What is Google My Business?

Google My Business (now known as Google Business Profile) is an online business listing platform powered by Google to help businesses expand and manage their online presence.

The profiles listed on Google My Business are displayed on Google Searches and Google Maps. Additionally, businesses can embed Google reviews from their Google Business Profiles onto their websites, allowing potential customers to see authentic feedback directly. We will be discussing Google My Business in depth here.

More About Google My Business

What are the features included in GMB?

Following are some of the major features of GMB that a business should consider while registering themselves on it.

Descriptions and categories:

Google My Business Profile allows a brand to provide a brief overview of the business they do and highlight its key aspects. Brands can use this feature to show their USP and stand out from others. 

Brands also use this feature to explain what they do in detail. They can choose relevant categories so that potential customers can find them easily. Users will see the business when they search for relevant categories making the brand more visible.

Location:

 A brand can add its physical location to make it easier for potential customers to find and reach them. 

Google Maps is also integrated with Google Maps by which users can also see directions to the location added for a business. 

A brand can also specify the geographical areas where its business is located and areas where its services are available. This can also help in enhancing the local SEO of the business.

Photos:

GMB allows profiles listed there to add photos of their work, product, workplace or anything that would help customers to understand them better. 

Adding images also creates a good first impression of a brand as it is the first thing the user sees on a profile.

To showcase their offering and working environment, brands can also add videos to their business profiles including their interior look, exterior look, products and services.

Attributes:

Attributes and Amenities are two of the most essential features of a GMB profile, allowing brands extra yet important information about their business. 

“Wheelchair Accessible”, “Credit Cards Accepted”, and “Offers Outdoor Seating” are some of the phrases that can be added to the attributes. 

Brands generally use this feature to show how accessible they are and what additional requirements of the customer they can address.

This also helps customers to understand if the business they are looking at serves their specific needs or not.

Reviews:

Customers can share their experience in the form of reviews and ratings on a GMB profile. Other customers can read these reviews and decide whether they want to be associated with the brand or not. 

These reviews can also help a brand increase its visibility and enhance its rank on Google search results. 

GMB allows brands to respond to the reviews added by the customers for better engagement and traffic.

How to set up your Google My Business profile?

  1. Sign in or Create a Google Account.  Visit Google Business Profile and create a new account.
  2. To create a new account. Enter the “Name of your business”. Search for your business category. Click “Next”. 
  3. Choose whether you have a physical location customers can visit or not. Enter the address if you select “Yes”. You will also be asked to mark your location on the map so that it can be added to your business profile for customers. 
  4. Enter the “service area” of your business.
  5. Add other details such as “Whether you provide home deliveries or home visits”
  6. Enter your phone number and the website URL if you have one. Click “Next”. 
  7. Click “Finish”.
  8. Select a “verification option”.
  9. Your profile will be created once you choose the appropriate verification method. You can choose to verify right then or later at your convenience.

Benefits of creating a Google My Business profile

  • Visibility: Having your business listed on a search engine like Google which has over 3 billion daily searches can significantly increase your visibility. Increased visibility makes it easier for the customers to find the business and eventually helps in increasing traffic over there. 
  • Improved Ranking: An Optimized GMB profile can impact a brand’s SEO ranking if managed properly.  With positive reviews, optimized descriptions and relevant photos, a brand can rank better on Google.Improved Ranking on Google Search results attracts more people to business websites resulting in increased traffic and sales.
  • Customer Engagement: GMB profile allows a business to interact with the customers directly by responding to the Google Reviews.  Engaging with customers can impact the online reputation of a business as the customer feels acknowledged when responded properly.

What is Google My Business?