Taking advantage of your opportunity to rank in local searches in Google Maps is incredibly important to attract in-store traffic, generate revenue, and find new leads.
One of the best ways to do so is marketing on Google Maps.
Why is Google Maps Important for my Digital Strategy?
Google Maps can help your business be found.
When customers want to find a store near them, Maps is often the first place to go.
This will then generate a list of three companies (also known as the local SEO three-pack) that fits the search query best.
This means that working to get your business featured on the local SEO three-pack is necessary to generate more footfall to your business.
Why should I use Google Maps Marketing?
Much like detailed above, it is essential to optimise Google Maps to your benefits in order to optimise your local SEO presence.
Google Maps attracts local customers to your business. Over 50% of users visit stores within a day of conducting a local search. It’s essential that Maps Marketing is used to get potential customers to your store.
What factors determine my Google Maps ranking?
When thinking about optimising Maps, there are three factors you should be considering:
Proximity
Google often bases searches on the proximity of your business to the individual searching for it.
Proiximity can’t be changed or influenced which means that businesses can’t optimise this to rank higher in proximity categories. This is because this factor is based off of proximity rather than any other factors.
However, this does mean that larger-scale companies aren’t more prominent when it comes to proximity. Larger companies can’t pick the top locations in your area for proximity which evens out the playing field.
2. Reviews
Reviews are always a way to gain leads and potential customers.
Customers determine whether a business is good via reviews and rely on these ratings to decide if the company is fit for their needs.
However, reviews can also influence your website’s position on Maps too. This is because Google ranks businesses with better reviews higher.
Reviews mostly apply when users are not searching for non-branded searches such as ‘coffee in London’.
3. Optimisation Levels of GMB profile
Optimising your GMB (Google My Business) profile is essential for ranking in Google Maps.
Update your profile with accurate and relevant information in order to rank higher in Maps. You can also make sure that the images used in your GMB profiles are accurate and high-quality.
What can I do to optimise my GMB listings for Google Maps?
There are a variety of ways you can optimise your GMB listing for Google Maps.
- Add NAP (name, address, phone number)
- Update images/ high-quality images
- Make sure your information is the same across all listings
- Claim your listing
- Select your category
- Link to your website
- Update GMB introduction
- Get reviews
