Want to get your business on the map, quite literally?
Google My Business is the place to start.
Having a fully optimized Google My Business listing is often the first step in any local SEO strategy. Location-based businesses like salons, local shops, electrical services, and bakeries can make the most of a Google My Business listing.
Once you have a Google My Business (GMB) listing, your business will appear on Google Maps, Google Local Finder, and another organic search result specific to your business and location.
But just having a bare minimal GMB isn’t going to cut it.
You need an optimized listing that is geared specifically to attract and convert.
In this blog, let’s look at various ways of optimizing your Google My Business listing for better ranking and conversions.
11 Local SEO Secrets to Make Your Google My Business Listing Shine
At YellowFin Digital, we provide Houston SEO services for local businesses. Our Houston SEO agency has helped many small businesses to create a GMB, optimize their GMB to increase organic rankings and conduct tests to see how companies can beat their competition and increase lead conversions.
From our years of experience in offering Houston SEO services, we share 11 secrets to optimize GMB.
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1. Complete Your Profile Completely
By completely, we mean every single section.
Having a fully-completed listing isn’t just an advantage when a prospect lands. It also increases the probability of ranking in organic search results. To start with, ensure your name, contact number, address, and working hours are included.
Next, move on to the sections that require time to fill out:
- Categories
- Products and services
- Owner-generated questions and answers
In each section, ensure to fill in the details that are as close to your business as possible. And don’t forget to include descriptions similar to the customer language to improve the weightage of your local SEO.
Our Houston SEO services can help you if you need more hands to optimize your GMB.
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2. Update the Listing Regularly
Are you changing the store timings? Have you added additional services or products? Do you have any new offers to share?
Make sure that the changes you’re making in your business are reflected immediately on the GMB listing. Nothing turns off a customer like incorrect or outdated information.
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3. Review Your Listing Often
Keeping your listing up-to-date isn’t the only reason every Houston SEO consultant at YellowFin Digital reviews the GMB listing often.
A default option called ‘Suggest an edit’ appears on your business listing. Anyone can click on this option and make changes to their business. These are the changes anyone can make:
You can see that these details are pretty much the most important ones and the worst part is that Google can update the changes on your GMB listing without your permission. Google usually sends out emails about the changes made, but there have been instances when business owners weren’t notified of these changes.
So, it’s very crucial to keep checking your listing. You can see these edits under ‘Google Updates’ under your business profile. You can then review, edit and add to the changes as needed.
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4. Customize Your Primary Button
Depending on your business, you can customize various primary buttons. This is the button that a visitor will see just after landing on your business listing. Here are a few customizations for the primary button available:
- Get Directions
- Call now
- Find table
- Place order
- Message us (on SMS or Whatsapp)
- Get quote
- Make Appointment
You can include any of these as your primary button and give a clear next step for the user.
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5. Post Regular Updates
Like any social media platform, you can create posts for your business on the GMB listing.
You can post pictures, add links to your website, include CTAs and create any post.
These posts will show up below your business listing on Google search. So make sure to keep it engaging and useful. You can post about any new discounts, the addition of new products or services, holiday wishes, or just about any picture that showcases your business.
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6. Include Lots of Pictures
How do images influence your Google My Business listing?
Let’s look at a recent survey conducted by BrightLocal.
According to their research, businesses with more than 100 images on their GMB listings get 520% more calls, 2,717% more direction requests, and 1,065% more website clicks than the average business.
That’s a staggering statistic and a useful hack to skyrocket your conversions by adding many images. And it goes without saying that every single one of the images you add should reflect your business in the best way and add value to your business profile.
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7. Add Services/Menus
You can use the’ Services’ feature if you are selling a product or service with a fixed rate. You can add items as a list with the cost of the services.
This way, your customers won’t be confused about the services you offer and will quickly make a buying decision.
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8. Answer the User Questions Quickly
Under the Questions & Answers section of your GMB listing, any user can ask a question about your business. As a business owner, it’s your responsibility to make sure that these questions are answered.
It’s essential to maintain consistent brand messaging throughout your answers. And most of all, answer the questions promptly and be helpful and polite to the users. This creates goodwill among the local people.
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9. Leverage the Messaging Feature
Google rolled out a new feature for the GMB listing that lets potential customers chat with you through text messages.
You can easily set up the messaging feature with your contact number through the dashboard. You can then get notified if someone has messaged your business. Responding instantly to such messages with polite replies will help lead to sales conversions.
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10. Ask for Reviews
It’s ethically allowed by Google to ask your customers to leave a review. Every good review can bring your business closer to better rankings and conversions. And with 57% of consumers using Google to read reviews, it can make all the difference.
So, encourage your customers to leave a good review and rating on Google. Make sure to respond to all the reviews and resolve the negative reviews most politely.
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11. Interact with Your Customers
As the final point, we recommend you interact with people on your business listing as much as possible.
Google considers the engagement of the businesses with its customers on its profile. So, the more you interact with the customers through reviews, questions & answers, and posts, the better your local ranking will be.
Wrapping Up
These few secrets of our SEO company in Houston will impact your business. It’s important to consider the GMB as an extended part of your business and tend to it as often as possible.
Don’t have the time to spend on the GMB?
Then get the help of our local SEO services in Houston to create and maintain your listing.
