One in three Google searches has local intent– people are looking for products and services in their town. According to Google, 50% of all the mobile consumers who search for a local business either visit or contact that business.  Since your service company relies solely on local consumer traffic, making your business visible in the search results is critical for capturing leads. 

Today, attracting local customers is easier than ever thanks to technology to market in your service area. Google has transformed the old Google+ into a more robust Google My Business. In the past year, they have been adding more options to improve the ability for businesses to be discovered online. Google My Business is particularly effective for small, local businesses like yours. 

To make the most of a location-based strategy, most seasoned SEO professionals start at the same place: creating a Google My Business listing. Marketing within a defined geographic area is much more effective than blanket-style marketing if your ultimate goal is to target local residents that need a service company now.

The importance of being ranked on the Google search engine has been a marketing focus for years. A complete, verified and optimized Google My Business listing allows you to connect with your target audience and be found in more ways than ever before. Google My Business offers small businesses an amazing (and free) marketing opportunity as it attracts over a billion unique users every month.   

Features To Attract More Local Customers and Clients

In order to tailor your listing for results on Google My Business, focus on the benefits of this free tool. Some of the reasons your business should be using it to attract more local leads:

Helps Customers Find (and Retrieve) Your Physical Location

By listing the exact address and location of your business on the map, you ensure that searchers no longer need to rely on paper instructions or memory to find you; instead, they can easily retrieve your location, phone number, hours of operation, address, customer reviews and link to your website. Plus it will be there the next time they search, as well.  

Gain Customer Insight

The Insights tab in Google My Business offers you access to a wealth of analytics: visibility, engagement, and audience. The visibility section shows the number of views that your profile, posts, and photos are getting. The engagement section shows how your audience is interacting with your posts. Finally, the audience section shows the breakdown of the people following you: age groups, gender, countries.

By monitoring your these statistics and then fine-tuning your message, you can improve your engagement, and therefore sales.

Encourage and Actively Respond To Reviews

Modern word of mouth marketing must manage the clients’ typed reviews. Google My Business allows you to easily do that. Customers can add their rating just by googling your name once you register yourself with Google My Business. You can also use your dashboard to monitor and respond to reviews.

On the Computer Or On The Phone

Google My Business (GMB) has a full set of features that can be accessed using the desktop version, but busy users can also access and manage their GMB accounts on the go using the Google My Business app for iOS and Android.

Before you start using the Google My Business app, let Spot On Solutions start you off by either claiming or creating your business listing on Google. Then we will take the necessary steps to get your listing verified, too.  

With Google My Business, you can do a lot of the essential tasks related to managing your business information on Google: update your business name, address, and hours. Your listing will rank higher in search results if you submit accurate, up-to-date, and consistent business information. 

Tap the Menu tab on the upper left portion of the app. Then tap Business Info. To update your business location as it appears on Google Maps, tap the Edit icon (pencil icon) on the lower right portion of the embedded Google map. To edit or update your business name, business categories, address, service area, phone number, or website, tap the corresponding Edit icons to the right of each information type.

Ensure you’ve completed your Google My Business listing correctly, and optimized all possible facets of the tool to get the most leverage for your business on Google and third-party platforms that use the Google Maps API to generate location information for users. Spot On Solutions can help you manage this aspect of your marketing. 

Is It Static Or Active?

Unlike an old yellow page advertisement, Google My Business can be updated according to your marketing plan. Spot On Solutions recommends, at a minimum, you should be posting on Google My Business once every 7 days. Many businesses post once per day, and have seen good results and improved rankings since Google tends to look favorably on businesses that use Google products frequently.

However, only the most recent Google post shows prominently in a search, so if there is some important news or sale that you want people to see, it might be a good idea to not have another post for the next 6 days.  Spot On Solutions manage how often to post to Google My Business is ideal for you. We can schedule out your Google My Business posts weeks or even months ahead of time.

Using Google My Business is free but a GMB listing doesn’t replace your business’s website. Google My Business complements your existing website by giving your business a public identity and presence with a listing on Google, the most popular search engine in the world. Spot on Solutions can integrate all the tools to present your brand as a reliable and reputable service provider for emergency services and home maintenance. 

Data-Driven For Your Success

Maximize the power of Google My Business to attract, convert and keep new customers. Spot On Solutions can help you today with a marketing plan. Our team is driven to provide results for our clients– We want to get you leads. We want to help you profit. We want you to succeed.

Let us help you manage their online presence across the search engine and its growing portfolio of utilities. We specialize in cleaning and restoration companies, so we are already familiar with what it takes to provide results to our clients. Our team uses Google Analytics to gather measurable data that helps us determine the best strategies to optimize your website, marketing and Google listing for maximum success. Schedule a consultation online at lets-connect or call us at 888-724-8893.