7 reasons your business should be on Google My Business now | Social Success Marketing

TL; DR:

You asked: “My product is not for local consumers like restaurants and brick and mortar stores. Does my company still need Google My Business Profile?”

Yes, this social media platform is essential for any business’ SEO and visibility.

GooglePlus folded as we know it, but Google My Business is proving to be Google’s successful social media platform.

It just keeps on getting better and better.

And more and more companies now realize the value of it.

How many Google searches do you make in a day? 

If you’re using this leading search engine, you’re probably one of those that make up the majority:

These statistics are hard to ignore if your company relies on Yellow Pages, industry publications and Yelp and other social media marketing.

Google levels the playing field.

How? Google gives EVERY business scale a chance to build their presence online and attract a portion of some 97% search engine users who look up for business services through the Internet. 

How does Google make it possible, you wonder? 

The answer came 6 years ago when Google launched Google My Business Profile in June 2014.

This social media marketing tool provides a single place for its users to:

Google My Business traces its roots from passive marketing services such as Google Local and Google Maps.

Then, it evolved to what it is today.

It is now an active social media marketing tool that does more than just listing down business information.

With it, you now can glean information on how people found your business.

Also, you have the chance to appear among other companies on top search results. (More of this will be discussed, as you read).

All you need is to set up a Google My Business Profile – for free, to get started.

Google My Business Profile is more than just a local listing. 

This point brings us to the following tips regarding the importance of your Google My Business Profile.

7 reasons you need to set up your Google My Business Profile

1. It drives users to give you a review and business reviews may drive more leads! 

People go to Google not just to search for a business address or contact number but to get informed decisions.

They rely on information they read using their devices.

According to a survey, 91% of consumers within the age bracket 18-34 give higher trust ratings on businesses with positive reviews.

Your company’s Google My Business Profile will let you get reviewed and respond to your customer’s reviews.

One Google survey reveals that:

“businesses that respond to reviews are 1.7x more trustworthy than businesses who don’t (76% vs. 46%).”

Enable the push notifications feature on your profile so you can view reviews and respond timely to each one of them.

Why do you need to respond to reviews, anyway? Because credibility and excellent customer service always go a long way.

Did you know that consumers don’t just judge a business based on what they know or what other people know about your products or what you are offering?

Around 30% of them rely on your responses to reviews. 

2. It gives you the chance to be seen on the first page of Google’s Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) 

While Yellow Pages arrange business names in alphabetical order, Google My Business allows your business to appear on the first page of search results when users input a keyword on Google’s search bar.

Say, you’re a start-up business in automobile manufacturing parts. When someone searches and types “automobile parts” on Google, your business name can appear on the results page together with other big names in the same industry – as long as you have Google My Business profile.

3. It allows you to add information that can attract potential customers

Since it is now more than a business listing, you don’t just capitalize on your NAP (name, address and phone number).

With your Google My Business Profile, you can add other important information that can attract leads.

Other contents you can share:

We used to not able to post these on Google My Business.

Know what your brand or company represents and make your branding consistent in the real world and on your Google My Business account updates.

4. It helps you gain insights pertinent to your next marketing campaign 

The Insights tab of Google My Business social media tool allows you to see and analyze what users click or view in your listing, where they come from, and how many users visit your profile in a certain period of time.

Your company’s Google My Business social media profile provides you information on which keywords to use, for example.

Many businesses pay SEO specialists to help them find keywords, right? Google My Business gives you that information for free.

If you are trying to use the keywords “realtor in____ (your location)” or “plastic molding manufacturer”, the insights tab can tell you if those keywords show up in how your audience found you.

If not, you can use that information to “discover” new keywords to use or add to your list for your content marketing strategy.

Other insights you can get from Google My Business are:

This basic information may seem trivial, but when you analyze the data along with your marketing goals, you can use this information to come up with an effective social media content marketing campaign.

5. It allows customers to take action and to obtain answers to FAQs  immediately

Traditional business listings will normally encourage customers to either call your landline number or visit your shop.

With Google My Business, you can maximize the use of a call-to-action button which you can personalize according to your marketing plan.

Customers can either send you a message or go to your website and make such marketing decisions while browsing your profile.

This is a rather good approach as you tell the users how to proceed after knowing that your business exists.

What if some users have questions that prevent them from moving further? This concern can be addressed by using the Q&A feature of your Google My Business Profile.

Here, you can seed FAQs so that potential leads can make informed decisions about your products and services.

With these features, you can filter users down to your targeted audience and cut down the steps for converting users into clients; searches, into sales. 

6. It can be used as a stand-alone tool to promote events and offers 

Say you are a start-up SaaS business who does not have a website just yet.

Can you promote your services and other relevant content using Google My Business? The answer is YES!

Since June 2017, business owners can use a feature called Google Posts, allowing you to roll out your content on your business’ knowledge panel of Google Maps and Google Search.

This is especially helpful for businesses that are yet to build their other social media marketing profiles.

It works the same way as posting on Facebook.

Keeping potential customers abreast with your latest happenings will help your business stand out from competitors.

As Google remarks, 70% of people look at several businesses before making a final choice. Make them choose you by your maximizing Google Posts. 

7. It allows high engagement and interaction with customers 

Aside from giving customers a freehand to drop reviews onto your profile, they can also send you direct messages and inquiries using the messaging feature of Google My Business.

If you don’t want to share your personal number, Google uses an app called Allo to receive messages and your company can respond to them using the same app in real time, or during business hours.

My personal note

Google My Business is a favorite social media content management tool of mine. Why?

BECAUSE it is low maintenance. How so?

It is not a time and attention-hog social media tool, unlike other social media platforms that could suck those from you. You could post there once a week. Then if you forget, Google will send you a reminder.

It has a straightforward approach in digital marketing and customer engagement.

It’s a Wrap!

Use Google My Business social media marketing tool to get to know your customers and find out what they are specifically looking for!

Their needs might not always match the product, or services, you are providing, but their answers and activities from the data could help you gauge and determine other marketing considerations and content tactics.

Not sure how to get started? Here is a guide. 

Let me know if you need help (form below). And chime in if you have other information to share.

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