Google Business Profile, enables business owners to reach out to customers through Google Search and Google Maps. Maintaining a business profile allows you to increase your Google visibility, gain credibility through reviews, and gain control over your business information.
What Is Google Business Profile?
Google Business Profile (GBP) is a free tool that allows you to control how your company appears on Google Search, Maps, and Shopping.
You can use this tool to communicate with customers, post business updates, list products or services, and much more. You can have an account even if you don't have a storefront as long as you have contact with customers.
If you're a carpet cleaner, for example, you might only see customers at their homes. You can, however, maintain a Google Business Profile.
Is Google Business Profile Free?
Creating and managing your Google Business Profile is completely free. And you can get a lot out of it without having to pay anything.
What Are the Benefits of Google My Business?
Increase Visibility on Google
You've probably noticed the map and accompanying list of businesses that can appear at the top of Google search results when you search for a business. This is referred to as the "local pack" or "map pack."
For location-specific queries (or search terms that suggest a location, such as "restaurants near me"), the local pack appears. It contains Google Maps results as well as business information. Businesses with well-optimized Google Business Profiles have a much better chance of appearing in these results.
In recent years, mobile searches for phrases like "where to buy" and "near me" have increased by more than 200%. These are referred to as "discovery searches." Instead of looking for a specific brand, users are looking for a category.
So, if a user is physically close to your business and searches for a broad term such as "restaurant," your business is more likely to appear as a geolocated result if it is well-optimized (we'll go over more optimization tips later).
Gain Credibility with Reviews
Online reviews for local businesses are read by 98% of online customers. On Google Maps, the star rating next to business names (which ranges from 1 to 5) is a total of reviews.
Reviews provide useful information about your company. You can respond to reviews, which can help your customers trust you. Customers, on the other hand, do not expect perfect reviews. A mix of positive and negative reviews, according to Google, is more trustworthy.
Responding to reviews, both positive and negative, is an excellent way to build trust and credibility with current and prospective customers.
Share Business Information With Customers
Your Google Business Profile allows you to display your business hours, contact information, services, and more. You can also notify your customers of any temporary changes. You can, for example, display holiday hours or indicate whether your business is temporarily closed or fully reopened.
Manage Your GBP with Free Carpet Cleaning Leads
Keeping your Google Business Profile up to date is a free way to stay ahead of the competition.
Fill out your business information, respond to reviews regularly, and post about news and events. Keeping your profile up to date is an excellent way to boost your local search visibility and generate leads.
Use Free Carpet Cleaning Leads to easily automate the process and manage multiple listings.