For all those who use Google Maps in their daily lives will know how useful a tool it is. Using Google Maps can prove to be quite beneficial to business owners especially local businesses. In several cases, it has proved to be a boon for small business owners and give them very high returns! So, in this blog we will try to understand what Google Maps are, what benefits and how can one optimize them for maximum benefits. In short, everything you want to know about Google Maps!
What are Google Maps and Google Maps Marketing?
Google maps is a web mapping service developed by Google. It offers 360- degree view of that particular location, provides real- time traffic, informs about various establishments around that place.
When we are searching for a product or a service, Google is one of the first places we check online. So, when we Google “Bookstores Michigan “, Google not only displays the optimized results but it shows the top 3 results on the Map too. So, the chances of us checking out the top 3 Maps results are quite high. In fact, according to Google local research, 50% of the local searches conducted on smartphone end up in the store visit and similarly 34% of searches on tablets or computers too end up in the store visit. Now, these stats are quite high and also means that local search has a positive impact on the number of people who visit the store or the outlet. Your brands get awareness and in turn engagement with the clients. This also means, that being present on the Google Maps and optimizing it is extremely important to your business as more and more people now have smartphones. They are looking for relevant results which are found locally. It is an excellent and effective medium for advertising your products. If you are a small or budding business, then getting listed will be quite beneficial. ’Think Local’ is now a very important idea for most of the businesses.
How to Rank High on Google Maps?
To grow organically in the Google Map listing, there are few important points which local business should remember. The search results are based on relevance and distance of the business. Another important aspect of the results is that how noteworthy the business is. This means how many citations, reviews and what reputation on the internet, the local business has. So, it is extremely important to create backlinks and get good reviews from the customers. It is important to get verified on Google My Business.
What is Google My Business?
According to Google, itis a free and easy-to-use tool for businesses and organizations to manage their online presence across Google, including Search and Maps. One needs to claim their business presence on Google by this tool. By verifying and editing your business information, you can both help customers find you and tell them the story of your business. This information includes address, timings, hours of working, customer reviews. This is then verified by Google and the business and location are then ready to be displayed on Google Maps. The verification takes a couple of weeks as Google sends a physical postcard for the verification.
Few strategies that can helping in getting higher searches on Google are listed below:
- Fill Your Complete Business Details: It is very important to fill NAP (Name, Address and Phone number) on Google My Business. It is necessary to be accurate and consistent. A small error can disturb your rankings so make sure even the formatting is done in a correct way. Also, it is important to fill website details and photos. Just like your physical business, your website is your identity on the internet. So, NAP details should be mentioned on the website too as Google cross checks details from various sites. Photos & videos of your business will help in increasing your credibility on the internet as a lot of people check the pictures to get a better understanding of the business. Also listing it in various internet directories also lends legitimacy to that establishment. If the other establishments have more information than your ’s then their ranking becomes higher. Embedding Google Map in your contact page is also a good way to get a higher listing.
- Create good content around your business – A useful blog or a fun video, all these help in creating excitement around your brand. More and more users will want to check your business and this will lead to traffic to your website. Add high- resolution pictures for people want to know about your business visually. If you have a bakery, adding glossy pictures of cakes & pies will get more users to the website and Google will pick that too. Make sure the content is original and not plagiarized from other websites. The users will also give better reviews to the establishment. This can lead to online purchases as well.Add metadata like keywords and location . Therefore, investing time in designing an amazing content strategy for your brand is a good idea. A good content strategy will certainly help in getting high rankings in Google Maps.
- Engage with the Customers – Google picks up the reviews which customers have given on various sites for a particular business. Therefore, it is important that making sure the customers write reviews for your business. One can provide an incentive to write reviews. These incentives could be a discount or a free gift. After a successful delivery of service or goods, you can ask for their reviews. Several sites send a link to the customers. Also, not only the reviews matter but whether the reviews are positive or not. So, make sure that your brand engages with the customer. If a customer writes a negative review then thank him for his feedback. Create a dialog through which the matter is resolved and the rest of the readers are happy to use your website. Ample yet positive reviews will give higher rank on Google Maps listing.
- Get Backlinks– Backlinks as we know are very important as these are recommendations from authority websites. They make your website look more credible. Backlinks enhance the chances of getting higher rankings in Google Maps. These days, there are agencies who just specialize in creating backlinks. You can also hire agency to create good quality backlinks for your website
- Google Map Ads – There are ads which can be placed on Google Map listings. These ads are shown on Google Maps app, Google Maps mobile, tablet and desktop sites, and on Google.com Expanded Maps results. They have four types – promoted pins, in store promotions, customizable business pages and local maps site. These advertisements appear on google map app and site. These ads are paid for but can also enhance the visibility of your business. Advertisers are currently charged on cost per click for Google Search Ads.
- Evaluate – If these strategies are not working, then check your competitors’ business online and its listing. Evaluate your listings on regular basis and get feedback. Is the NAP accurate and consistent across the cites or their enough reviews or citation. There are agencies who can help your business for citations.
If above steps are used to create a Google Map strategy, chances are that your business will start climbing the listing. Breaking into top three ranking takes time. Be patient and do not despair if you cannot see results immediately. But once your business is in top three listing, there will be lots of customers waiting to buy your products or services. Hire a Michigan SEO agency who can help in creating a robust Google Map marketing strategy. So, make use of this amazing tool by Google. and get ahead in your business.
