How To Optimize Your Google My Business Listing in 2022 | 15+ Tips To Rank Higher In Google Maps

Summary

This video script offers a comprehensive guide on optimizing a Google My Business listing to enhance visibility and generate leads. It emphasizes the importance of complete and accurate data entry, including proper business naming, category selection, address details, and consistent NAP information. The script also covers the significance of business hours, customer reviews, photo updates, and Google Posts to improve local search rankings. Additionally, it touches on SEO best practices and the impact of a business's online presence and reviews on its Google My Business ranking.

Takeaways

• 📌 Optimizing a Google My Business (GMB) listing is crucial for increasing visibility and generating leads.
• 🔍 The goal is to qualify for the map pack and top three in Google search for business-related queries.
• 📝 Google emphasizes the importance of completing all aspects of the GMB profile, starting with accurate and complete data entry.
• 🏷️ Choosing the correct business name and categories, including primary and secondary ones, is essential for proper listing.
• 📍 The address input should reflect the business type, with service area businesses entering service areas instead of physical addresses.
• ⏰ Accurate business hours, including special hours for holidays, are vital for customer experience and SEO.
• 🔗 Including a profile short name and appointment links can enhance the GMB profile and user engagement.
• 🛍️ Adding products and services with detailed descriptions and images helps in showcasing offerings and improving search rankings.
• 🗣️ Reviews are a significant factor; responding to them in a timely manner can improve customer trust and GMB ranking.
• 📷 Regularly updating high-quality photos and utilizing all photo categories can boost the visual appeal and search presence of a business.
• 📢 Utilizing Google Posts for updates, offers, and events can keep the business fresh in users' minds and improve engagement.
• 🏢 The business description should be concise, telling the business's story and value proposition to attract customers.

Q & A

What is the main goal of optimizing a Google My Business listing?

The main goal is to increase visibility and generate more leads for the business by qualifying for the map pack and the top three in Google search results when someone searches for the business's services.

What are some proven ranking factors for Google My Business that were discussed in the video?

The video discusses several ranking factors, including completing all the information Google provides, choosing the right primary and secondary categories, proper address input, accurate business hours, and responding to reviews.

Why is it important to choose the proper name for a business on Google My Business?

Choosing the proper name is important because it should be the full business name without keyword stuffing, which is against Google's guidelines and can lead to penalties.

What is the significance of choosing the right primary and secondary categories on Google My Business?

Choosing the right categories helps Google understand what the business is about and ensures it appears in relevant search results, which is crucial for ranking and visibility.

How does the physical address impact the visibility of a business on Google My Business?

The physical address impacts visibility because Google tends to favor businesses that are closer to the searcher's location, and the address is a key factor in determining this proximity.

Why is it recommended to keep business hours accurate on Google My Business?

Accurate business hours are important for customer experience and for showing Google that the business profile is being actively managed and updated.

What is the role of reviews in the Google My Business ranking?

Reviews are crucial for the ranking as they not only influence the trust of potential customers but also show Google that the business is active and responsive to customer feedback.

How often should a business update its photos on Google My Business?

A business should regularly update its photos to keep the profile fresh and engaging, showcasing the goods, services, and story of the business.

What is the purpose of Google Posts in the context of Google My Business?

Google Posts are used to share updates, offers, and events related to the business, which can help drive engagement and visibility in search results.

What is the importance of having a business description on Google My Business?

A business description provides an opportunity to tell the business's story, highlight its value proposition, and may also include relevant keywords for search optimization.

How does the prominence of a business's website affect its Google My Business ranking?

Prominence, which is determined by factors like website links, articles, directories, and review scores, can influence the business's ranking in local search results.

Outlines

00:00

📈 Optimizing Google My Business for Visibility and Leads

The video aims to guide viewers on how to enhance their Google My Business listing to increase visibility and generate more leads. The focus is on achieving a spot in the map pack and top three search results on Google. The speaker references Google's own ranking factors and a 2018 case study by Moz.com, emphasizing the importance of completing all data provided by Google, including business name, categories, and address. The video promises to provide actionable tips based on these factors, with timestamps in the description for easy navigation.

05:00

🏢 Addressing Business Details in Google My Business

This paragraph delves into the specifics of entering business details in Google My Business, such as the proper name, primary and secondary categories, and address. It advises against keyword stuffing in the business name, as it violates Google's guidelines. The speaker discusses the importance of choosing the right categories and the impact of the business's physical location or service area on search rankings. Consistency in the name, address, and phone number (NAP) across all online listings is highlighted as crucial for SEO.

10:02

🕒 Setting Accurate Business Hours and Utilizing Profile Features

The speaker emphasizes the importance of setting accurate business hours in Google My Business to enhance customer experience and improve search rankings. It advises against claiming 24/7 availability unless truly operational at all times. The paragraph also introduces additional features like special hours for holidays and the profile short name, which can help in sharing links and asking for reviews. The speaker recommends filling out all available categories and keeping information up-to-date.

15:04

📸 Maximizing Google My Business with Products, Services, and Reviews

This section covers how to add products and services to the Google My Business profile, advising on the use of keywords and detailed descriptions. It also stresses the significance of managing and responding to reviews, as they are a key factor in Google's ranking algorithm. The speaker suggests responding to reviews promptly and professionally, and using Google Posts to regularly update content, offers, and events. The paragraph concludes with a reminder of the importance of high-quality photos and the benefits of embedding the Google My Business profile on the business's website.

📚 Understanding and Applying SEO Best Practices for Google My Business

The final paragraph discusses the role of SEO in optimizing a Google My Business listing. It mentions the importance of having a well-known business (prominence) and the impact of a business's online presence, including links, articles, and directories. The speaker references a survey by Moz that outlines various ranking factors, suggesting viewers educate themselves on these factors. The paragraph concludes with a call to action for viewers to engage with the content, ask questions, and subscribe for future videos.

Keywords

💡Google My Business Listing

Google My Business Listing is a free tool provided by Google that helps businesses manage their online presence across Google, including Search and Maps. In the video, it is the central topic around which the entire discussion revolves, focusing on how to optimize this listing to increase visibility and generate leads. The script mentions various strategies such as entering complete data, choosing the right categories, and responding to reviews to enhance the listing's effectiveness.

💡Map Pack

The Map Pack refers to the top three local business listings that appear on Google Maps when a user searches for a specific service or business type. The video aims to help businesses qualify for this prime visibility spot, as it can significantly increase foot traffic and customer engagement. The script discusses the importance of proximity to the searcher as a factor in appearing in the Map Pack.

💡Ranking Factors

Ranking Factors are the elements that influence a business's position in Google's local search results. The video builds on proven ranking factors from Google and a case study by Moz.com to outline steps for optimizing a Google My Business Listing. Examples from the script include the business's name, categories, address, and customer reviews, all of which are critical for improving search ranking.

💡Complete Data

Complete Data is emphasized in the script as a fundamental aspect of optimizing a Google My Business Listing. It refers to filling out all the information fields provided by Google, such as business name, categories, address, hours, and more. The script suggests that leaving no section unfilled not only adheres to Google's guidelines but also improves the listing's visibility and credibility.

💡Primary Category

The Primary Category is the main service or business type that best describes a company's core offerings. The video script stresses the importance of selecting the right primary category for a Google My Business Listing, as it helps Google understand and categorize the business correctly, which in turn affects its search ranking and visibility.

💡Service Area

A Service Area in the context of the video refers to the geographic regions where a business provides its services. For businesses without a physical location, the script explains the importance of defining service areas in their Google My Business Listing. This helps potential customers understand the areas served and can influence the business's appearance in local search results.

💡SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

SEO is the practice of optimizing websites and content to rank higher in search engine results, thereby increasing visibility and traffic. The video mentions SEO in relation to the consistency of a business's Name, Address, and Phone Number (NAP) across various online platforms, which is a fundamental SEO practice. It also touches on how a website's prominence and SEO can impact a business's ranking in Google My Business.

💡Customer Experience

Customer Experience encompasses all interactions a customer has with a business, which can significantly influence their perception and loyalty. The video script highlights the importance of accurate business hours and responding to reviews as part of providing a positive customer experience. It suggests that businesses should consider customer needs and expectations when optimizing their Google My Business Listing.

💡Reviews

Reviews are customer testimonials that can significantly impact a business's reputation and search ranking. The video emphasizes the importance of not only requesting reviews but also responding to them in a timely and genuine manner. Reviews are portrayed as a critical component of a Google My Business Listing, with the potential to boost visibility and trustworthiness.

💡Photos

Photos are visual content that can enhance a business's online presence and attract customer attention. The video script underscores the significance of regularly updating high-quality photos in a Google My Business Listing. It suggests that photos can showcase products, services, and the business environment, thereby providing a more engaging and informative experience for potential customers.

💡Google Posts

Google Posts is a feature within Google My Business that allows businesses to create and share updates, offers, and events directly on their listing. The video script mentions Google Posts as a way to keep content fresh and engage with customers. It advises businesses to use this feature regularly, as posts expire every seven days, to maintain visibility and highlight current promotions or news.

Highlights

Optimizing Google My Business listing is crucial for increasing visibility and generating leads.

The goal is to qualify for the map pack and top three in Google search for business services.

Ranking factors from Google and a 2018 case study by Moz.com will be referenced for optimization strategies.

Complete all Google My Business profile sections as thoroughly as possible for better ranking.

Choosing the proper business name without keyword stuffing is important to avoid penalties.

Selecting the right primary and secondary categories can significantly impact search ranking.

Entering the correct address is essential, especially for service area businesses and physical locations.

Maintaining consistent Name, Address, Phone (NAP) information across all online listings improves SEO.

Choosing the right business hours and special holiday hours can affect customer experience and search ranking.

Setting a profile short name for Google My Business helps in creating a unique handle for the business.

Appointment links can drive direct traffic to booking pages, increasing customer engagement.

Adding products and services with detailed descriptions and keywords can enhance visibility in search results.

Managing and responding to reviews in a timely manner is key for customer trust and Google ranking.

Regular photo updates and high-quality images showcase the business and improve customer perception.

Google Posts can be used to share updates, offers, and events to engage with customers and improve visibility.

Business description should be concise, telling the story and value proposition of the business.

SEO best practices and website prominence can indirectly affect Google My Business ranking.

Moz's 2018 survey provides a comprehensive list of ranking factors for further optimization.

Transcripts

today we're going to be talking about

how to optimize your google my business

listing

to get more visibility and ultimately

generate more leads for your business

our goal today is to get your business

to qualify for that map pack and the top

three in google search

when someone is searching for your

business's services we're going to be

building off of some proven ranking

factors from google themselves

as well as a case study that was done

back in 2018.

these are also the things that i have

done to generate thousands of calls a

year

for our google my business listing so

let's get started

[Music]

because we like the facts we're actually

going to be referencing google a lot in

this video

i'll also provide the link straight to

the google support page in the

description below

i'll also be referencing moz.com which

did a case study back in 2018

that kind of starts to give a little bit

of weight to different

uh search ranking factors and gives us

an idea of kind of the importance of

each one

and which one we should focus on first

and i'll provide a little bit more

information on that as we go what you'll

notice is that the rolling theme of this

whole video here is going to be all

about

completing everything that google gives

us

although every year google's offering

more and more within the google my

business profile

this is a really great rule of thumb to

follow

and if you take a look directly in the

google support page

it's actually the very first thing that

they show and that's entering in

complete data so keep that in mind as we

move forward here

and you'll also notice that i put time

stamps down on the description

so you can skip ahead anything that you

have already done

so let's go into it let's start by

signing right into our google my

business dashboard

i've actually signed into two different

locations that i manage here

one is a a marketing agency and the

other one is a home service business

and you'll see a bit of the differences

between the two so the very first thing

that we want to do

is we want to start off by choosing the

proper name

for our business as you can see here we

want to enter in the full

business name we don't want to stuff

keywords into the title

it's actually against google's

guidelines and can get you penalized

although it might seem enticing to kind

of try to stuff as many keywords in here

as possible

you definitely don't want to do that

however keywords here

are definitely important and what you'll

notice is that

if your business already has the

keywords in its title

such as you know abc plumbing services

or let's say abc plumbing

company toronto you'll notice that when

people are searching for plumbing

company toronto that you might actually

get a little bit of a boost

at least this is kind of what i have

seen from some of my experience

now don't let this discourage you if

your company doesn't mention your

keywords at all

there's still plenty of other ways to

boost your google my business rankings

number two is choosing the right primary

category

as well as the right secondary

categories or additional categories as

they are called

so what you'll notice here is that

google actually gives you a primary

category to choose

and depending on what your service is

you're going to have a different primary

category

so for me my primary category of course

is marketing consultant

and then the other two categories that

they give me is marketing agency

and internet marketing service as you

can tell there isn't really much

other options here that fall into my

field

if you also look at another business

listing we have here for our home

service company

you're actually going to notice that

there are quite a bit more

options to choose from so we have

furnace repair as our

primary service and you have all of

these other options that

are all related so it's all going to

depend on what your

business's primary category is and what

your business

offers that gives you kind of the idea

of which categories to choose

what i recommend for your primary

category is either the category that

makes you the most money

or simply choosing your primary uh

service that you do the most of

once you go through i recommend choosing

additional categories

and filling out every single option that

they give you

if you see more categories that are

offered that you think are related to

your business

please do not hesitate to fill those in

here in additional categories

this is super important to your rankings

you'll also notice back on the google my

business support page

that under entering complete data

category is actually listed right there

so use that as an indicator that it is

very very important

all right number three is choosing your

address properly

now there's a few different ways that

you can put your address in here for

google

my business depending on what your

business type

is if you have a service business

meaning you offer services to a certain

area

but you don't have a physical location

such as my company

you'll actually you won't enter in an

address at all

you're going to be putting in

essentially a service area

so as you can see here i don't have any

locations

it says home services only and if you

take a look in my service areas

i simply have calgary listed for right

now because that's where i'm situated

meanwhile if your business offers a

physical location

this would be such as a restaurant or

any kind of physical store that someone

may

visit even like a coffee shop you're

going to have your physical address

in here as well one really important

thing and this kind of goes along with

more seo

but there's kind of an important

standard to seo called nap

which is your name address and phone

number and it's very important to keep

these things consistent

everywhere so whatever you choose is

your address on your google my business

listing

make sure that's the identical address

uh on every other listing online that's

including

better business bureau facebook and any

other things where you have a business

profile page

if for instance you have suite number

followed by address

make sure you keep that consistent with

every listing it'll give you a little

boost

now if your business has a physical

location as well as a service area

that is more than okay you can enter

both of those things

in now keep in mind a really important

ranking factor that we don't actually

have control over

is proximity to the searcher so if our

business is closer to the person

searching

there's a better chance that we're going

to show up in that map three pack

versus if you're further away so what

you're going to notice is that if you're

a service area business

or let's say you're operating in one big

city and it's surrounded by small cities

it's going to be a lot harder for you to

show up in that three pack in those

small towns nearby

versus the local city that you're

operating in you'll also notice that in

the moz

survey done that the second most

important thing here is actually the

physical address in the city of search

so that means if you're in town a but

you also service town b

if someone's searching in town b they're

going to get more preference so those

local companies might actually get a

little bit more preference to get into

that local map pack

the only way you can really solve this

is by having an office in that area

and quite frankly sometimes it's just

not worth it

also if you are liking this content so

far

please feel free to like and subscribe

below i try to make as many videos as i

can

on marketing website stuff google ads

facebook ads

so subscribe below for future content

and give this video a like if you've

enjoyed it so far

number four is choosing the right hours

for your business

so most people make the mistake of

essentially just putting 24 hours a day

hoping that their business is going to

show up more often

and i mean you could do this but you

also want to think about the customer

experience here

if you're saying that your business is

open 24 hours a day

and at 6 o'clock p.m someone's trying to

call you and they can't get through

it's just a poor customer experience and

you really don't want that to happen

you want people to be able to see when

to call you so that they know and can

actually get a hold of somebody

you'll also notice on the google my

business support page as well

that one of the key important parts here

is keeping your hours

accurate so you definitely want to do

that what you'll notice here is there's

actually two more sections to add hours

to

so in the current dashboard you have a

section for adding more hours

this would be for instance if you have

special hours for your services if

you're a restaurant you can see here

there's like brunch

or takeout or some certain time frames

you want to set extra hours for

definitely go ahead and fill that out if

that's relevant for you

and the other section here is called

special hours so this is typically for

holiday hours

this is really really important to fill

out

what you'll notice is that if you've

ever done a search for a business on a

holiday monday and you get that little

notice that says

business hours may vary that basically

just means that that company didn't fill

out this

special hours section so by filling this

out and giving the right

information and you know there's a

chance or there's a likelihood that

google is going to prefer

your business because you have already

proven that you are given accurate hours

and based on their landing page here

they say to keep your hours

accurate so if you're doing that that's

a really good sign

now what i recommend doing is simply

just doing all of your holidays in

advance

it saves you from having to remember to

do them a couple days ahead of time

you can just schedule a few months out

or whatever it allows you to do so

that's a really easy way to stay on top

of this

number five here is a relatively easy

thing to do and it's called your profile

short name it's been introduced just

recently and it's basically just

google giving you kind of an app or a

handle similar to twitter or instagram

basically set it to your google business

name

it'll also help you when you go to share

your link for asking for reviews

which i'll talk about in a few minutes

here but yeah simply set your business

name here

once again what we're doing is entering

incomplete data we don't want to miss

any part of our google my business

profile number six is pretty easy as

well it is your appointment links

essentially it's just a spot that if you

have a url for someone to book an

appointment at such as

a massage or a service you can just

provide a simple link to go right to

there what i like to do is essentially

just put it to your contact page if you

don't have

a booking service page i might find that

works quite well

basically just a page that has a form on

it that someone can fill out quite

easily

number seven so we're getting into the

products now

so google has now kind of offered this

section in your google my business page

similar to kind of a google shopping and

it's essentially products so when you

click on products

basically it's self-explanatory it

allows you to add every product that you

offer this allows you to put different

keywords here for the products that you

offer

think about these as standalone products

something that you could sell by itself

if you offer a service there's actually

a separate category that we're going to

jump into right after that for that

so when adding a product simply just

click add a product

add the photo you can see the product

name you can have a category

you can create those categories as well

so if you have

you know different products within

categories it's just an easy way to keep

everything organized

you can also set your price and of

course

the description now like everything with

google what we want to do is we want to

fill this out to the max

so for each product that you have make

sure you try to fill this out to the max

character count if you can

but just don't try to keyword stuff or

just be too repetitive here number eight

here is filling

out your services now this is going to

vary slightly from products what you'll

notice

is these services are tailored to the

categories that you've chosen

so basically you're adding services

under every product category

some of them may be recommended i

definitely recommend using those ones

but any services that you provide under

each of those categories

definitely fill out and try to fill the

character count if you can

once again don't keyword stuff or try to

make it too redundant

super important here to fill out all of

your services that you offer

okay we're gonna jump ahead here into

number nine

number nine is all about reviews now

personally i think reviews are the

most important part of your business if

you take a look here at the google my

business support page

you'll actually notice that it shows

managing and responding to reviews

is super important this is a really key

area that many people miss

it's not only asking for reviews but

when you get those you want to respond

to those reviews it says right away here

in the very first sentence

responding to reviews that users leave

about your business

you want to be able to reply to those

reviews as soon as they come in

in a very timely manner this shows your

customers that one you're responding to

them it's showing google that you are

continually updating your google my

business profile

and also when you get those negative

reviews it shows customers that you know

how to deal with negative feedback and

you know how to

support customers when they have issues

because

believe it or not we all get bad reviews

and how you deal with those are just as

important if not

more important than how you deal with

good reviews another really helpful tip

here with the reviews

is that google actually tends to pull

some keywords from the reviews if your

customers are leaving you

reviews with your keywords in it it

might actually give you a slight boost

now what i like to do is essentially try

to respond to those services by

including the service or product that

they had done

so for instance somebody's coming to me

for google ad services

i might say something along the lines of

thank you very much i'm glad that

you've had a positive experience with

our google ads management

or something along those lines i know

that's kind of rough but

you kind of get the gist of how it

should work try not to keyword stuff

here

make it genuine but don't be afraid to

throw in a couple little keywords where

you can

just remember that the more reviews you

get the better your rating stays

the more your customers are going to

trust you and the more they're going to

call you for their next

service or to come to you for whatever

product or service that you offer

number 10 is photos now this is one that

most people actually don't

update very often and it's super

important no matter

what your business does keeping regular

photo updates is so important that

google's even listed here as a main

category

adding photos they said to showcase your

goods and services and to tell the story

of your business

add photos to your business profile now

when you're adding photos to your

business

you'll notice that there's different

categories you can add them to

i recommend trying to get as many photos

as possible on here and at least

include five in every category uh the

more photos you add and the more regular

you add photos um the better off you

will be

if you're a business like a restaurant

you'll even notice that there's a

category for

your menu so taking some photos of your

menu or uploading that will help you

there as well

also make sure you upload professional

photos and you want to upload high

quality photos here

if you upload low quality photos or just

not great looking photos

it might actually look poorly on your

business so be sure that you

are looking your best when you upload

your photos number 11 is actually the

google posts

so within google posts there's a few

categories that you can choose from

there's google posts there's events you

can add offers

there's even a little covet 19 update

right now

make sure you're using this as often as

possible and keep in mind that when

you're making posts

they expire every seven days so i

typically recommend getting three posts

out

and kind of setting a calendar reminder

so that you can remember to

set that post again in seven days at the

current moment i don't believe that

there is a way to schedule these

unfortunately

so you have to do them manually but it's

also a really quick and easy way to set

you apart from your competitors who

aren't posting regularly

if your business has any offers or any

sales this is a really great way to

promote those

and it's a really quick and easy way to

get some extra clicks to your google my

business profile

for number 12 we're going to jump back

into the info about your business

and this is just the highlights

essentially there's just a few little

check marks that you can add depending

on what your business offers

if you're a hotel or if you're a service

business they're going to be slightly

different from each other

so make sure you check this section and

check off anything that applies to your

business number 13 is basically just

writing a business description

now i don't believe that keywords are

super relevant or important here but

it's always a good place to kind of plop

them in just in case

i also find it's a really great place to

tell your story uh make it brief and

also you know just your value

proposition of what you offer to your

customers

now of course some ranking factors we

simply don't have control over

we mentioned one before with the

proximity to the searcher

but here's one that we kind of do but

kind of don't have control over

and this is all about your website and

google basically classifies this as

what's called

prominence so when you take a quick read

here prominence is referred to

how well known a business is so google

is going to pull

in other factors from other areas to

determine whether or not your business

is relevant in that area

so it says right here prominence is also

based on information that google has

about a business from across the web

like links articles and directories

google review count and review

score factor into local search

rankings more reviews and positive

ratings can improve

your business local rating or ranking

which we spoke about before

and your position in web results is also

a factor

so search engine optimization best

practices apply

basically what they're saying is that if

your business and your website is

already ranking on the first page of

google you might get a little boost in

the google my business

map pack so keep that in mind when

you're looking here and if you're

struggling to get up into that three

pack

that this actually might play a factor

here what's really important is

basically following best practices for

seo

uh that's a whole nother video but for

now it's just something to keep in mind

for your google my business

ranking now because we don't want this

video to go on for too long

number 15 is basically going to be

categorized as miscellaneous or

everything else what i recommend is

actually taking a look at the link down

below

it's a survey done back in 2018 by a

company called

moz they're well known in the marketing

industry

and if you take a look they give you a

little pie chart here

based on what their survey is showing as

prominent or important

ranking factors so just going through

here you know you'll see a lot of the

things that we have already discussed

this is such as categories keyword

business and title

link signals this is inbound anchor text

linking domain authority so that's kind

of the

seo of your website but as you scroll

down a little further here

you're going to see top 50 local pack

finder factors

i recommend just going through each

individual one and just educating

yourself a little bit with

all the ranking factors and where their

importance is you'll even see some

things that we didn't mention

like embedding your google my business

profile the map

basically onto your website i recommend

doing that somewhere into the contact

page

and you're just gonna see a bunch of

other factors here that are really good

to go through and to take a look at

that's all i have and we've officially

gone into 15 plus things that you can do

to optimize your google my business

listing

please feel free to leave a comment

below if you have any questions

if you want to see any future videos

that are specific to anything i can make

those up for you as well

and i look forward to hearing from you

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thank you so much for all of your time