In case you aren’t familiar with Google My Business here’s a brief explanation and why your business should be listed.
First of all you can reply to your Google reviews! This is the place you go to to answer back with a thank you, an explanation or an apology. You should always reply to reviews whether they are 5 stars or 1 star and Google My Business makes this very easy. Your audience may choose your company because of the way you respond to people. Customers want to work with a company that shows interest and cares. Now 5 star reviews don’t hurt – but everyone knows you’ll get a bad review every once in a while. This is where your reply matters.
Secondly you get insights! Here’s the place you look to see how people find you – what they actually Google to find you – how beneficial is this for updating your website text? Insights shows you how many people have looked at the listing and then clicked through to your website, how many have clicked through or called and how many have looked for directions. Further, Insights shows you where people are looking for directions from. There is a wealth of data to glean from insights and you can improve your marketing in many ways by acting on the data.
Lastly your customers will know your basic information like hours and phone number when they do a Google search. This information is very important for customers. Your info should be as complete as it can be. All of your contact information should be easy to see so customers can call you, check out your website or know where your store is. Your hours should be listed so your customers know when you’re open. Make sure you have photos uploaded and use the Post feature for specials and sales.
