Using Bing Places for Business to Improve Local SEO

Published by : Vicinus

Date : November 5, 2024

Introduction

To establish a strong digital presence, engaging with potential customers across multiple platforms is crucial. While SEO remains a key strategy for boosting organic traffic, many local firms are unaware of the opportunities provided by Bing Places. Even though Google Business Profile dominates the market, Bing still accounts for 23.7% of searches, making it a critical platform that should not be overlooked. Missing out on optimising your Bing listing can mean missing valuable leads.

Optimising your local SEO through Bing Places can enhance local visitor generation and drive traffic to your online and physical locations. Bing Places ensures that your business information is prominently displayed, helping you capture local searches. Neglecting this platform could lead to missed opportunities, while enhancing your listing can boost visibility, helping your business reach its full potential.

The following blog will help you understand why Bing Places is essential for local SEO and how it enhances your business’s visibility to an expanding audience.

Understanding Bing Local Search and Its Importance

Imagine a scenario where a customer searches for services online, but your business does not appear on it. This is where the Bing Local Search feature comes into play. It functions as a direct bridge between those who are searching and businesses that are located nearby, putting you in direct contact with local clients who are in need of your professional services. By using Bing Places, your business transforms from a mere listing into a unique opportunity that provides precise and comprehensive information at the exact time when consumers need it.

The act of ignoring Bing Local Search Results can shut the door on a large number of prospective customers. Bing is preferred by millions of users on the internet. By adjusting your Bing listing, you can increase your company’s exposure and ensure that customers will not only find you (online) but also choose to do business with you (store visit). Despite being the default search engine on millions of devices, Bing frequently goes unnoticed when companies concentrate on local SEO.

According to Backlinko, about 100 million people use Bing every day for search engines, making it an essential platform for businesses to reach a distinct audience that could otherwise go unnoticed.

The Role Of Bing Places

While Google often dominates SEO discussions, neglecting Bing may result in a lost opportunity for enterprises seeking to broaden their audience. Bing, being the second-largest search engine, provides access to a significant audience, especially those who utilise it exclusively for their inquiries.

Based on a report from Microsoft, there are around 100 million users that operate Bing every day. On a larger scale, Google has more than a billion active users every day. 

 

Bing Places for Business, parallel to Google My Business, enables enterprises to establish complementary listings featuring vital information such as address, telephone number, website, and operating hours. These listings improve visibility in local search outcomes across Bing’s platforms, including Bing Maps and voice search, assisting companies in distinguishing themselves to nearby customers.

Even though Bing listings may lack certain features Google offers, such as update postings or product displays, it continues to be a crucial component of any local SEO strategy. Attributes like category selection, image uploads, and analytics on search impressions continue to render it an effective instrument for enhancing exposure and generating local visitors. Your company will not be restricted to Google if you optimise your website for Bing, which will enable you to connect with the user base of Bing.

Google Business Vs Bing Places for Business

With regard to local search engine optimization (SEO), both Bing Places and Google Business Profile provide useful resources that can be utilised to enhance your online visibility. However, to reach their full potential, it is necessary to have a solid awareness of the contrasts between these two platforms.

 

Google Business Profile relies entirely on the information provided by the businesses, giving full control to business owners over their listings. Bing on the other hand, not only uses the information you enter but also gathers details from sites like TripAdvisor, Yelp, and Trustpilot. You can  add further information to your Bing listing, giving users a more complete view of your company.

 

The platforms also differ when it comes to reviews, which can be a key area . With Google Business Profile, business owners can respond directly to customer feedback through the review system, while customers can easily leave their own reviews. Whereas, Bing Places acquires evaluations from third-party sources such as Yelp and Facebook, providing prospective clients with a comprehensive perspective derived from various review platforms. Bing prioritises social platforms, while Google focuses on informational websites. Google’s algorithm generally provides more keyword-based, informative results, whereas Bing leans on social engagement. Simply put, Google Business Profile emphasises website optimization through keywords, backlinks, and session lengths, making it harder to manipulate rankings with spam links.

 

Businesses can efficiently optimise their presence on both platforms by harnessing these distinctions, allowing them to reach a larger audience. Your local search engine optimization (SEO) efforts will be amplified if you maintain consistent management across Bing and Google. This will assist you in bringing in traffic from both search engines and engaging with various clients.

Why Bing Places Should Be Part of Your SEO Strategy

Although Google dominates the search engine market, Bing retains a substantial stake, rendering it a vital enterprise platform. Like Google Business Profile, Bing allows businesses to enhance their presence in local searches. Integrating Bing Places into your SEO plan can improve your business for the following reasons:

Second-Largest Search Engine

With an 8.23% global market share, Bing remains the second-largest search engine. It is incorporated into Microsoft Edge, indicating that numerous users depend on it by default. As Bing integrates AI into its search outcomes, its market share may expand.

Completely Free to Use

There are no expenses associated with establishing and overseeing a listing. It is a cost-free chance for enterprises to expand their consumer base, with the sole investment being time.

User-Friendly Setup

Bing is accessible and manageable, even for individuals lacking technical expertise. The platform is engineered for accessibility to all entrepreneurs, facilitating the creation and modification of business information.

Valuable Analytics

The platform offers a simple interface for monitoring impressions, clicks, and customer evaluations. This enables assessing your business’s visibility and performance on Bing, providing insights to improve your local SEO operations.

Bing’s Significant Search Volume

Although Google is predominant, Bing processes billions of inquiries each month, rendering it a significant platform for visitors. It is the third most popular search engine, following Google and YouTube.

Default Search Engine for Windows Devices

Bing serves as the default search engine for more than 1.5 billion Windows devices worldwide, indicating that several consumers utilise it without selection, particularly in professional settings where Microsoft products are prevalent.

High-Intent Searches

Microsoft reports that 54% of Bing users engage in product research, while 43% utilise the platform for brand discovery, underscoring its capacity to attract high-intent search traffic. Bing Places provides a complementary, low-effort avenue to enhance your local SEO visibility. As Bing’s search engine advances, visibility on this platform may become increasingly vital for firms aiming to expand their online presence beyond Google.

Conclusion

Utilising Bing Places for Business is an effective approach to enhance local SEO and increase your business’s visibility. Although Google frequently prevails in discussions on search engine optimization, Bing provides access to a distinct audience, particularly on Microsoft devices. Optimising your Bing Places listing can improve your local visibility, attract additional prospective customers, and fortify your overall SEO approach. When it comes to local search results, utilising Bing Places for businesses can provide a competitive advantage, regardless of whether you run a small business or a well-established organisation.

Check out our comprehensive guide [link] for all the information you need to set up your Bing listing.

FAQS

A Bing Places for Business listing is a free service enabling businesses to list their information (address, operating hours, website) for inclusion in Bing search results and on Bing Maps.

It enhances your business’s visibility on Bing, which in turn enables you to attract a larger number of local customers and strengthen your profile on the internet.

The data is utilised in Bing search results, Bing Maps, and is integrated with sites such as Yelp and Facebook.

Reviews are compiled from external platforms such as Yelp and Facebook, rather than sourced directly from Bing.

Yes, it enhances local SEO by improving your business’s exposure on Bing and offering supplementary citation sources for other search engines.