Google’s entire business model is based around being unquestionably the single best search engine. If you didn’t find what you were looking for quickly and easily, every time you searched Google, you might eventually try using a different search engine! So everything Google does is for the searcher’s convenience.
If a potential customer is looking for a phone number, an address or opening hours for your business, then there is no need for them to visit your website – those details are provided in your Google My Business listing, right there in the search results.
Don’t look at this as one less click to your website, but rather as a potential customer finding the information they were looking for more easily. If they only wanted your phone number or to see if you were open on a Saturday, they will find that information quicker than if they still need to click onto your site. The result will be an entirely satisfied customer! Of course, if the customer wanted some other information, they would have clicked through to your website.
For this reason alone, setting up a Google My Business listing is a worthwhile exercise. But when you start looking a little deeper, a Google My Business listing is absolutely essential for every business. Even if your business is solely “online” – i.e., you may not want to advertise a street address because you run your business out of your own home – you would still need to provide your physical location for verification purposes, but you can choose not to display your address in your public GMB listing.
Benefits of a Google My Business Listing
If someone is searching for your business name, then they are already aware of your business, perhaps even a returning customer. So your full Google My Business listing will be displayed in the search results. You’ve probably seen these listings before, to the right of the search results.
But what if someone is searching for a more generic phrase? Such as:
- best Thai restaurant
- mechanic near me
- pool shop open Sundays
Each one of these searches results in a “three-pack” result above the standard organic search results.
You’ve probably seen these “three-packs” before as well – a map with three local businesses pinned onto the page. Those business details are pulled from each business’s Google My Business listing. In fact, the backbone of Google’s entire Local Search directory is Google My Business.
Simply setting up your Google My Business page can be enough to get you featured in a three-pack result. And the fact that these appear on top of the standard organic search results makes them critically important.
Don’t Miss Out on the Benefits of Google My Business
Make sure that your business has an up-to-date and detailed Google My Business listing. If you have not taken the time to create and optimize one, then you’re missing out on one of the best free (and guaranteed!) ways of appearing in the Google search results.
Google My Business pages aren’t complicated, but they are important. While you may feel like it’s just one more web page to keep on top of, Google My Business should go to the top of the pile as one of the most important.
It takes just a couple of minutes to set it up, so make sure you do so – and see the benefits instantly!
Check out this FREE eBook on Google My Business.