When you list your service area, it lets customers know the geographic area where you can provide your products and services. Learn about some of the common issues and problems Service Area Businesses experience in GMB and how to solve them. Yes, the Google My Business listing is completely free. You can use this marketing tool to promote your business on local search engines and maps for additional reach.
This is a great way to increase traffic and sales from locals. It’s my feeling that Google has made this unnecessarily complicated, treating small businesses unequally by not giving them the same dedicated dashboard that larger brands enjoy. Google uses calculations known as “algorithms” to determine the order in which they list businesses for public viewing. The easiest and fastest way to show up in the search feed is to have a Google Business Profile listing.
Google relies heavily on volunteer support in their Google Business Profile Help Community Forum and you can post most issues there in hopes of a reply from the general public or from volunteer contributors titled Gold Product Experts. It’s best for each local business to have its own company account, instead of marketing agencies using their accounts to manage clients’ local business profiles. Once the business you’re marketing has a Google account and you’ve determined that it’s eligible for Google Business Profile inclusion, you can create a single local business profile by starting here, using Google’s walkthrough wizard to get listed. A complete local SEO campaign will include management of the many components of the Google Business Profile profile, as well as managing listings on other location data and review platforms, social media publication, image and video production and distribution, and a strong focus on the organic and local optimization of the company website.
Eligibility to be listed within the Google Business Profile setting is governed by the Guidelines for representing your business on Google, which is a living document that undergoes frequent changes. As I mentioned, these spammy categories are typically Service Area Business and include locksmiths, plumbers, pest control services, HVAC, etc. How many impressions happened surrounding searches for your business name or location (called Direct), general searches that don’t specify your company by name but relate to what you offer (called Discovery), and searches relating to brands your business carries (called Branded). Feed Google everything they need to view the businesses you’re marketing as the most relevant answers to people in close proximity to brand locations so that the companies you promote become the prominent local resources in Google’s index.
You would claim only one Google My Business listing and not include your physical address in that listing. In fact, Google has reported that 46% of all searches have local intent and that business location is the main piece of information sought by local searchers. Determine the business model (brick-and-mortar, service area business, home-based business, or hybrid). Your job, then, is to be vigilant about both the best and worst aspects of the fascinating Google Business Profile platform, taking as much control as you can of how customers experience your brand in Google’s territory.
SocialPilot allows you to schedule Google Business Profile posts right from your dashboard to keep customers updated.