The Top 5 Google My Business Mistakes Business Owners Make

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Don’t Let This Happen to You!

Google My Business is a free tool provided by the search engine giant to manage a business profile across multiple platforms, including Google’s own search engine and Google Maps. According to Google, businesses who verify their Google My Business page are twice as likely to be considered reputable by customers.

Five Common Google My Business Mistakes

Many business owners are simply unaware of GMB’s power to help boost their visibility in local search. Kristen, our local search guru, put together a list of the five most common mistakes that business owners make with GMB.

    1. Unclaimed listings: Google asks business owners to “claim” their GMB profile. It’s a simple process that should not be overlooked. If you do not claim your listing, you have no control over the information Google shares on your page or on Google maps. This includes store hours, product information, and more. One business owner realized his Google My Business page showed his former store location only when customers complained of being sent to the wrong address. Because he hadn’t claimed his listing, Google simple picked up the old information from a web page it indexed. Claiming your listing means you’re in control of the information.
    2. Ignoring reviews: Google Reviews provide a powerful way to attract customers to your business. While it’s great if customers offer reviews spontaneously, few people willingly log into Google and offer reviews. Business owners can plan campaigns to actively ask customers for reviews. Dashboard Interactive has completed many such successful campaigns for our clients and helped them boost their visibility and trustworthiness online through Google Reviews.
    3. Neglecting photos: Google takes street view photos and uses them as a placeholder, but your business is probably a lot more attractive than the images they’ve captured cruising by in the Google car. Upload your own photos that truly represent your business. This is a simple yet often overlooked opportunity to solidify and support branding and offer an appealing image of your business to potential customers.
    4. Adding more listings: More isn’t necessarily better when it comes to Google My Business pages. Your business should have only one listing. More than one and you’re competing against yourself, which can hurt your search engine rankings in the long run.
    5. Missing information: The more complete your Google My Business listing, the better. It’s often the first thing that people see when they search for your business. Give people as much information as you can. Complete all sections of your listing and consider adding Google Posts to emphasize specials or events and drive more traffic to your website.

We’ve listed a few of the basics, but there is much more that can be implemented to improve Google My Business visibility and help local businesses generate new business opportunities.

Experts Available to Help You

A claimed and complete Google My Business profile is an important first step toward a strong local search presence. If most of your customers come from the local area, it’s time to update your Google My Business listing.

Dashboard can help businesses fully optimize their Google My Business listing or regain access to their Google My Business page in the event that it was claimed long ago and you don’t know the login info. We can also help clean up incorrect listings in local search which can also hurt rankings in the event of a business move or multiple locations. Call us at 763-242-2454 for more information.