Every business nowadays understands the importance of having an online presence. The internet has proven to increase sales for every business. For that to happen, there are many SEO techniques that digital marketers use. Such SEO techniques are used to optimize better content for the Google search engine.
Why Google My Business (GMB) Listing?
Google is absolutely the most popular search engine available. So much so that we use the term ‘Google’ as a verb in many instances. An interesting feature is that every local business should use its Google My Business (GMB) Listing. It is one of the quick local SEO strategies to gain the attention of your local audience. In this blog, we have listed down why you must start using Google My Business Listing and how it benefits your local business.
How to use Google My Business for your Local Business Marketing?
Follow these steps to set up a Google my business account and start with your local SEO strategy.
1. Sign in to Google My business by going to this link.
2. The next step is to add your business name if it doesn’t already exist in the database. If there is a listing, you will get a chance to claim by phone or mail.
3. Now, select the top related category that your business falls into. You can select a general area and optimize your GMB listing later by specifying the services you offer.
4. If you have a physical store or an office, you can enter the address for your customers to come to visit you.
5. In the next prompt, you can enter the place where you serve your customers. For a local business operating within a specific area, this information is critical.
6. The next step asks you to enter your contact details and your website address. If you do not have a website, Google allows you to create a Business site.
7. Verification is the final stop step in setting up your Google My Business listing. Here, Google will either verify your listing through a Phone Cal SMS code or send you a postcard by mail within the next 2-3 weeks for you to get started.
How does Google My Business Listing work?
For instance, if you're a local fresh fruit supplier. When someone searches in Google using keywords like fresh fruit supplier near me, Google will show the listing of local fruit suppliers nearest your location. This kind of location-based results is what makes Google much more efficient than other search engines.
You can optimize your GMB listing by including keywords, Call-To-Action, and adding updates and photos to make your business listed in the top search results. One of the main advantages of using Google My Business Listing is your business will get displayed on Google Maps as well. If you have a physical shopfront, this option might attract new customers easily.
Top reasons to use Google My Business:
The following are some of the benefits of using Google My Business listing as your local SEO strategy.
1. Improve visibility
Your digital marketing strategy’s primary goal is to improve visibility. If your customer searches for a web design company near me, they’ll get the search results. The first three lines in the search result will be from Google Ads. The next section of the search results goes by the name Google 3-pack (Local 3-pack).
This section is where the 3 popular results from their locality get listed. Even if you do not have a business website, you’ll gain visibility with your audience. When you optimize your GMB listing, you’ll have much better chances of getting listed among the Google 3-pack (Local 3-pack).
2. Educate your customers:
You get a chance to provide your customers with a short description of what you do. In your Google My Business listing, your customers will see a small brief of what you offer them. This way, you can make sure the person who contacts you truly understands what your services are.
3. Free platform to get feedback:
Customer reviews are vital for the development of your brand. By using Google My Business listing, you get a chance to interact with your customers in real time. These customer reviews are one way to respond to your customers. Another way of doing it is the easy-to-use messaging feature.
It acts like a simple chat box that your customers can use to directly chat with you. This reduces the communication barrier between the brand and the potential customer.
4. Free advertising:
What’s more beneficial than the best search engine in the world promoting your business for free? For using Google Ads, you will need to pay a certain amount. Or you can enter the term web design company near me to optimize your webpage and rank better in SEO.
A Google My Business listing, however, costs zero pence. It provides you with the best visibility possible for free and even gets your business verified free of cost.
So what are you waiting for? Stand out ahead on Google with a free Business profile. Turn local people who find you on Google Search & Google Maps into potential new customers with a free Business Profile for your storefront or local service area.
Conclusion
Whenever you search for a web design company, make sure that they know how to optimize your GMB listing. So that they can schedule GMB posts at the right time and use the right set of keywords to reach your customers easily. For all the above-mentioned reasons, you now know that including Google My Business listing in your local SEO strategy most certainly will pay off.