Google My Business Updates: Features, Updates & Tests 2021 | Vicinus.ai

Throughout this global pandemic, there have been various changes and updates to Google My Business. With official updates, rumored tests, and new features- not to mention new features for Covid-19- GMB has seen a lot of changes these past 6 months. In this article, we will detail some of these changes.

UPDATE: This article will have subsequent blog posts that will have updates on google My Business later on in the year.

Google My Business Updates: Launches Small Business Advisors Program 

Back in November 2020, Google started a new program specifically to assist small businesses. This is a tool for small businesses in the United States which helps with online marketing.

The program gives you an official advisor to speak with about specific Google My Business Tools. 

Google My Business Updates: ‘Google Guaranteed’ Badge to Google Maps

This is an experiment that started back in July 2021. For $50 per month, your Google My Business profile can be updated with a ‘Google Guaranteed’ badge which helps to build trust for your business in ‘near me’ searches.

This experiment increases the visibility of your businesses on Google Maps. However, as this is still in its experimental phase, this feature might not be available to everyone and is still being tested.

Google My Business Updates: Google Local Pack to Show No. of Years in Business

This was a test that started back in September 2020. This is a feature that shows the number of years a business has been operating on the Google My Business Listing in the Local Map Pack. 

The range that this feature has is ‘<1 year in business’ right up to ’50+ years in business’.

This feature would be useful for consumer trust and reputation as longstanding businesses are often seen as more trustworthy. Although for newer businesses, this feature might not be as useful, older businesses could see larger conversion rates as a result of this test feature when it is rolled out.

Google Updates: Google Maps ‘Community Feed’

Launched in 2020, this feature is called the ‘Community Feed’. It is a great addition by Google attempting to socialise the local experience. This feature can be useful for both the business as well as the users at the same time.

However, the ‘Community Feed’ feature is only available in the Google Maps app. The app does primarily focuses on food and drink businesses. However, it will be expanded to live venues, community centers, and other industries too.

Google Updates: Expanded Google Messaging Features

Just after the launch of the ‘Community Feed’, Google has provided some details regarding an expansion to customer messages. Although again this is only available via the Google My Business app, this feature will help how customers get in contact with businesses.

Specifically useful during the Covid-19 pandemic, customers will be able to easily contact a business before they make the trip. This will help reduce the number of unnecessary trips and hopefully lower covid cases as a result.