It does not matter whether you sell a product or service, if you own a business one of your most important assets is your Google My Business account page. Google is local.
When a user searches for a local business, product, or place near their location, they’ll find local results across Google, in places like Google Maps and Search. For example, you will find local results if you search for “best dentist near me” from your mobile device. Google tries to show you the physical locations of dentist nearby that you’d like to visit.
One of the best things about your Google My Business page is that you can compete on equal footing with the large franchise or corporate chains. There’s no way to request or pay for a better local ranking on Google. Google does their best to keep the search algorithm details confidential, to make the ranking system as fair as possible for everyone.
To rank high for mobile searches you must do your keyword research, build your landing pages, make sure your local citations are accurate and listed, and that you deploy a strategic plan to supply local content to potential customers.
Every business owner should use Google My Business to claim their business listing and update their business information on a regular basis. If you find your business is not showing up for relevant searches in your area, it’s time to make sure your listing is updated to improve visibility.
Local results favor the most relevant results for each search. Businesses with complete and accurate information are easier to match with the right searches. Here are a few tips to follow.
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ENTER COMPLETE AND ACCURATE DATA
To increase your chance of ranking higher in local SEO, make sure you’ve entered complete business information in Google My Business, so users know what you do, where you are, and when they can visit. Provide information like, but not limited to, your:
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- Physical address
- Phone number
- Categories
- Service areas
- Attributes
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VERIFY YOUR BUSINESS
Make sure you have verified your business location with Google.
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BUSINESS HOURS
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- Keep your hours accurate.
- Make sure to enter any special holiday hours or closings.
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GOOGLE REVIEWS
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- Manage and respond to reviews.
- Have a system in place to encourage your customers to leave reviews on Google and make sure someone is monitoring those reviews to respond to all reviews, good or bad, within 24 – 48 hours.
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GOOGLE PHOTOS
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- Add Photos on a consistent basis.
- Add short videos.
- Tell the story of your business, showcase your products or services, showcase your staff and facilities.
- Optimize your photos with metatags, titles, alt text.
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GOOGLE POSTS
Google Post let you connect with potential customers
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- Connect with existing and potential customers.
- Improve your customer experience with timely information.
- Promote sales, events, specials, new staff, awards, and offers.
- Engage with your client base through video and images.
- Post should include text and images.
- Post more than a week old get archived, so have a strategic plan to post weekly.
“Many businesses make the mistake of thinking Google My Business is a “one and done” activity” says Bob Cates, Co-Founder of Ten Peaks Media and Director of Digital Strategy, “They don’t realize the power this tool provides their business. We’ve had great success increasing the measurable metrics of website visits, phone calls and requests for directions for every business we’ve worked with. It’s one of our most popular services offered.”
Google determines local search ranking factor based primarily on relevance, distance, and prominence. A combination of these factors helps Google find the best match for a user’s search.
For example, if your business profile is not optimized and you’re not following a strategic plan to generate reviews, respond to reviews, add optimized images and videos, and keep your post current, then Google algorithms might decide that a competitor that’s farther away from the searcher’s location is more likely to have what they are looking for than your business that’s closer, and therefore rank your competitor higher in local results.
If you need help, the Google My Business Maps and Directory Listings Management service provided by Ten Peaks Media is a vital service to build your online presence. When properly optimized and utilized, it is one of the quickest and easiest ways for your business to show up in local search results making it easy for customers to find information about your business, staff, products, services, and special events or offers.
