing. Get creative and produce a short introduction to your shop or publish a how-to guide on your most popular product.
Generate Stellar Reviews
Online reviews have the power to make or break a business. As customers put as much faith in Google Reviews as they do with advice from friends and family, ensuring your business maintains a top-notch rating is critical to your success.
Alongside the obvious benefits of an incredible star rating, receiving Google Reviews showcases to both customers and the search engine algorithm that your business is active. This means you’re more likely to receive attention in relevant searches.
With an estimated 63% of customers checking reviews on Google before deciding to visit a store, employing strategies that generate exceptional feedback is a smart way to level up your business.
Respond to Negative Reviews
Although positive reviews are what everyone wants on Google, there are savvy ways to navigate negative feedback that might even enhance your reputation with customers.
Most people understand that no business can satisfy each and every customer that comes through their door forever. By crafting honest and transparent responses to negative reviews, you can express your genuine desire to reach a suitable solution.
Instead of letting a negative review remain unchallenged or ignored, show your customer base that you care about their opinions and mitigate the impact of harmful opinions.
Update Your Listing with News
Many businesses don’t realise a Google My Business listing can be used to keep your customers up to date on the latest information regarding your business.
Just as you would share a Facebook or Instagram post, you can make status updates across several post types, including COVID-19, Offers, Products, What’s New and Events.
Alongside these post types, the action button can be used for different purposes. For example, businesses can add coupon codes to their Offer posts to boost conversions.
While your target market will definitely appreciate these announcements, regular updates also signal to Google’s algorithm that your business cares about its local listing.
Add Products and Services
The best way to increase your Google My Business visibility is by making things as easy as possible for your customers.
By adding your brand’s specific products and services directly to your profile, relevant customers already know what your business sells before they decide to visit your website.
These listings provide potential customers with all the information they need to convert, including the product’s name, price, high-quality images, a detailed description and a URL to your product page.
Optimise your Google My Business with your top products and services to drive more customers to your website or physical location.
Answer Customer Questions
Did you know customers can ask questions directly on your Google My Business profile? Although this is probably one of GMB’s most underutilised features, it presents a great opportunity to share extra information about your business.
Rather than letting questions go unanswered and potentially signalling that you don’t care about customer concerns, a detailed response will help establish trust with your target market.
If a customer has asked a good question that you want to highlight, you can “like” their post to make it appear at the top of the section. This ensures customers can clearly see if their frequently asked question has already received an answer.
Chat with the Experts
Don’t underestimate the power of Google My Business and Local SEO optimisations when looking to enhance how your company reaches local customers.
By optimising your profile with the information that matters most to your target market, you can boost website traffic, in-store foot traffic and overall profitability.
With a personalised Google My Business strategy from the expert team at First Page Australia, we’ll ensure your listing is regularly updated with content that drives conversions.
Get started with our highly experienced digital marketers to learn how we’ll attract your target market and enhance your search engine rankings. Also, you might want to check our SEO Melbourne, SEO Adelaide and SEO Perth pages and learn how to scale your business by doing SEO.