Why is Google My Business Important for Your Business?
Let’s start with a story!
Mr. Alex has 2 friends, named Mr. Paul and Mr. Singh. It is almost the time of Christmas and Mr. Paul has to host a small party for his friends and their families. He is looking for professional decoration services.
At the same time, Mr. Singh is planning to expand his business, and he needs help with a lot of things, like finding a bigger office, purchasing furniture, stationery, electronics, etc., hiring employees, interior decoration of the new office, and a lot of other things. He needs the services of a realtor, a hiring agency, and interior decorators. He also needs to find businesses that offer office furniture, stationery products, and electronics items. What do you think Mr. Paul and Mr. Singh should do?
Exactly! That is what Mr. Alex suggested. On his suggestion, both the friends started searching Google and contacting businesses and service providers in their area. If you have noticed, both Mr. Paul and Mr. Singh must find services and businesses locally. Otherwise, they will have to bear the expenses of transportation for most of the products and, in some cases, the cost of travel expenses of the service providers. In the case of the realtor and hiring agency, finding local businesses often guarantees a smooth and better experience.
Google My Business listings made their lives easier by connecting them to the local businesses that offered exactly what they needed. Now imagine, what would have happened if Google didn’t offer the convenience of searching businesses locally? It would have been possible that both Mr. Paul and Mr. Singh would have ended up spending a lot more time searching for the right services. Not to mention all the additional delays that they had to face due to the physical distance between them and the service providers.
So, you have understood the importance of Google My Business for your customers. Now let’s move on and try to uncover the importance and benefits of Google My Business for your business. However, before we jump on to our topic, let us first get on with the basics:
What is Google My Business?
You need customers, and the customers need your product or service. As finding customers near your location is a boon for your business, finding the desired product or service nearby is highly convenient for the customers. This is where Google My Business comes in to bring them together.
Google My Business or GMB is a prolific service offered by Google that empowers business owners with the option to set up a free business profile; so it becomes easier for people like Mr. Paul and Mr. Singh to find such businesses across Google Maps and local search results.
All Mr. Paul has to do is to search for “party decorators near me”, and all the businesses that have listed their location on Google Maps will appear in the search results. The same will be the case for Mr. Singh and everyone else looking for local businesses and service providers near them.
GMB brings local customers to businesses who are selling the products or services demanded or needed by these customers. This opens up a lot of opportunities to target a huge chunk of the audience that lives around the location of your business, but remains untouched from the scope of your generic targeting.
How Does It Work?
When you list the location of your business, it is updated in the database of Google. Now, suppose a person in the neighboring area needs a product or service that you offer. They search for the same on Google followed by the phrase “Near Me”. For example:
Let us suppose that you own a real estate business, and Mr. Singh needs to rent an office space. Now, he may search for ‘Realtors near me’ and it will lead to an automatic background process by Google algorithm to deliver accurate results. This process will involve the following steps:
- As soon as Mr. Singh hits the Search button, the Google algorithm will automatically detect the location of Mr. Singh
- Next, it will compile a list of all the related businesses in the area spanning a few kilometers around Mr. Singh
- Lastly, this list will appear as search results
Now, all the businesses that are listed on GMB will appear in the search results. Your real estate business might be very famous in the area but it will not appear in this specific search result if you have not set up a Business Profile on Google My Business.
When your business appears in these search results, the chances of conversions also increase tremendously. In fact, post-COVID-19, there is no question whether you opt for it or not! It has become compulsory for every business, big or small, to update its location for a holistic online presence.
The best part about the Google My Business listing for your business is that customers who already know about your business can easily find all the information regarding your business. Let us suppose an existing customer wants to know the working hours or contact number, he/she simply has to search the name of your business on Google, and all the information will be there.
Why is Google My Business Compulsory?
We have already established the importance of Google My Business however it is necessary for you to understand the exact benefits of GMB for your business:
Local SEO
Nothing boosts local SEO as much as GMB. The reason is simple. You have made it easy for the algorithm to classify your business according to geographical boundaries.
Let’s say a person is looking for a flower shop within a 4 km radius of his/her house. It will be easy for the algorithm to rank the flower shops that have updated their locations and other details with GMB. The same goes for any other search result. Simple as that!
Impressive First Impressions
When you search for any query, the most relevant information is often listed on the right side of the search results interface. This space is mostly either occupied by Wikipedia or some other famous website.
If your business appears in this region of the interface, don’t you think it will have a good impression on your customers? Moreover, it builds trust among your target audience and also increases brand loyalty and recognition.
Google Maps Integration
Let us suppose that Mr. Paul selected an Interior Decorator from the local search results and now wants to reach out to their office to have a discussion. How will he do that?
No, he does not need to enter the name and address of the service provider on Google Maps. It is way easier. GMB allows Google Maps integration which makes it simple for the users to navigate to the location of the business at just a click of a button. In short, the customers don’t need to ask about your location, and your receptionist does not need to tell them the path to your workspace.
Additionally, GMB also offers business map listings if someone searches for a specific keyword related to your business on Google Maps.
More Inbound Queries Through Messages
The GMB listings offer businesses the option to enable the option of direct messaging. Now, as simple as it may seem, this option is highly beneficial when it comes to increasing the number of inbound queries as well as conversions.
Moreover, customers also prefer this feature. The reason behind this is that many customers are introverts and they don’t like to talk to any representative of your business over a call or in person. The option of direct messaging is highly preferred by these people.
Another reason for the success of direct messaging is that many people don’t wish to get on a call until they are 100% sure that your services or products are in line with their needs. Therefore, they find it more convenient to clear their doubts over messages. Besides, businesses can also incorporate AI to automate the replies to the customers.
Increased Credibility
When we purchase something online, it has become quite a ritual to check for customer reviews and ratings. When the customer reviews are good, we feel more confident about our purchase. Your customers need a similar validation while they are looking for a business online.
The best part about Google My Business is that the customer reviews are visible right below your Business Profile, which gives your customers the validation that they are looking for. Moreover, it also builds credibility for your business. Positive ratings and reviews make it easy for your customers to trust your products or services.
Now that you know the benefits of GMB, it is high time that you start integrating your business accordingly to maintain a dynamic online presence of your business. If you need help with Google My Business listings, feel free to get in touch with us, and our experts will be happy to assist you.
