Isn’t knowing how to use Google My Business expected of every digital marketer?

No, not at all.

While there are plenty of lengthy but ambiguous help docs available, finding answers to specific problems can be difficult.
We’ve created a handy worksheet and chart tool to determine your eligibility and help you understand what to do if you have multiple listings or service area businesses (SABs).
We’ll also show you how adding content to your Google My Business listing can help your business in a variety of ways.

Learn more about:
• What role does Google My Business play in my content strategy?
• Why should I be concerned with Google My Business?
• Can Google My Business assist me with SEO?
• How can a content marketing platform assist me in managing to Google My Business?
• A troubleshooting guide for Google My Business verification.
• Google My Business Optimization Guide

Why Should I Use Google My Business as Part of My Content Distribution Strategy?
As content marketers, we frequently fail to recognize that a significant part of our responsibility is to ensure that our intended audience is exposed to our content.

One way to accomplish this is to use your Google My Business listing as a channel to share your current content on a weekly basis.

Locally focused content is especially relevant to Google My Business (for example, events or specials.)
What Is the Purpose of Google My Business?

Did you know that businesses receive an average of 943 Search views and 317 Maps views per month?
This data, derived from a 2019 BrightLocal study of 45,000 anonymous local business listings, indicates that your localized content has a high potential for increasing views, clicks, and actions.

You can gather data on how many people viewed your listing, saw your post, clicked on it, and engaged by visiting Google My Business Insights.

Google My Business Insights, on the other hand, may not always be accurate.
Consider including Google tracked links in your posts to better track clicks and engagements in Google Analytics.
Google My Business enables digital marketers to increase the number of people who see their content without having to wait for Google to rank it in the top ten search engine results.

The advantages of posting on Google My Business go beyond simply increasing the number of views and clicks on your most recent content.

Regular posting can earn you a coveted spot in the local 3-pack, which is the top three business listings for relevant search terms, and this alone is a compelling reason to add a new post at least once every seven days.

Furthermore, according to the same BrightLocal study, a typical business receives up to 59 actions per month on Google My Business.

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Clicks to your website, requests for directions, or phone calls are examples of these actions.
The majority of actions are clicks, but unless your Google My Business listing is optimized, you may be missing out on phone calls or in-store visits.

Yikes!

Your Google My Business posts indicate to Google that your business is the best one to display for related searches in your area.

Google My Business reviews are crucial.
They effectively represent your customers’ confirmation that your company is trustworthy, especially if you take the time to respond to each one, whether positive or negative.
In fact, a timely, compassionate, and helpful response to a negative review can be more valuable than a positive review.

We’re all human and make mistakes.
Customers appreciate businesses that are willing to accept and correct problems in a timely manner.
An important point and perhaps the most important, your posts inform potential customers about what’s new with your company at precisely the right time – when they are looking for it.
According to a 2019 study by Ben Fisher, only 17% of the businesses reviewed had a post within the last 7 days.
As a result, more than 80% of businesses had nothing new to share with searchers who are actively looking for their services.
Inconceivable!

What Kind of Content Should I Produce for Google My Business?
Maintain the Completeness and Accuracy of Your Listing
Before you start creating content, make sure your GMB listing is complete and accurate (address, phone number, business hours, business overview, products/services, etc). (links to your website, social accounts, and other relevant sources of information.)
This may appear obvious, but far too many small businesses overlook the details, and Google is all about details.
Special Offers & Discounts
You can try creating content specifically for your Google My Business listing.
It’s important to remember that the person viewing your listing’s intent is likely to be more transactional.
This means you can take a more direct sales approach: offers, specials, or what distinguishes your company from the competition.
Post Inspiring Content
If your company sees customers at its location, you can describe the experience you want them to have when they arrive.
Customers can be encouraged to visit you by using videos, photos, and even introductions to the team members they will meet.
Make your Google My Business page appealing to customers. Consider “Daily Specials,” “Seasonal Offerings,” or even something related to the weather: “Our Patio is Open!”
Make a Media-Heavy Listing
Invest in hiring a Google-certified 360 virtual tour professional to add videos to your verified listing, or make your own video to introduce yourself and your company.
(Don’t forget to upload it to YouTube and optimize your channel for the best results; another important topic in and of itself.)
Introduce Photos Your cover image should be a photo of your shop, office, or business.
Include photos of your work or products that you sell.
Share projects that you are proud of or that have received special attention.
In fact, many of your Google My Business contributions should be in the form of photos.
There is compelling evidence that businesses with more than 100 photos in their Google My Business listing receive more clicks.
Respond to Questions
Examine what questions potential customers have about your company and respond to them in a blog post shared on your listing.

Does Google My Business Actually Help SEO?

Yes, it does – at least in my area. It can be beneficial in a variety of ways.
A verified and optimized Google My Business profile not only increases your chances of appearing in the local 3-pack, putting your presence at the top of search results, but it can also help your website rank indirectly.
This is accomplished by sending social signals to Google, driving traffic to your website, and providing social proof in the form of reviews.

According to Google, local search results are determined by “relevance, distance, and prominence.”
• Relevance: How well a listing matches the searcher’s intent.
• Distance: Google matches searchers with verified businesses in their area.
• Prominence: The degree to which your company is well-known.

Can a Content Marketing Platform Assist Me in Better Managing My Google My Business Listing?
A content marketing platform can assist you in better managing all of your content.
It gives your content calendar structure and clarity, and it keeps you on track with creating regular posts in Google My Business, which is an easily overlooked task.
A content marketing platform provides structure and focuses to your content marketing strategy, as well as the ability to draw on the expertise of multiple team members through features that facilitate collaboration.
A content marketing platform provides you with a process to follow as well as analytics to help you better understand how your activities are performing.
If you can identify activities that have a positive impact, you can use these ideas to create future content.
Tailoring Content for Google My Business Appear to Be a Lot of Work – Isn’t Updating My Website Enough?
Google My Business is a free tool that has an immediate impact on existing local businesses.
You must feed it in order for it to grow, just like anything else. Google will not help you connect the dots.
Google My Business’s goal is to provide searchers with timely and accurate information.
Achieving rank takes time, which is inefficient for relaying information that will quickly become stale.
And, because it’s a Google tool, one has to believe Google places a high value on the content maintained there.
Consider Your Own ‘Google My Business’ Experiment
It’s a tall order to expect digital marketing managers and small business owners to become adept at Google My Business, on top of the plethora of other marketing activities required to establish an online presence.
Because of Google’s hazy help documentation and excruciatingly slow response times, it’s tempting to put it off for another day.

Finally, consider the last time you conducted a local search and how simple Google My Business made the process of deciding where to go.
Once your listing has been successfully verified, your time investment will most likely be only an hour or two per month, and we believe there will be many more opportunities to come with this fantastic, free business tool.
Make time in your schedule to delve into and truly “own” your Google My Business listing.