How to set up your Google My Business profile
Theoretically know Google My Business is a thing, but not exactly sure how to leverage it for your business? Trust me, you’re not alone.
Luckily, putting together a solid Google My Business profile is simple and there’s very little maintenance to take care of once it’s up and running.
So let’s get it right, shall we?
What is Google My Business?
TL;DR: Google My Business (GMB) a free business listing that comes up when people search for your business (or a related/relevant search) on Google.
Of course, because it’s Google, GMB has a ton of data and info on who’s looking at you, what they’re doing around your business, and more. You can use that to help your business grow along with appearing more appealing to potential clients during their research phase.
Where do you see a GMB profile?
Google Knowledge Panel. This’ll appear if someone searches for your company directly or on the places tab at the top of a more general search for something, as an example, “coffee”. It’ll bring up multiple coffee shops, based on Google’s mysterious algorithmic ranking system.
Google Maps local finder. This is when — for example, you’re in Google Maps & looking for a nearby gas station/Italian restaurant/coffee shop — those random red pins will pop up and recommend businesses.
Is Google My Business free?
Yes! It’s totally free to set up. All you need to do is add or claim your business from Google and follow the relevant verification process. More details on the process here.
You’ll want to add your business to GMB if there’s no existing profile.
You’ll want to claim your business from GMB if you have an established business that Google has generated a profile for. Then you’ll be able to control your profile to add updated, correct information as needed.
Should I have a Google My Business account?
Totally! Whether you actively manage it or not, it’s worth claiming your GMB account. If you don’t, you run the risk of incorrect information getting listed as Google pulled information from across the web to fill in the gaps.
Plus, you’ll be able to respond to any questions or reviews, a good practice for appearing to be an engaged, active business.
Most important takeaways to optimize Google My Business
If you take nothing else from this article, take these two ideas with you.
Prioritize a zero click search
I’m going to share this advice in the context of GMB but also consider this a hot tip for any place you show up online.
Remember: you want people to do as little as possible to be able to access your information. People (love ya) — we’re lazy. We want as little friction as possible when getting what we need, so make it easy.
For GMB, this means filling out every portion of the profile and leveraging every opportunity for a link or a button for people to easily click and get where they need to go — whether it be a reservation, product listing, or services page.
Make it easy for people to get to you… please!
Google My Business is ideal for local traffic
Understand that the primary use of GMB is for location-specific searches. The companies that will benefit most from a GMB profile is someone with a physical location or a service-based business with a defined service area!
For online-only businesses, this is less relevant but your profile will still appear in searches. My business is 100% online and while I love doing digital marketing for small businesses in Tippecanoe Co., Indiana, I work all over. So my GMB profile is less relevant but still a great way to show potential clients I’m legit & open for business.
Google My Business best practices
1. Set up your profile up completely, as relevant
This looks like just following all of Google’s prompts to complete your profile. It’s also worth staying signed up to their newsletter as they’ll send you useful prompts for how to leverage the profile. More specifically this looks like:
Adding all of your relevant business information. Focus specifically on click-through areas like buttons, links, and social media profiles.
Write 2-3 FAQs. Asking and answering your FAQs is a great way to head off the questions you get all the time and provide in-depth, useful answers that will assure your clients. (Nope, you don’t need to wait for people to do it — you can do it yourself!)
Add photos! Businesses with more than 100 images get 520% more calls than the average business. Please don’t add 100 images, but fun, informative photos are helpful!
Adding an update can signal to Google that you have an active biz.
2. Stay relevant, but don’t waste too much time
GMB — like most online platforms — reward folks who have active profiles.
This is less relevant if you’re not a local business, but consider setting a reminder to post at least 1x/month with something relevant. Use the update option as sales, new products/services, or cool accomplishments come up.
The more social proof, the better, but don’t spend a ton of time on it. It’s unlikely to garner a huge return on investment, so keep it alive with a once-a-month thought but not time-consuming.
3. Solicit review to make your business legit
Google loves businesses with reviews; obviously, social proof is an incredible way to prove to Google (and more importantly, your customers!) that your business is great and deserves to be highlighted.
Next to the reviews of a profile you own, you’ll see an option to “get more reviews” — it’ll give you a direct link you can send out to clients as well as tips on how to make the ask.
Google My Business profiles in Lafayette, IN
I wanted to highlight a few businesses I think are doing a great job with their Google My Business listings here in the Lafayette, Indiana area. Grab some inspiration!
Flying High Tea on Main St. Their profile features tons of beautiful photos from them and their customers, they have plenty of one-click ways for folks to interact with them, lots of reviews, and they've connected their social profiles! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Flora Candle Co. on Main St. They've got all the important stuff a local business should have but check out how good their Google-specific updates look in their GMB profile! Google wants you to use their platform and Flora is doing an awesome job.
The Union Club Hotel on Purdue campus. Here you can see a fully fleshed-out Google My Business profile featuring even more advanced features like booking & availability. Be sure to leverage all the options right for your business, like The Union Club Hotel.