The Ultimate Google My Business (GMB) Optimisation Checklist 2022 [UPDATE]

Today, more than 5 billion people of the 8 billion world population have a mobile device. As such, it has become common practice for people to Google on the go on a daily basis. They look for information, ask queries or compare prices to make purchases.

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As a business owner, you must leverage online searches, or you will lose leads and conversion opportunities. Clixpert is a Multi-award Winning Google Ad Agency in Sydney with over 10 years of experience in the industry. 

Comprehensive Checklist To Help You Get The Most Out of Your GMB Listing

The Ultimate Google My Business Optimisation Checklist

Over the years, we’ve seen the power of the Internet in helping brands expand and grow their business with platforms such as Google My Business (GMB) and have put together this detailed guide to help you set up and get the most out of your GMB listing. 

Thankfully, you can readily capitalise on Google My Business (GMB) to solidify your online presence and reinforce your authority. It is something that simple word-of-mouth referrals cannot accomplish. With this tool, you can attract warm leads and the right customers to your business. If you need help setting up your GMB page, then read on.

We can ensure that you get the results you are hoping for. If you need help beefing up your current GMB profile, we’ve curated this ultimate checklist to help you out. Remember, it is critical to set up your profile correctly from the start. This guide can also help you cross-check if you’ve got any missing information. Let’s get started!

Ensure Your Business Is Qualified For A Listing

For starters, ensure you qualify for a local listing on Google My Business. Purely eCommerce shops and affiliate marketing sites do not qualify because you need a physical address to verify your profile. You can have an online site, but an offline presence is required. Customers must be:

• Able to walk into the location
• Buy goods or pay for services
• Make contact with salespeople

Create/Claim Your Google My Business Listing 

How to Create A Google My Business Listing? 

How to Create A GMB Listing

To Create a GMB Listing, here’s what you need to do: 

• Go to https://google.com/business/
• Click the ‘Manage Now’ button.
• Sign in with a Google account. It is recommended that you use your actual business domain if you can.
• Follow the steps to create a new listing.

How to Claim A Google My Business Listing? 

How to Claim A GMB Listing

To claim a GMB business listing, here’s what you need to do: 

• Go to https://business.google.com/create/
• Type in your business name and address and choose it from the results.
• Click ‘Continue’.
• Follow the instructions to verify your information and claim the listing.

Verify Your Google My Business Listing 

After following the instructions on the GMB site, you can set up your profile. Enter the correct details and commence with the verification process. It means that Google will confirm that the business is authentic and you are indeed a genuine owner. 

How to Verify Your GMB Listing? 

To verify your listing: 

• Log into Google My Business and go to your listing.
• Click the ‘Verify Now’ button.
• Select the verification option you prefer.

Note that it is up to Google as to which verification methods are made available to you. For most businesses, verification is done via mail, where a postcard is sent to you with a verification code. Depending on the nature of your business, Google may also give you the option to verify your listing via: 

• Phone
• Email
• Search console for those with an existing site

Once you are verified, Google will send a postcard verification letter to your address. Notably, your verification address can differ from the location address on your GMB dashboard. The address doesn’t have to match the business location. Why? Because some business owners have several branches but one main office. However, you can also match your verification address to your business location.

Add The Right Business Name

Once GMB has verified you, you can start filling up your profile. For best results, stick to your company’s official name. Continuity matters a lot, so you don’t confuse and alienate existing customers.

If you get creative with the business name, you can get your listing suspended. Accuracy matters a lot to Google My Business. On top of that, the Google algorithm can also pinpoint suspicious activity like keyword stuffing. So be careful to represent your company in a true and honest manner.

Your business name affects the ranking factor. This is why it’s important for startups to think long and hard about their brand name. As for companies that have been around for a while, you may consider doing a business name change if Google is the primary marketing method that gets clients to your store. But again, this needs to be a carefully considered decision and not something to be done in haste. 

Choose The Right Categories

Google My Business will allow you to pick one main category and up to nine secondary ones. These categories help people identify the true nature of your business. Clearly, you must pick the most appropriate one that matches your operations.

The primary category bears the most weight in terms of what will affect your local search ranking. For example, Hannah’s Diner falls under food and beverage. A secondary one can be entertainment. You may be tempted to stuff as much as you can but resist the temptation. Irrelevant categories that do not apply to your business will annoy potential clients. Stick to correct details because honesty will impact your business reputation. With categories, the goal is to get listed for relevant products/services, so stick to your niche. 

Provide The Accurate Location

Customers want information fast and wrong/incorrect information turns them off. So it’s imperative to ensure you provide accurate information on your GMB profile. Location applies to you if you service customers at a physical address or you run a hybrid business model (which means you’ve got a physical storefront with a service area).

When specifying your location, be as precise as possible. Provide your location’s full mailing address. You can even hook it up with Google Maps so that customers can easily get the exact directions to your place. When customers find you, they want to see every detail in one go and don’t want to waste time looking for basic business information. As such, provide a specific location to draw visitors to the right place. For example, if you are in a mall or big building, state the right floors and correct door numbers. The ultimate goal is to make it easy and straightforward for the customer to find your store. Failure to do so can lead to potential customers getting frustrated and going to one of your competitors instead. 

Identify Service Areas

Since all businesses are unique, you may offer services only at a particular location. A perfect example of this is a landscaping or plumbing company. These businesses have offices. However, they move to various locations to help people. In this instance, it would be better to pick a service area and not a direct address. After all, you and Google don’t want clients showing up at the address provided but rather want to go to the customer’s location to provide a service. 

You can input a maximum of 20 service areas per business listings. But no matter how big the area is, the results are unlikely to show anything greater than 20 miles away. 

Input the Correct Hours of Operations

Update Business Hours On GMB

Sadly, most GMB owners fail to update this very crucial yet simple section. Most do not provide a complete schedule, while others forget to update their operating hours. Usually, startups begin with extended business hours in the hopes of targeting more clients. Once operations stabilise, they cut back on hours but forget to Update The GMB Listing. 

It is very detrimental for your operations because customers may show up when you are closed. As a result, they get annoyed and turn to your competitors instead. For best results, do the following:

• Fill up Monday to Sunday operating hours
• Update business hours for holidays and other occasions when the business will be closed

Fill Out the Correct Phone Number

Update Contact Number On Your GMB Listing

Many customers prefer to call first to confirm if a product is available, to make a booking or just to confirm if a business is open. So, having a contact number is essential. If you want your clients to reach you:

1.  Add the correct phone number.

2.  If your number changes, be sure to update it on your GMB profile.

3.  Ensure someone is ready to answer calls during business hours. There’s nothing worse than having a prospective client trying to reach you, only for them to eventually reach out to your competitor because your calls went unanswered. 

Providing numbers that ring endlessly only frustrates customers. As a savvy entrepreneur, you must understand the importance of this direct line of communication. It is invaluable in fostering and strengthening client relationships. But, if you don’t provide the right number, not only will you lose out on opportunities, but it also reflects really badly on your business.  

Include the Correct Official Website

This is a must-do in the GMB Checklist. If you don’t have a website yet, get one. Our team here at Clixpert can help you design a responsive and dynamic website that’s SEO optimised. This means you will rank high when someone conducts searches on keywords related to your niche.

Notably, a website presence is a major factor for ranking high in local searches. Remember, social media is not enough to promote your brand. Establish an official site and put it up on Google My Business to boost traffic. If you have multiple locations, create a GMB listing for each and utilize the correct location page. 

Provide An Appointment URL

Your appointment URL provides another contact method for users who check your GMB Listing. It is visible to everyone. It means they can quickly make an appointment with you or leave a message using a handy contact form. Simple but effective.

Pre-populate the Q&A Section

Did you know that Google allows you to add custom FAQs to your GMB Listing? You don’t have to wait for customers to ask you questions. Instead, you can per-populate the FAQ section with relevant questions and answers. By doing so, you are staying one step ahead by predicting customers’ queries and providing them with informative/ useful answers them. 

If you’re unsure what questions to list, a great place to start is with your customer service and/or sales team. These are your staff who are in contact with customers the most and so will be able to provide you with the most asked queries. Once you have a list of questions, take your time to answer each one accurately, providing all the relevant information to give the customer a complete answer.  

Describe Your Company Highlights

Describe Company Highlights on GMB

GMB allows you to toot your own horn. And why not? You’ve earned it. Show your unique brand story in about 700 to 750 characters. This perfect word count informs people about your company and what you offer to solve their problems. 

Though you can probably say more, stick to the word limit because you don’t want to bore the readers. Modern people have diminished attention spans, so make everything engaging but concise. Make the description helpful and save the sale pitches for your other campaigns.

Note that only the first 244 characters display on the listing. Otherwise, visitors have to click “more!” It is why you must save your best words for the first part. 

Show Product Offering or Services

State everything you provide. People look at your listing because they want information. So don’t disappoint them with an incomplete profile. Instead, provide a detailed description of products and services so that you can nudge customers to patronize your brand instead of heading off to competitors. On top of that, you can:

• Fill out menus
• Provide product listings
• Take videos of your location or service in action
• Take high-quality pictures of products and clients using them
• Include a company logo on a prominent spot in your GMB listing

Focus on What You Want to Highlight

When talking about highlights or attributes in Google, these things refer to what makes your business unique. In general, it pertains to:

• Amenities
• Features
• Extras
• Offers

To illustrate, an attribute for a cafe could be free WIFI to all customers. It could be free trims for beauty salons when you pay for their hot oil and colouring services. You get to decide what to highlight on your GMB profile. Utilize this marketing tool to grab more customers. 

Enable Chat on GMB for Instant Messaging 

When clients hit your profile, you want to make sure they can reach you right away. Thus, you must enable the messaging feature so they can DM you instantly. Enabling Chat is a great way to connect with your customers, answer their questions, and have real-time conversations with your customers. The chat feature can generate quality leads and increase online revenue.

How to Enable Chat on Google My Business (GMB)? 

Turn On Chat On GMB

• Login to your Google My Business Account.
• Click on the ‘Messages’ tab listed on the Home menu on the left side of the screen.
• Click on the ‘Turn on messaging’ button.
• Follow instructions to activate chat.

Once Chat is activated, customers will be able to message you at any time using the chat button. When a customer messages you, you will get a notification alerting you. You can provide an automated welcome message when customers message you. 

Please note that you must respond to messages within 24 hours of receiving them. Failure to do so will result in Google removing the ‘Chat’ button from your business profile to preserve the customer experience. If your chat button gets deactivated, you can simply turn on chat again and ensure you respond promptly to keep the button active. 

Pay Close Attention to Reviews

Great reviews can help you expand your brand’s reach. After all, an excellent reputation provides more business. Remember, people only patronise brands they trust. However, quality reviews count, so encourage your happy customers to leave reviews to build your online profile.

On top of that, you must provide quick answers to reviews. Thank those who leave glowing recommendations. Most of all, leave a reply for people who are dissatisfied with your products or services. You can do the following:

• Request further clarification regarding the issue so you can address it to the best of your ability.
• Apologise and offer to solve the problem
• Make contact offline
• Make amends

However, never ask them to take down the review. Instead, own up to the mistake and take responsibility for what happened. Or if the review is fake or untrue, provide a clear response making it clear that the events mentioned in the review did not occur. You can also reach out to Google to resolve the issue and takedown spam or fake reviews. Whatever you do, never lose your temper or respond rudely to negative reviews. How you respond to negative situations will show your customers that you take accountability and are willing to learn from your mistakes. Being rude or overly defensive can come across as petulant and be a major turn off for most people. 

Write Routine Updates and Posts 

Make it a habit to post updates on your GMB Listing. Back in the day, this was not possible to do. However, they now provide this feature, so you might as well take advantage of it. For example, you can give information on the following:

• Product launches
• Special events
• Promotional offers
• Giveaways or contests

Showcase your opening date with a “recently open” badge on your GMB listing for new businesses. You are allowed to have this tag 90 days after you officially open. 

Write clear updates that provide tons of information. This shows Google that you are not a robot but an active business. You can treat this feature as akin to your social media profile. Make posts with compelling photos and videos to ensure the best engagement from visitors. Everyone loves fresh, trendy information. Use this as a chance to promote what you offer and build relationships.

Leverage the Google Business Site

If you don’t have your own domain name for your company, use Google’s business site. Go ahead, because it’s free. You can readily find this under the “website” tab on the left sidebar. But if you’ve got your own domain and homepage, you can still use this resource. Create a GMB backlink to your official site. This will help boost up your SEO rankings. 

Have you done everything on this Google My Business Checklist? If you feel as if your existing GMB listing lacks “oomph,” we can help with that. Our team can also help you build one from scratch. Today, it’s not enough if you have a good product or service. You must be able to promote them well, so people know where to find you. On top of that, you must be able to rise above your competitors and stand out in a cutthroat market. Our team can make that happen for you. 

Optimise your Google My Business listing to get even more exposure. Ask us how!

The Lockdown has been a difficult time for many businesses. But conversely, it’s also given a lot of businesses a push to turn their focus toward Digital Marketing to reach out to new customers and expand their reach. If you believe your business can benefit from a customised Digital Marketing campaign, get in touch with us. 

For a free consultation with us, call 1300 254 973

Or if you’d like to meet virtually on Zoom or Google Meet – just let us know what suits you best, and we can set up a meeting.