A lot of people think of their Google Business Profile as just another means of getting a few extra clicks to their website every month, but the truth is, it has the potential to be so much more.
It’s obvious that your GBP is often the first point of contact customers have with your business, but have you thought about the fact that it is also Google’s first point of contact with your brand?
Hi, I’m Bob Ottaway, President of Marketers for Movers, and for over 20 years, my team has been helping moving companies increase their visibility online. Efforts like GBP Optimization as a part of a larger SEO strategy can lead to significant boosts in local search result ranking and leads generated for moving companies like yours.
In this blog, I’m going to share a few things you can start working on today to start taking advantage of what is an often overlooked source for finding new customers.
Efforts like these led to a 32% increase in website clicks for one of our moving company clients, and the knowledge we’ll share below could help your business see similar results.
Select as Few Relevant Categories as Possible for Your Business
When you’re setting up a new page, the first thing you’re asked for after the name of your business is your “Business Category.” It can be tempting to pick as many categories as possible in the name of “increasing your business reach,” but this is one temptation you’ll want to resist.
According to Google’s own documentation, you should “Choose the fewest number of categories it takes to describe your overall core business.”
This is because Google’s goal is to present the highest quality information to its users at all times. If your business’s specialty is moving and storage, they want to show you users who will be most happy with the service you can provide, not something extra you do on the side.
That’s what keeps people coming back to Google, and incidentally, getting the best service possible is what keeps people coming back to your moving company as well.
Make Sure Your Company Details are Aligned with your Website and Include Answers to All Company Details Questions
If Google sees a conflict in information like your business operation hours from what you show on your website vs your GBP, it can hurt how trustworthy Google sees your business. Make sure when you update information on your website, you remember to reflect those changes on your GBP.
Also, take a moment to look at the “More” section under your “Business Information.” There are a lot of extra details here that people forget to add or think don’t matter.
But think about it this way, if you were a person who used a wheelchair and one company states they are wheelchair accessible and another doesn’t say anything, which one are you going to take your business to?
It’s important to make sure your business is showing up even in edge cases like this one.
Add 100 or More Photos to Your Profile
According to a study from BrightLocal, GBPs with “more than 100 images on Google My Business get 520% more calls.” If you’re not sure what kind of photos to add, focus on your business operations in action and pictures of your office.
If you have amenities like wheelchair ramps or a customer parking lot, take some pictures of those things as well.
Google will also give you advice on how it thinks you can strengthen your profile in an area next to your GBP. Things like pictures Google is looking for will often appear here. Please note you’ll need to be logged in to see this section.
Google will also give you an overall “Profile Strength” grade, which can act as a helpful guide to follow how your optimization efforts are coming along.
Note, though, that some of Google’s recommendations require paying for certain Google features like Workspaces, so a perfect score won’t necessarily be achievable all the time.
Engage your Customers by Responding to Reviews and FAQ’s
GBPs offer businesses several ways to get in contact with their customers. You can and should respond to customer reviews whether they be positive, or especially negative. If you need advice on engaging with customers who have left negative reviews, Google’s Community Center has some advice and best practices that might help you.
Taking the time to respond to customer reviews makes your customers feel like their opinion matters to you, and there’s no easier way to create a returning customer than with a personal “Thank you!” from the owner.
The other often overlooked community feature of GBPs is the FAQ section.
In this area, anyone can ask questions about your business. The key thing here is that anyone can answer as well, and that might not be something you want.
Keep an eye on this section of your page and make sure to give thorough responses whenever a customer asks a question.
You can also ask questions on your own and answer them yourself. If there are any common questions your customers have about your services, go in and add them to this section to help future customers find answers to questions they may not have even thought of.