The Importance of Google My Business for Local SEO Rankings
Google My Business (GMB) is a unique tool that provides local businesses with an opportunity to appear in Google search and map results to essentially increase local SEO rankings. Having a GMB listing and being active is critical in today’s digital world for local businesses in order to stand out from the crowd. Including important business information and images, optimizing your GMB listing, and frequently posting updates will greatly improve a business’s local search visibility. This post will explore the overall importance of Google My Business when it comes to local SEO and outranking industry competitors.
Google My Business Overview
Utilizing Google My Business allows your organization to take charge of what people see when conducting a local search for your business. Google states that “Google My Business gives you the tools to update your listing and engage with customers from your phone, tablet, or computer. All for free.” GMB enables you to update business hours, images, menus (restaurants), locations, have reviews, and now lets you add posts to highlight what’s happening. Moreover, it’s a crucial tool for businesses to increase online visibility so potential consumers can find you.
Setting up and Optimizing Your Google My Business Listing
Just simply setting up a GMB listing is a good starting point, but in a competitive environment you will need to go above and beyond to stand out. The first step to driving in new business is to claim your listing. This will enable your business to update all of the relevant information like location, hours, images, and contact information. A second step is to seek assistance from your customer base regarding reviews and making sure they are positive. A large number of positive reviews can increase the likelihood of ranking higher in search results. Once these initial steps are completed, the next plan should be to develop consistent posts to keep potential consumers engaged about what’s happening with your business. The GMB posting feature allows your business to display deals, events, or important company news. Ultimately, it should be noted that the more time you spend in the Google My Business interface, the better local SEO presence your business will experience.
Advanced Google My Business Optimization Strategies
In addition to the basic GMB optimization tactics previously listed, there are more advanced GMB optimization strategies that will improve local visibility even more. First, the importance of displaying intriguing images often times gets overlooked. Select photos that will stand out and grab the attention of online users to attract more website clicks on your listing. Another important tactic according to digital marketing expert Kevin Gibbons is to “check up on popular times of the day and create SEM or paid social campaigns to drive more visitors during times your business is open but not as busy.” In the end, Google My Business offers an excellent opportunity for businesses to enhance their local online visibility and create a better overall chance to increase both online and in-store traffic.
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