Has the internet age passed your business by? Is your enterprise lost in the jungle of dot-coms, dot-nets, and dot-orgs? Do you think Google is just for the “big boys”?
Don’t give up so fast. Google is coming to the the rescue of small businesses like yours.
Realizing that almost 30% of all Google searches include a city, zip code, or other location identifier, Google is becoming much more of a LOCAL search engine. As the Yellow Pages gets thinner and more expensive every year, Google gets more important and more widely utilized. From most cell phones, you can use Google to locate a locksmith if you’re locked out of your car, find out what tonight’s specials are at your favorite restaurant, and reserve tickets for the 7:20 show.
Try this experiment. Pretend you’re in the tire business in Jackson, Mississippi. Go to Google.com and type in “TIRES JACKSON MS”. You’ll get 262,000 results. That’s a lot of information to weed through if you’re a tire buyer! (It doesn’t really matter, because no one ever looks past page two!) Notice the little map of the Jackson area with the pushpins in it?
Now, go back to Google.com and type in just “TIRES”. If your Google is like mine, I see 55,800,000 results. Scan down the page a bit and you’ll still see the same nifty little map.
Wait. How did that happen? How did Google give you that map, when all you entered was “TIRES”? I don’t want to frighten you, but Google knows where you are! (Actually, they can identify your location by your computer’s IP number. It’s kind of like Caller ID.)
Privacy issues aside, can you see the importance of being on that map? Did you notice any of your competitors there?
What if I told you that you can be on page one of Google for free? That’s what it costs to be on the GoogleMaps. Zero dollars. Type in your business name and city. You might be in there, next to a map. (Try “Cups Coffee Jackson MS”, for example. You’ll see a map with their three locations).
An interesting feature of GoogleMaps is that you don’t even need to have a web site to get listed, though it’s a wasted marketing opportunity if your searcher doesn’t have a way to get more info about your company.
GoogleMaps listings are free and you should claim yours before someone hijacks your business name. Getting listed is easy and doesn’t require any technical skills.
Getting started: Go to Google.com LocalBusinessCenter. You’ll see an online form for listing your business. If you’re already listed with Google–millions of businesses unknowingly are–it will let you know after you fill it out. Google is pretty smart.
Keywords: One of the factors Google uses to decide where to rank you is your use of “keywords”. These are the one- or two-word terms you use to describe your business. For instance, Solar Control in Ridgeland does the best window tinting in Jackson. Their keywords include “best window tinting”, “Jackson MS”, “3M window film”, “automobile window tinting”, “residential window tinting”, “security film”, and “energy savings”, to name a few.
Though their business name is Solar Control of Jackson, I used the name “Solar Control of Jackson Window Tinting” to enhance their keyword visibility when I updated their GoogleMap. Be cautious about using anything other than your real business name. Google doesn’t like to be misled and they’ll give you the boot if you get found out.
Categories: You can choose up to five categories for your business. When you enter a category into the form, Google will tell you if that’s an existing category. (If it’s not, you can still enter it.) Find as many pertinent categories as you can. The principle to follow is “the more information you give Google, the better.” Again, use your keywords in your categories.
Description: You can enter up to 200 characters into your description. Use keywords, brand names, specialties, and words that make your business unique. Avoid promotional sounding language (“We’re the Best!!!) because Google might disapprove of your listing and give the top spots to someone else. Work with the text for a while. Read it out loud to see if it sounds natural.
Phone number: If you’re already in their database, they will have a number associated with you. You can add another number or a toll-free number, but you should keep the number they already have for you if at all possible. This makes the approval process easier. (More on that later.)
Pictures and videos: A little further into the registration process, you’ll be given the opportunity to add pictures and videos of your business. This is a great way to personalize your listing and it has the additional benefit of standing out from the crowd. Google loves videos and it will help you rank better, too.
Reviews: Google loves reviews, too. Once your listing is “live”, you should ask your customers to write reviews of your business. They have to have a GMail account (they’re free), and you should train your sales people to ask their favorite customers if they’d do them the favor of writing a few nice words. (You might want to send the request out in an email with a link to your GMap page, to make it easier for the customer).
Coupons: You can also create printable, date-sensitive coupons for your visitors. Create a coupon that something like “Buy 3, Get One FREE! Offer expires July 1, 2010″. Have the customer print it and present it for the special offer. When July 2 rolls around Google automatically stops showing the coupon. Very slick!
Once you’ve entered all your information, you’ll be asked to claim or add your listing. In order to validate that you’re the legitimate owner of the business and that you have the authority to claim the listing, a Google computer will call you at the number they already had in their database.
As soon as you click “finish” button, you’ll get a phone call from “Big G”. The computer will give you a five digit PIN number (write it down!) which you will enter on the confirmation page. As soon as you do that, your listing will go LIVE. You can have them send you a postcard with the PIN, but confirmation takes a week to ten days that way.
When you’ve confirmed that you’re the owner, you can go back in and edit the listing any time you like. You can even post brief messages like “20% Off on Wobbly White Widgets ’til Wednesday!” to give your customer more reasons to buy from you, rather than your competition.
Those are the more important features of GoogleMaps. But getting seen in the standard “organic” listings on Google, Bing, and Yahoo is just as important and it’s a time-consuming process, best left to obsessive-compulsive nerds. If you need help getting more visibility on the internet, find an SEO (Search Engine Optimization) Expert.
Most web site designers have no experience in SEO or marketing, but they may be able to refer you to someone who does. It’s an uncommon discipline, but it is becoming more important as business owners look for ways to take advantage of powerful new technologies.
If you need any help, you’re welcome to contact me. I’ll be happy to help you if I can.
