This can be a missed opportunity for customers to quickly see appealing aspects of your business in Clearwater, Sarasota or St. Petersburg.
Not to mention, your listing allows you to engage with customers. When consumers feel heard and significant, you create repeat buyers, and people begin to trust you and your brand.
Here are a few steps you can take to optimize your GMB listing and start benefiting in various ways within your business.
Optimizing Your Google My Business Listing
Your Google My Business listing, otherwise known as your Business Profile, is a golden opportunity for promoting your business. But only if your Business Profile is optimized.
Would you click on a Business Profile that wasn’t visually appealing or even filled out? Probably not. So, avoid handing valuable potential customers to your competitors by taking these six steps to optimize your Google My Business listing.
- Create an account
- Verify your listing
- Complete your listing entirely
- Respond to reviews
- Include keywords
- Add photos
Verify Your Google My Business Listing
You’ll need to verify your GMB listing, but there are two initial steps necessary: Make sure you have a Google account for your business and make sure you have a Business Profile to verify. A generic listing probably already exists for your business, but if not, you’ll want to ensure you create one.
Claiming Your Profile
Once your account and profile are set up, the next action you’ll take to verify your GMB listing is claiming your profile. Google won’t just automatically connect your account to your profile, so you’ll need to do it yourself. This can be done in two ways.
You can search your business’s name and location on Google, and if your profile pops up on the right-hand side, you should see an option asking you if you own that business. If you click on that, it will proceed to take you through steps to claim your listing. Alternatively, you can go to Google Maps, click on the profile to expand it and choose the “claim this business” option.
Verifying Ownership
Now that you have your account and listing and you’ve claimed your business, it’s finally time to verify ownership. You’ll be asked to provide information to prove you own the company. You could potentially get verified right on the spot if you’re logged into your account and have created a Business Profile.
However, if someone else created the business account, you’ll be sent a verification code. You then enter this verification code into your Google My Business dashboard.
You can receive your verification code through mail, email or text.
Thoroughly Complete Your Listing
Now that you’ve claimed your listing and verified yourself as the business owner, you can actually fill out your listing. But proper optimization entails that you complete your listing entirely. There’s a lot of information to include, so we’ll start right at the basics with providing your:
- Name
- Address
- Phone
- Website
- Hours
Providing this information right from the get-go allows customers to easily contact you. It eliminates questions like when your services are available. But that part should be simple. The sections that should be more thought out, for example, are things like products and services and the “from the business” section.
Optimizing Your “From the Business” Section
When you’re filling out this section, make sure you’re using all 750 words. The most vital information should obviously present at the beginning of the section. You can use repurposed content or write it fresh. Furthermore, you want to use rich keywords that you know your target audience will be searching for on Google. This way, Google’s algorithm is on your side.
Have Photos in Your Google My Business Listing
Including photos in your listing can make a world of difference. You can completely change the entire impression that your GMB listing leaves for potential customers. I mean, take a look and compare a Business Profile with photos and without. You would, without a doubt, choose the more visually appealing option – not to mention it looks way more professional.
It’s not always great to judge a book by its cover, but that’s what we do as humans. So, make sure your “cover” looks professional and inviting to drive engagement.
Moreover, including photos and consistently updating photos within your Google My Business listing shows you’re active, which can positively impact your rankings. Also, remember to include photos that have your logo, so people become familiar with your brand.
Google Reviews
People trust reviews. If your business has two stars and your competitor has five, you’re losing business. Google knows this too, so your reviews are a critical ranking factor. You can optimize your listing with Google reviews in a few different ways.
The first thing you’ll want to do is make it simple for customers to leave reviews. You can do this by creating a review shortcut link, which is usually even free. If customers have a hard time leaving and reading reviews, don’t expect them to actually write one.
How do you get customers to leave reviews? Asking them is an obvious but often forgotten option. If your customers are happy with your services, they usually don’t mind leaving reviews – especially if you present the idea that leaving a review can benefit other potential customers with the same pain points.
How Optimizing Your Listing Will Benefit You
When you optimize your Google My Business listing, you will:
- Improve engagement
- Convert customers
- Rank higher in local searches
- Rank higher in organic rankings in general
If you’re looking to engage and convert customers, optimizing your Google My Business listing is the golden opportunity.
Conclusion
That was a mouthful, wasn’t it? So, here’s a summary of the Google My Business listing optimization tips mentioned above:
- Claim your profile
- Verify your profile
- Add photos
- Thoroughly complete your listing
- Get positive reviews
These are a few examples of ways you can optimize your listing, but staying consistent is critical. You should actively update your profile with new images and information without going overboard.
Soon, your profile will become a positive reflection of your business in Clearwater, Sarasota or St. Petersburg, and you can start reaping the benefits.
