If You Read One Article about Google My Business Read this One

This week Business Insider Australia released an article by Joshua Barrie which provides some insight into the amount of people actively using Google+. Sighting data compiled by Kevin Anderson based on an analysis of G+ accounts worldwide by Edward Morbius, the numbers are crunched down for us to the point where it’s concluded that 0.3% of all 2.2 billion Google+ profiles worldwide made a public post in the first 18 days of 2015 (that is from G+ exclusively rather than via YouTube).

This is a pretty good indication that many people sign up for a Google+ account and never touch it again. You might be wondering why that is!

For those of you who have come across Google Maps, you will see that some businesses show up when you search for them, while others do not. The businesses that appear are using the Google My Business platform (formerly known as Google Places) which ties in with Google+. It’s important to note that whichever of these pages you create when you first sign up, you are prompted to also create a page for its counterpart, whether you’re privy to what it’s used for or not.

After some further research into Google My Business, you will have found out that it can help your business information appear on Google Maps as well as in a section of results only slightly below the paid Ads on Google. It’s a no-brainer at this point to whack in your business phone number and address and wait for the glorious free leads to start streaming in.

The truth is you might be waiting a while.

The reality is Google knows all about relevancy and how to measure it. Google is well aware that any businessperson today can create a Google My Business account, verify their business address, add some details and photographs and then never touch the account again. This is why they want to see consistent use and interaction on Google+ before they let anyone reap the reward of appearing above organic search results on Google (we all know how valuable that is).

Here at SponsoredLinX we are frequently talking to customers who want to know why they appear below their competitors, or not at all, within Google My Business results (“I created the account, why am I not coming up?”). Well nine times out of ten the pages above them are actively making posts, sharing content, +1’ing other peoples content and have a higher volume of views and people in their circles.

I think it’s important our customers understand that Local SEO (Google+ & Google My Business) is different from regular SEO, but also very complex. It takes time and effort to communicate with Google and send the message that your Google My Business page is more relevant than your competitors’ pages. There’s much more to it than meets the eye.

Yes, maybe the statistics say that ‘nobody is using Google+’, but I see this as ‘nobody is using Google+ properly’. So why not capitalise on the opportunity to have a professional set-up and optimise your account. They will tell you what you need to do to be in the 0.3% who are using the platform how it’s designed to be used and, reap the benefits on Google search.

Check out my four top tips on how to increase the signal and relevancy of your Google My Business page to Google.

– Ensure that the Google My Business/Google+ pages are correctly linked to your website and verified to an address.
– Make sure all fields and categories are properly filled out (business phone number, opening hours etc.) as well as including high-resolution, quality images on the pages.
– Posting content that is original, interesting and relevant enough to receive +1’s for. (Some people suggest that +1’ing other people’s content can prompt them to +1 you back).
– Having any relevant bodies in your industry in your circles, as well as high ranking pages putting you in their circles (when I say high ranking pages I’m talking about a high volume of views, shared & +1’d content, large number of people in circles etc.)

Feel free to call us today on 1300 859 600 if you have any questions about Google My Business or Google+, or visit our website here.