Whispering magic spells, sprinkling SEO among the META, paying the likes of Internet magicians and con artists promising a Page 1 dedication— all for the hopes of getting on Google’s good side. Now the days of snake charmers and hoodoo as a content marketing strategy are long gone. In fact, Google is taking back the night with Google products ranging from Google Trends to Google Images. One of the latest offerings of the Google magnate is Google My Business.
How Good Can Google My Business Be?
Turns out Google My Business may become the next greatest thing for searching. See, Google My Business puts a local face on your findings, which we’ve heard for months is the next step in search engine optimization. Via a Google My Business search, you pull information from Google Search, Google Maps, and Google+, extending the opportunities businesses have for reaching you and vice versa. If you own a business, you can add your contact information to Google My Business and it will automatically be indexed by all applicable Google products.
Bringing Customers into the Fold
Using Google+ for its social media side, your customers can go to Google+ and add reviews or ratings linked to your Google+ profile. The +1 button helps your customers endorse your business, while the re-sharing option helps you spread your content across Google+. Think of it as Facebook and Foursquare having a baby who’s all about keeping things local in a green, hipster way. Google My Business is the cool cousin of these products and it hopes to forge its own path by picking up the ratings of businesses based on local geography. So when a person searches for the nearest content writer, they can find everything from contact information, directions via Google Maps, and an option to place a call online via Google Voice. It doesn’t matter if someone is using an iPhone, Kindle Fire, or laptop — they can access businesses on a local basis thanks to Google My Business.
The New SEO Star
The idea here is that, using Google My Business, you can create a more meaningful search. For example, if you Google “copywriters in Miami,” you are most likely interested in finding copywriters who actually work or live in Miami. At the present, a Google search of ‘copywriters in Miami’ will bring up only two actual copywriters based in Miami, along with dozens of international copywriter companies, not exactly the wealth of local listings you’d expect.
However using Google My Business, you can enter the name of a business and find a map and contact information for the closest business to you of that name. Once a business is added to Google My Business, you are directed to create a Google+ page for that business, which gets the process started of rating and reviewing your business. Note that verification numbers are required for adding a business to this site, which should reduce the instance of errors or falsified data.
Your Content Marketing Strategy
My advice to you? Get onto Google My Business immediately and create a Google+ page for your business. Start now with the process of building your Google community, and become familiar with the multitude of Google marketing products at your service, such as Google Hangouts. By incorporating Google My Business and related products into your marketing strategy, you ensure that your business won’t be lost in the wake of SEO localization.
Constantly on the search for better, quicker and friendlier online marketing products, Miranda B is fast becoming an expert in all things Google.
