What is Google My Business and Why Do You Need It?

To start- here’s what our Google My Business page looks like – https://g.page/catskillmarketing

Is it worse to have a restaurant that doesn’t have a Google Business page, or to not have a restaurant at all? Nowadays, you may as well not have a restaurant at all if you choose not to participate in the verification and updating of a Google Business page. This page, which pops up as soon as you look up a business, is one of the most basic online marketing measures you can take. It’s free, easy to work, and can reap huge benefits for your business.

FYI – You can do this on a computer, or you can download the Free GMB App on your mobile device. Link here for Apple Devices: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/google-my-business/id853371601

As you can see, we have our hours, phone number, website, and address all linked to our page. There’s also ample pictures of both the inside AND outside of our business that are clean and taken with professional cameras. This is already an advantage for us; when a customer sees all of this in one place, they are more inclined to give us a call for their marketing needs. The detailed description of our mission statement, addition of social media profiles adds to this pool of knowledge the customer can gain about us from simply searching “Catskill Marketing Middletown NY.”

Now, let’s look at the opposite end of the spectrum; here’s what an unverified and un-updated Google My Business page looks like-

This page is from a Chamber of Commerce (that may or may not be real but this could be your business too). It is missing hours, a website linked to the profile, reviews, and there is only one pictured provided.

Also notice where it says “Suggest and edit – Own this Business” that this is suggestion the business verify their Google My Business Page by clicking on the linked text. This text may also display when it is verified already but when you get to the next page it will guide you through the next steps if someone has already claimed the page to either get it back or get access.

REVIEWS, REVIEWS, REVIEWS

Perhaps the most important feature of a Google My Business page is the “reviews” section. Businesses who are not utilizing this tool (such as the Chamber of Commerce in Montgomery) are missing out on a huge opportunity.

The more positive reviews a potential customer/client sees, the more inclined they are to trust in your business. Reviews are a selling tool that aids in your google ranking and can be extremely valuable to your business if utilized correctly.

Once you have a Google My Business page set up, you can send customers a link to have them leave a review there. If you really want to amp-up said reviews and own a business in which you see people there daily face-to-face, try offering a promotion to those who leave a review on your page.

Click the link below and follow these steps to verify your Google My Business

Choose manage now
You will need to sign in with any gmail or google account you have already, or you will need to create one.
It will then ask you to “type to find your business” or “add your business to google”. This is what you will choose.
Then follow the steps and fill in the information it asks for.
You will need to give a physical address to use for the business and you need to be able to receive mail there.
You can hide the address once the page is verified so it won’t be visible to the public but you still have to enter an address to get started.
Google will send a postcard to that address to verify it.
Next confirm what phone number you want to have displayed.

Click Here - To Get Your GMB Page

Editing your GMB Page once verified

Once you have your page verified, or in the process of being verified, you will be able to make changes to it. Here is where to start:

Update your contact information, phone number, website, hours, and create your profile “short name” by clicking the “Info” tab on the left.
Click on “Services” and add each of your services with descriptive details.
Click on “Photos” and add a cover photo, logo, and photos of the inside and outside of your business. If you don’t have a physical location, add photos of your team servicing clients, jobs your completed, or the products you sell.
Create a “Post” which can be about any of your products or services. You may want to create a special offer in this post. These only last for 1 week generally so this is something you should update every week.
If your business has multiple locations, click “Add a location” and go through the same verification steps.
Ask people to review your business on google. When you on in the “Home” tab, Click on “Share Review Form”. This will be a direct link to review your business. See images below. For example, ours is: https://g.page/catskillmarketing/review?rc

Thank you for reading. We are here to help.

We would be glad to help you get your google business page verified and updated FREE OF CHARGE. We believe this is one of the MOST IMPORTANT things you can do today to reach new customers and keep your current customers up to date with information from your business.

Email: Matt@catskillmarketing.com for more info.