post by Stephanie Nelson
Late last year, Google announced that it was shuttering its Google+ program. Last week, emails were sent to Google+ page owners that the shut down was going to begin in April of this year. With this, there’s no better time for business owners to take advantage of their Google My Business page.
When people search for your business or services/goods, your Google My Business page can show in the Maps section or in the sidebar. This shows searchers more about your business without the added click on their end to your website. While site traffic is good, studies show that the more clicks searchers have to go through to find what they want, the more likely they are to abandon their search.
In addition, since this is a Google product, the search engine reportedly places a premium on these updates for search engine results. Keyword-rich updates on your Google My Business page can possibly help your SEO efforts, too.
First things first, you should claim your Google My Business page. If for no other reason, you should do this to keep others from making edits to your business that aren’t authorized. When a page is unclaimed, anyone can submit an edit to Google, and Google will publish it. This means your competitors can mark your business as closed with no recourse. If
To claim your page, head to Business.Google.com and click the Manage Now button. Type in the name of your business, then choose your business from the list that populates or choose to create a new business with that name, and click next. Follow the prompts/questions that appear, then choose how you’d like to verify your business. Easy peasy!
Once your page is claimed and verified, you have lots of options on how to use your page to promote your business. You can share photos of your wares. You can respond to reviews, which you’re not allowed to do if your page is unclaimed. You can share promotions, offers, new products, and events. It’s almost limitless in what you can do!
So how are you using your Google My Business page?
