Google can be a fickle mistress. How do they figure out how to put your company on their map? Here are some tips we’ve gathered about Google Maps and Google My Business.
When it comes to searching for a service online, you want your business to be high as possible. You also want your business to show up when people search based on location. But did you know Google hardly cares about your physical location?
Based on information we’ve gathered, Google really doesn’t care if your business is actually where you say it is. Obviously, when someone searches an area, Google will give them options within a certain range. But even if the search is very specific, Google will still give options that are technically outside of your search area. This is because Google shows locations based on relative geographical location rather than addresses. I’ll give an example.
As you can see, Molly Maid is not even in the city of Cincinnati, but they are still being shown by Google as a cleaning service in Cincinnati. What does that mean for your business? Well, it means that you won’t be left out of searches just because you’re physically located in a small village outside a major city.
Did you know 50% of google searches end without a click? Yeah, I was surprised when I learned that little factoid. What this means is that Google is presenting information right on the front page that gives the user everything they need to know. Most of the time this means the information on the right side of the page when you search a particular person, place, or thing. This is especially the case when you’re searching for a location. Often the address will be right there with no need for a click.
Every business owner who uses the internet knows the power of Google reviews. We’ve learned it can be helpful to share pictures that not only you post, but your customers post as well. Google Posts are actually underused by a lot of people, and they can be very helpful for your business. So make sure to post as much as you can about offers, events, your products and services to google search and google maps.
One thing to watch out for is your competitors gaming the system. Some people try to take advantage of Google. This is commonly called Google Map spam. They usually alter parts of their business shown on google maps to try and trick the system. You can keep an eye out by seeing if companies change their business name to fit a service, cram keywords and locations into the business name, or have inaccurate locations. All these methods are actually against Google’s guidelines. You can actually combat this spam by “suggesting an edit” next to their listing. Also you can report them through Google’s Business Redressal Complaint Form.
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