Google My Business is a free tool. It allows business owners to create, manage and optimize their Google Business Profile. It represents an opportunity for business owners. It helps attract new customers from search maps. By optimizing your Google My Business Profile you will improve your online presence to compete with the competitors. In this blog, you will know how to optimize your Google My Business Profile. Google My Business aims to make reaching more people easier for you and your business.

An optimized Google Business Profile Looks Like This:

An optimized Google Business Profile is interactive and captivating. It showcases every aspect of your business. And allows you to engage directly with your ideal customers. An optimized profile also increases conversions because it’s easy to find your target audience and makes it easy for them to understand your business.

Here, Carl’s Google Business Profile is incomplete. But Nirmaan’s Business Profile shows even more detail when you scroll. This diagram doesn’t show all of the specifications of an optimized Google Business Page. But it gives you an idea of how attractive and engaging an optimized profile can be.

Why do you Need an Optimized Google Business Profile?

There are many benefits of a Google Business Profile. First, your business gets excellent exposure on Google. Customers can easily find out more about you, your products and services, and your contact information. In addition, search results for your business will match up to the information available on business profile pages.

• Improve Engagement

Google’s recent update to its search algorithms has resulted in zero-click searches. It is excellent news for businesses that have prepared well-optimized content and pages on their Google Business Profiles. Not only this will improve their standing in the SERPs. But it will also increase the number of consumers taking action directly from those Google Search results.

• Boost your Local Ranking

Getting a high-quality Google Business listing is necessary. It helps to rank on the first page in local search results. It signals to Google that your business exists. And provides information about your business’s name, address and phone number, hours of operation, and other valuable details like categories and products/services.

• Reach More Customers

Boost customer traffic and sales by attracting new customers through a well-branded Google My Business page. A business page makes you more likely to appear in search results. Also, be ranked higher than your competitors and drive more foot traffic to your website.

How to optimize your Google Business Profile?

Optimizing your Google Business Profile is the key to getting found in local searches, standing out above competitors, and winning customers online. Here are 13 ways to turn your business profile into a 24/7 marketing and lead generation tool for your business.

1. Create a Google My Business account

The early step in optimizing your Google My Business account is to create and set up a Google My Business account. You’ll need to head to the main Google My Business page and click “Manage” at the top-right corner. Click on it and enter some basic information. It includes your business name, phone number, and address. After that, your account will be created in seconds.

2. Complete Every Section

Many sections must be filled in to complete your Google My Business listing. The validity of this data is essential for local search results. Because it allows Google’s algorithms to understand the profile better, a complete listing will also increase customers’ actions when they find your profile.

These criteria should be completed for your profile right away:

• Name
• Address
• Contact No.
• Website Address
• Hours

These parts take a bit more time and thought:

• Category and Attributes 
• Products and services
• From the business
• Questions and answers

These sections are ongoing:

• Posts
• Reviews

3. Be Meticulous with Contact Information

Follow these steps to optimize the contact information:

• When creating your Google listing, ensure you’re listing your business name exactly as it shows in the real world. This means adding a location name or keywords is considered spam by Google and could result in penalties. Follow these steps to optimize the contact information:
• Make sure you’re using the consistent, professional contact information as part of all your listings across the web, including your Google My Business listing. That means using “st” vs. “street” or “co” vs. “company” consistently in all places where you have an address listed. Google takes these inconsistencies into account when assessing your credibility.”
• Be specific and up-to-date with your contact information. Include your regular and holiday hours, so customers know the best time to visit your store. This will help to avoid negative reviews left by people who drove out only to find the store closed.
• Write your “from the business” Description.

The “from the business” part of your Google My Business dashboard lets you write a description. It gives customers a more thorough understanding of what you do. It can also link to other websites if that makes sense for your business. To optimize the “from the business” of your Google Business profile, use the following points:

• Use 750 characters. And use the first 250 characters with preliminary information.
• Reprocess content from your “About Us” page or mission statement.
• Don’t repeat any information already provided and visible in the other parts of your profile.
• Don’t include links or HTML.

4. Choose a Category

Unless you choose a unique business category, we recommend choosing one of the following categories for your Google My Business profile:

Get found in Discovery Searches: Google My Business helps you reach more customers. It enables you to search for your business locally on Google. You can help customers find you by offering a customized experience when they look for your business on Google. That includes information like operating hours, directions, and contact details. You can provide more information about your company. Also, respond to customer reviews with a free listing.

Highlight Category-specific Features: Google makes a variety of category-specific features. Those are available to businesses in their Google My Business profile. These provide users with more information. So that they can use to take an informed step about where to do business.

Highlight the characteristics of your business you care about the most. And manage your listing to optimize it. Here are some criteria to optimize your Google Business Profile using categories:

Be Specific: Your GMB description should also be particular. Use the same criteria above to create an eye-catching description. It tells people exactly what your business offers and where it is located. To ensure your Google My Business page gets the best results, be as specific as possible.

Choose Secondary Categories: Use the secondary category to describe what you do further. When you select your primary category, you’ll see this option appear. If you have multiple services that make up your business choose secondary categories to outline them.

Don’t Overdo: Google My Business aims to connect consumers with businesses. To help them do so, the platform allows you to add specific attributes. The categories you enter are the ones that will be displayed when someone searches for your business on Google. Stick with only the categories that help get your business in front of consumers who need it.

5. Select Applicable Attributes

Attributes are keywords that describe the essential features of your business. Attributes differ from categories, which define geographic locations. So if you don’t have any outstanding attributes that pertain specifically to your business, don’t worry about it! You can add as many attributes as you want to each profile, but use them sparingly. Attributes are also not required.

6. Add Photos

It helps to reinforce your Google listing as a trusted brand. Also, to increase user engagement. We have seen a significant lift in ranking from clients who do this. But basically, there are some reasons to add photos to optimize your google my business profile:

Ensure photo quality: Ensure the quality of your Business Profile photos by adding your own. High-quality photos with great lighting will help you get positive reviews. Also, driving more customers to your business. Your customers’ first impression of your Google My Business listing may be that of a badly taken photo or one that is not professional enough.,

Be Active in Adding Photos: Adding photos regularly on your Google Business profile is a great way to verify the information about your business on Google. It indicates to Google that you are an active google, my business user. And it is up-to-date, positively impacting your ranking.

Get Images in Results: With the continuous improvement of image recognition technologies in Google, it is becoming increasingly essential to feature photos in local results. These advanced technologies enable showing what the text says. And make searching for images a more practical and delightful experience.

Increase Engagement for Photos: Google Business profile photography package is specifically designed to trigger engagement on the platform. Capture high-quality, engaging images for your business profile. Please include them in your Google Business Photographs gallery. Your customers are 49% more likely to read business information when it appears with photos.

By following tips, you can optimize your Google Business Profile photos:

• Upload at least one new photo every seven days to keep your Google My Business profile fresh.
• Upload a logo for your thumbnail photo so you can add it to the other photo fields later.
• You can upload different images for your cover photo. But the image that represents your business best should be your main profile image.
• Use a variety of high-quality photos featuring your core products and brand. It will maximize your search visibility.
• Focus on quality images that showcase your product or service. Depict your presence, and align with image-enriched results.
• Add videos also
• Geo-tag your photos to further signal to Google your reputation in your area.
• To add a 360º photo, use Google’s Street View app.

7. Get Google Reviews

While it’s among the most influential ranking factors, Google reviews aren’t just a boon for local businesses. Reviews have been shown to increase brand awareness. Reviews improve conversion rates and boost sales. They can be used to increase your organic rankings and social media following, too.

By following the steps, you can optimize your Google Business Profile with reviews:

• Serve your customers and loyalists well. They will be your ambassadors to new and potential customers.
• Creating a review shortcut link makes it quick and easy for customers to write a review.
• Turn your customers into promoters. Reviews help people with the same pain points find solutions and make informed decisions. So please encourage them to leave feedback.
• Let your customers know you’re listening by posting a “Reviews” page on your site with a CTA button.
• Respond to your customers’ reviews. Respond to each review and leave a helpful, meaningful comment. It builds trust with potential customers.

Be careful to refrain from encouraging reviews that mention discounts, gifts, or cash. That’s not allowed.

8. Post to your Google Business Profile

With your Google My Business dashboard, you can create posts to your Google Business Profile. Posts are highlighted on your business listing and in the “Updates” section at the bottom of your Business Profile. You also make announcements, share offers, or announce events. These will bring more traffic. 

Here’s how posts on your google my business help you to optimize your Business Profile:

• Posting to your Google Business Profile helps you increase the amount of actions. Those actions were taken by customers who found your profile. Add valuable content, such as photos, videos, and reviews. So that customers can learn more about your business.
• Google likes regularly updated Business Profiles. Make sure you post to your Google Business Profile at least once monthly.
• Posting to your Google Business Listing has a higher engagement rate than other platforms. Because it’s in a prime location — at the top of search results.
• Post to your Google Business Profile, and let customers know what’s happening with you. When they get notified, they might even share your updates on Google+.

Here are some tips for optimizing your Google Business Profile with posts:

• Post Regularly. Posting regularly to your Google Business Profile helps you send signals to Google. It allows you to ensure that certain kinds of content expire every seven days and are replaced by new posts.
• Use posts to create and organize events, offers, and other marketing campaigns. If you’re going to hold an event or promotion with a specific timeline, you can set it up so your post stays live for a certain period.
• Add links to new content and include CTAs in every post.

9. Ask and Answer Questions

An active Q&A section on your profile can help customers find answers to their questions before contacting you. You can also use this section to provide additional information. Customers will see it when searching for businesses. And you can use the chance to promote the option of offering a discount if they purchase it from you.

You don’t turn off the Q&A feature. But there are ways to optimize it:

Set up alerts: Alerts will let you know when questions are asked. And answered on your profile so that you can respond quickly.

Seed your Own Q&A Section: Some of the most common questions businesses get are about services, policies, and special offers. Why not have all of your answers in one place?

Keep Keywords in Mind: All businesses should ask questions and answer them in their Google Business Profile. This helps improve your business profile’s organic ranking by enhancing its visibility. 

Monitor your Q&A Section: Monitor your Q&A section to ensure that it’s always accurate and relevant. Add helpful answers to those questions that you’ve been asked. Monitor the popularity of each answer, and share it on social media when you’re ready.”

10. Maintain your Business Profile with a Simple Google My Business Strategy

Google My Business helps you to manage your business’ presence on Google. It offers a wide range of features to help increase local visibility, engagement, and reach. This guide will tell you how to start with a simple Google My Business strategy. This includes:

• Information updating, even as simple as a change in suite number.
• Publish posts and upload photos and videos regularly.
• Monitoring the reviews
• Responding to reviews as soon as possible
• You are remaining on top of the latest features. So that you can ensure you’re using your business profile to its full potential.

If you’re not optimizing your Business Profile, you’re missing out on one of the essential parts of your digital footprint. Google My Business is quickly becoming the dominant form of Google local search. It means more people are finding businesses on it than a random Google search. And while there are many other sites you can use to build up your business’s online presence, it’s a necessary part of any effective SEO strategy.

So don’t overlook this powerful and flexible tool. Instead, please take action today to optimize your Business Profile. So that it can stand out from the crowd and drive more customers to your door.