Content Summary
- Scroll down through the profile listing, and you should see a ‘Claim this business’ icon.
- Login to your account, go to the apps menu, and find the Google Business Profile app.
- Click on the app, and you can get started with setting up the profile.
- Verified business leads to more customization options in the GBP.
- GBP is also not a replacement for a business website.
The Google Business Profile (GBP), formerly known as Google My Business, helps your business rank on various Google platforms and overall helps tremendously with organic SEO. To get the most out of this free and highly effective service, these are some of the best tweaks you can do.
Find or Create
If your business has been in operation for a while (a few years), chances are that Google may have already created a GBP page for it. Start by searching your local area in Google maps or just do a quick text search on Google Search. This should show whether Google has already created a profile for your business.
If the profile already exists, click on it to open up the details. Scroll down through the profile listing, and you should see a ‘Claim this business’ icon. It’s recommended that you do this from a PC, but you can also set up a GBP from a mobile. Simply click on the ‘claim this business’ icon and proceed with the following steps that will help Google to verify that you are indeed the legal owner of the business. Eventually, you will change the listing and optimize it according to your preferences.
If the listing doesn’t exist, you can set it up from scratch. All you will need is a Gmail email account. Login to your account, go to the apps menu, and find the Google Business Profile app. Click on the app, and you can get started with setting up the profile.
Update the Basics
Once you’ve either claimed or set up a fresh GBP from scratch, it’s time to make some changes that will help Google understand more about your business. This will eventually help in indexing the organic reach of your profile and will also help users understand your business.
Some of the main things that you want to check, change, or update if necessary) include:
- Address
- Hours
- Category
These three factors make a huge difference in how, when, and where Google will naturally show your business to people who are searching for goods or services that you may have.
Next, you should focus on:
- Reviews
- Pictures
- Videos
- Products/Services
The amount of media (pictures and videos) you have, the number of reviews (and their quality) and a shop section on the Google Business Profile are all very important. Ideally, you should have all these setups, so you give Google enough information to analyze and understand your business and show it to the right audience. Reach out to previous or existing customers for reviews and make sure you are engaging with the reviews once they are posted.
Verify
Google will also manually verify your business to make sure it is a real entity. Once your business is verified, it makes a big difference to how your business ranks in Google and how easy it is for users to find it.
Verification can either be done through a phone call or a physical postcard that Google will send to your business address. You cannot choose the verification; this is up to Google to show you an option.
SEO and Engagement
Verified business leads to more customization options in the GBP. Tweaking these additional areas, adding keywords, engaging with customers, optimizing the description, and even setting up sales and promotions will further help your business grow on the GBP platform.
GBP is a powerful platform, but you need to know what to do to get the most out of it. GBP is also not a replacement for a business website. Ideally, you should use GBP in tandem with other social media marketing efforts and not rely solely on this solution. Over time, as your listing matures and you gather more reviews and feedback, the ranking will further improve and drive more traffic. If you want to fast-track your progress through the GBP, call Valorous Circle, we can help you get ranked on the front page with our many years of experience!
