The Marketer's Information to Incomes Model Miles on Google Maps
Are you a local business serving customers at one physical address?
Then you need to take this golden opportunity to grab consumer attention with the ultimate local guide on a mobile device including iPhone and iPad and all Android device products.
- ⅓ Mobile search is based on location.
- Overall, local search queries grow 50% faster than mobile search queries.
- From 2013 70% of the searchers used the "click-to-call"Function directly from the search engine results pages (SERPs).
- Search queries, including the phrase "Best Place to Buy" with the corresponding product or service keyword, increased 70% between 2015 and 2018.
- The searches for "Near me" also increased by 500% in the past few years. This includes searches such as "car dealerships near me" and "wedding dresses near me".
Google also recognizes that your company is special. In July 2014, an algorithmic update was released giving preference to local businesses for neighborhood-oriented queries on mobile devices.
In this article, I'll be focusing on Google Maps marketing in particular, paying attention to the mapping app on an iPhone and iPad, as well as any Android device.
Google Maps was actually started as a C ++ program at Where 2 Technologies. After a series of company acquisitions, Google launched its desktop web mapping service in 2005. In September 2008 the mobile Google Maps app was launched on Android.
The application is widely used by commuters for functions such as navigation, street view, public transport information, and finding local businesses. In 2013 the app was the most widely used smartphone app in the world.
I've already written about local business marketing and local SEO. Optimizing your website for Google search results is a good place to start, but there are still differences between map and web search results. As a result, you may need to optimize your business listing separately in a local guide to make it appear higher in Google Maps results. Your site must be connected to the mapping app via your API key.
In addition, you can also view your local inventory and place of purchase to be displayed higher in Google Maps results. Customers can also get real-time traffic times to reach you if you integrate navigation app functions.
Get started marketing Google Maps and driving qualified local traffic to your business even when doing turn-by-turn navigation.
Make sure your quotes are correct and optimize your business listing
The first step to make your business easier to find on Google Maps remains the same. Go to Google My Business and request listing for your business. This list will appear in the search and map results. A site that responds to a mobile device outperforms a site that doesn't.
The verification process takes a few days as Google wants to make sure you are who you say you are. They send you a physical postcard with a PIN. When you get it, follow the link, enter the pin and get to work.
Google emphasizes that the information you provide about your business must be correct.
Google will determine your business location and present your entries in the results based on the presence and accuracy of NAP – name, address and phone number (with area code). On-page SEO is the simplest marketing ingredient that you as a business owner need to worry about.
But guess what?
Many local companies provide incomplete and incorrect information. Unfortunately, they don't even bother to update their local guide lists.
However, it is not entirely the fault of the local business owners.
You need to be extra careful while providing data about your company. Enter your address up to your street and floor. And it has to look like this on the Internet – on your website and in other local directories. The formatting of your address should also remain the same.
Your business mentions on other listings like Yelp are known as quotes. And quotation inconsistency has been identified as the number 1 problem for local businesses. In addition, it has been found that almost all local businesses have a double Google+ listing (which can lead to ranking penalties).
So I would recommend checking the business address you provide to the local postal service. For a more thorough analysis, I recommend reading my article on How to Perform a Local SEO Audit.
Let's evaluate the business listing for a salon in California. Here's what I see on Google Maps when I search for a salon.
Now let's review Saga Hair Salon information (this is the first listing with a public review). The listing includes the salon's address, opening hours and contact number, as well as the official website. If you scroll down the list you can also find some photos that represent the salon well.
Then you should add additional photos of your company that include your interior, exterior, team members and products. (You probably know this from your own experience in finding local businesses, but a Synup Study Confirms: Companies with photos get 35% more clicks than companies without photos, and twice as likely to be considered legitimate by users.) The idea is to make your company appear friendly and approachable. So add photos that answer the question "Why should I choose you?"
Now visit the website and check the information. Note that we are not currently criticizing the design.
When I visit their website, it shows the same address and contact number above in the exact same format. Plus, the information isn't embedded in a photo – search engine spiders can access it. So far, so good.
When I scroll down, I see the same address information, contact and business hours (as listed in Google Maps), plus the option to switch to map view and get directions. Another win!
You make the first mistake on your contact page. Your phone number is listed in a different format than the other places we checked. And while the graph showing their location is fine, they could have embed their Google Maps list instead.
I then rated the salon's other online quotes by searching Google for their company name. Their Facebook page also offers NAP in a different format. And their Yelp list says they are open 7 days a week (although they say on their website that they are closed on Mondays).
Such inconsistent information can damage a company's credibility. In addition, the listing in the Google Maps results can be moved down if the NAP is correct in all citations at another optimized company.
Hope my saga salon breakdown gives you an idea of how to do your NAP consistency check. After tweaking your listings, double-check your Google Maps listing to make sure your address and other information is showing correctly, especially on a mobile device where the formatting may be misaligned.
I would also recommend that you get your company reviewed (it will take a couple of weeks).
Finally, include high quality photos that show your business in a good light. If ambience is important to your customers, a good photo thumbnail can improve your click-through rate. Customers can also navigate through the additional photos you upload (by scrolling down through your listing).
For example, look at the Google Maps results when I search for Chinese restaurants in Los Angeles. The picture of the Phoenix Inn Chinese Cuisine restaurant immediately caught my attention.
To further optimize your images, you can also add relevant local information about your business in the alt text and image metadata. Your business content program has been assigned a Google API key, similar to its own social security number, which informs Google that all relevant data spiders will get to your company (and not the Chinese restaurant on the street).
Would you like a good example of how to complete your Google My Business listing?
Check out the Otis James success story below (he brings old fashioned crafts to people).
To reach for the stars
Once you've got the basics right, it's time to ask customers visiting your store to review you. In a Search Engine Land survey, 72% of consumers said they trust a local business more because of positive reviews.
Social evidence is important.
The obstacle is that customers are more likely to post their negative experiences online than positive.
First of all, you need to encourage and remind your customers how easy it is to review your business on their Android, iPhone, and iPad (for those who are out around town with them).
Second, you must always be aware of the reviews and have a dedicated customer service. Understand that only 23% of customers leave negative reviews out of revenge. And 70% of people who complain online hope for an answer.
You can easily view and act on any new reviews from the Google My Business dashboard.
If you get a negative rating, don't start a personal attack. Be polite and thank the customer for their feedback. According to Google guidelines, you can also mark a review as inappropriate if it violates Google guidelines. However, you cannot edit your negative reviews.
I've written in more detail about how to get more online reviews for you to read here. Remember, a higher number of 5-star ratings alone does not guarantee a higher ranking.
The best way to get reviews, especially for salons and other service companies, is to get them when you interact with customers in person. Most customers are happy to consider this an extension of their relationship. Otherwise, you can request reviews by email with a link to your Google My Business page in your message.
You can also "automate" the request by including it on your digital receipt. Payment merchants like Square, for example, allow you to Customize your receiptsSo you can throw your request straight into this custom field, so you're automatically more likely to get reviews. You can just say, “Do you love us? Give us a rating! "Then enter a link to leave a review.
Once you have reviews, interact with them. (Because Google wants it!) This gives Google more content to share with potential customers. This gives the algorithm a good reason to rank your page higher in the SERPs and in Google Maps. Google offers tips for interacting with reviews Here.
The exact role of checks in the algorithm is not known. The best thing you can do is check the number of reviews and ratings of the first listing in your industry / region.
Back to my search for Chinese restaurants in Los Angeles:
It looks like I can just get into the top 5 results with at least 40 reviews for my business listing. I also need to maintain a rating above 4.
While you're at it … Optimize all other review and social sites too
Other review sites like Yelp, Facebook, Yellow Pages, and TripAdvisor continue to play a role. You can use the reviews snippet to pull reviews from the internet that will appear in your SERP listing. For some companies, Google includes links to reviews on other websites. Here is an example from a hotel list:
Because of this, you don't necessarily need to focus solely on your Google My Business page when asking for reviews. Users are loyal to their favorite social media and review sites. Make it easy to leave a review by providing a link to review Google Maps. However, welcome reviews on other websites as well.
Paid Marketing Opportunities: Local Search Ads and Google Maps Ads
Google previously experimented with ads in maps and moved AdWords location extensions.
However, at the Performance Summit, Google released new forms of local search ads. With the relaunched Google Maps ads, you can use turn-by-turn navigation to drive real-time traffic to your physical store. The map app offers both online and offline map functions with easy to zoom map view options.
They are displayed with a purple ad label above the list of organic search results. They also display your company as a purple icon on the map. Here is an example of a map result for a search for vegan restaurants in New York.
And where are the ads going?
You can see them on the Google Maps app and on the mobile, desktop, and tablet websites. They will also appear in the main Google.com searches for location-based searches – but only for users who click the "More Places" link at the bottom of the Local 3 package.
Note that while Benihana New York and Panera Bread have bought valuable real estate and great visibility, their reviews are not impressive, even in the local guide book. Not sure if I would click on their list above the three organic results with a rating of at least 4.4.
Paid advertising alone cannot replace your organic marketing efforts – it can only amplify them.
You should also know that Google has currently decided to only show two ads above the organic search results. These results are based on previous user behavior and other signals that ensure that the commercials are filled with relevant local guide lists.
Next, Google plans to introduce Sponsored Pins on Maps with a special API key. Marketers must use location extensions to appear in these Pins. And you can attract people to your store who will stop by your location.
Here's how:
Google plans to revamp the local guide pages, add functionality and even let companies add new types of content.
If you're a retailer, you can customize your page to show your available inventory. You need to submit your inventory feed to Google. Here are Google's local inventory feed specs.
This is incredibly helpful for retailers as one in four avoids going to the store if they are unsure whether a particular product is in stock or not.
Viewing local inventory helped Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores increase their store visits by 122%. You don't need an Android app to do this, just a responsive, well-designed, and mobile-friendly website. Mobile friendly means that it loads quickly and is easy to read on all platforms: an Android device, an iPhone or an iPad.
Another great feature that you get with the ad is in-store advertising. This is where you can extend discounts and specials, attract nearby potential customers, and encourage visits to your store.
In the future, even small businesses can expect to see store visit data. This would be made possible with a hardware solution (such as beacons). Big brands and retailers already have access to such online-to-offline metrics. According to a case study from Nissan, UK, "6% of clicks on mobile ads resulted in a store visit." ROI was estimated to be around 25 times.
What key performance indicators can you use to gauge the success of your ads?
For your organic marketing efforts:
On your Google My Business dashboard, you can get a number of metrics taken from your unique API key to see how your business is doing.
You get the number of clicks on your phone number.
You will also get a breakdown of calls made on different days.
You'll see the number of clicks from people looking for turn-by-turn navigation to your business.
Similarly, search ads can generate three types of clicks and are a great way to measure the success of your campaigns.
- Get location details – a good indicator of interest in your business,
- Get Direction – Can indicate how well your ads are driving traffic to your business.
- Mobile Clicks to Call – These are valuable leads and it's up to your customer reps to convert them.
The new Google Map ads will continue to serve local businesses. You can expect to get access to them soon. A great feature is the offline map that allows your consumers to save battery juice while getting close by switching to the turn-by-turn navigation app functions in real time.
Conclusion
Google Maps is arguably the most useful app from Google. I would recommend that you start your marketing on cards by tweaking your Google My Business listing and encouraging customers to check you out to improve local guide results. The Google Maps ads should be available in your AdWords account soon.
Another creative way for tour operators to use Google Maps is to share travel routes with their audiences via custom maps. Even other local businesses can publish local guides with custom maps and attract more prospects as good old content marketing always works.
How have you used Google Maps in your local marketing activities? Let me know in the comments.