8 tips to optimize your Google My Business page

If you read our blog regularly, you have certainly heard of Google My Business. This free tool from Google is a valuable asset for improving your local search ranking. It is therefore important to optimize it and make it a real asset in your marketing strategy.

1- CLAIM YOUR PROPERTY

After creating your Google My Business listing, remember to claim your property. The procedure is very simple. Click on “Own this business?” and follow the steps indicated.
By claiming your property, you will be able to easily edit the information on your page.

2- ENTER YOUR PROPERTY’S NAME CORRECTLY

When creating a Google My Business listing, it can be tempting to add keywords for SEO. But Google penalizes this practice. Your listing may then be suspended for an indefinite period.

To optimize your Google My Business page, we recommend entering your property’s name correctly, exactly as it appears on your storefront. After all, this is what people will generally type into Google to find information about your property.

3- FILL IN ALL THE INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR PROPERTY

At a glance, users should be able to find all the information about your property on your Google My Business page. To do so, simply go to your “Info” tab.

For a complete listing, we recommend adding at least:

• Your address
• Your opening hours
• Your phone number
• Your website

The information must be exactly the same as on your website. Google will indeed check this when determining your ranking.

4- CHOOSE THE RIGHT CATEGORY

In addition to information about your property, it is also important to choose the right business category for your ranking.

You can choose a primary category as well as secondary categories. Be careful not to overuse the latter: they must remain consistent with your business.

The primary category best describes your business. In the hotel industry, you can choose “4-star tourist hotel” or “2-star campground”, for example.

By choosing the right category, particularly in the hotel or restaurant industry, you can unlock practical tools such as “Reserve with Google”.

5- WRITE A DESCRIPTION OF YOUR PROPERTY

As on a website, it is essential to have some text on your Google My Business listing to make it more attractive.

This description appears at the bottom of your listing in Google search results. It is limited to 750 characters. Present your property in a concise and appealing way. This section does not count towards your ranking, so there is no need to include many keywords.

6- ADD PHOTOS REGULARLY

Another element that makes your Google My Business page attractive: photographs. Regularly update your page with recent photos. That way, people looking for information about your property can get a “real-time” preview of what you offer. This is particularly useful if you run a restaurant.

Note that Google provides a few recommendations for the photos on your Google My Business page:

• Photo in .jpg or .png format
• File smaller than 5 MB
• Ideally 720×720 pixels
• Unedited photo (no filters, no photo editing to remove elements…)

You can also add videos to your listing if you wish.

7- USE THE “POSTS” FEATURE

This is a little-known Google My Business feature. The “Posts” tab lets you regularly write short, personalized updates to share your property’s latest news.

It is an original way to communicate about your business, your upcoming events or your offers.

Google My Business posts can be linked to one of the following categories:

• Offer
• What’s new
• Event
• Product

Once written, the post is displayed on your Google My Business listing.

8- TAKE REVIEWS INTO ACCOUNT

Google reviews are important. They are indeed among the main criteria internet users rely on when deciding to visit a business.

It is therefore essential for your business to have good reviews. These reviews have an impact on your organic search ranking.

All reviews, positive or negative, are automatically displayed on your Google My Business page. In every case, it is recommended to respond to them to show that you listen to your customers.

Never buy fake positive reviews. This practice goes against Google’s rules and your page could be penalized. However, to increase your share of positive reviews, we recommend suggesting that your customers leave reviews on your page, especially if they are very satisfied.

Julie
Communication Manager
In partnership with Amélie Manceau