On average, Google receives over 40,000 search queries every single second from over 1.2 billion unique users every month. With this level of potential exposure, it is essential that all businesses capitalise on the marketing opportunity of a free Google My Business account.

The account is free to set up, and with lots of options available, you can make sure your account is completely optimised to increase your marketing potential. So, how can you update your Google My Business account for increased online presence? Here are our simple steps.

• Set up your account
  The first thing to do is create a free Google listing for your business. You can do this here.
• Complete the information:
  Google will ask you to complete a range of information about your business. The information they look for include;
  Business locations
  Business opening times
  Images of your business
  Links to your website and social media pages
  Contact details for customers
  Key business information

Remember, Google will allow anyone to ‘suggest an edit’ to your business profile. Anyone can change almost any part of your listing. Competitors could change your listing to their advantage, for example, making your business appear closed or shut for good. You need to check your dashboard regularly to monitor any changes.

Tip: Fill in as much information as possible so fewer people will feel like they need to update your listing with potentially wrong information, but you’ll still need to check your listing regularly.

• Google posts

Google My Business (GMB) Posts are small ads or snippets of information that you can display on your listing. These posts will show up on your listing through a Google search. You can use posts to advertise an event or special offer. You can also highlight a sale, new product or potentially other social media content, such as your latest blog post.

Remember, your post can be used for a strong call to action or just engaging with your customers.

Tip: Google loves emojis and now uses them in their search tools, so add relevant emojis in your posts to help with your SEO but remember not to go overboard, you still want to look professional.

• Contact

If you really want to impress, customers can even book appointments using a Google supported scheduler or message customers if you verify your number on your GMB dashboard. Both can be a great way to connect with customers and allow them to access your services with ease.

Tip: Make checking your GMB dashboard a regular habit, so your listing stays relevant and useful to potential customers.

If you need help, please get in touch.