The Definitive Guide to Getting Started with Google My Business

If you're a local business or want to compete in local search, Google My Business is an essential tool. With it, you can claim your business listing on Google Maps and make sure that your customers can find you online. In this article, I'll tell you everything you need to know about getting started with Google My Business!

Getting Started with Google My Business

Create a Google My Business account

You'll need to sign up for Google My Business to get started.

To create a business listing:

Sign in to your Google account
Under "Get started," select "Add a new business or claim an existing one."
Follow the on-screen instructions to add photos, videos, and other information about your company's products or services.

Verify your business address

Before you can start getting reviews and driving traffic to your business, Google must know exactly where your business is located.

To verify a physical address for your listing:

Click "Add an address" in the top right corner of your dashboard.
Enter an address for each location of your business (up to 10).

The address should be accurate and complete, including city, state, and zip code. Google will use the address you enter to verify your location. If your business is new and does not yet have a physical address, enter a temporary address like “123 Fake Street”

Add business categories and other details.

Once you've entered your business name and address, it's time to add your categories.

In the CATEGORIES section of the form, enter keywords that describe what type of business you run--for example, "catering" or "food truck." You can add up to 15 categories for free; if you want more than that (and who doesn't?), then upgrade to a paid listing.

Next, enter some general details about your business: its phone number(s), website URL, and hours of operation.

Signing up for Google My Business is a great way to get started with search engine optimization!

You can sign up for Google My Business from the Google Search Console.
You can also sign up for Google My Business from the Google Maps app on your phone.
Or, if you prefer to use something other than an app, visit the website here

Get set up with Google My Business

You'll need to sign up for Google My Business to get started. To do this, click on this link and then click "Create a free account." This will take you through a short process where you can verify your business address (if applicable) and add some basic information about your company.

After signing up for an account, go back into the dashboard by clicking "Manage" at the top right corner of any page on GMB. From here, click on "Add/edit info" under Settings to add more details about yourself as an owner or manager of this particular business location (e.g., hours open). You can also add photos from here too!

Manage your business listing.

After you've claimed your business, you can manage its listing. Google My Business allows you to add photos and videos, manage your page's content and activity and claim the verified badge for your business.

To manage your listing:

Open Google My Business in a web browser.
Sign in with the same account used when claiming the business (the email address associated with it).
On the left side of your screen, click Manage this page under "Listings" or "Pages." The page will expand to show all of its information on one screen--this is where you'll be able to edit anything from here on out!

Include images, videos, and connections to your company.

Include images, videos, and connections to your company.
Add photos of your business.
Add videos that show off the atmosphere of your business. This can be anything from a video tour to drone footage or aerial drone shots of your building or area, all the way up to a short documentary-style film documenting what makes you unique (and why people should visit). If you're not sure how this would work for you, check out some great examples on YouTube by searching for "Google My Business" and looking at some of the top results!
Add links to other pages on your website: If someone clicks on one of these links it will open in an external browser window so they don't have to leave Google My Business but still get access to all sorts of good stuff (like directions) without having been directed there by us first.

Manage your page's content and activity.

Content is what you add to your page.
Activity is what people do on your page.

You can edit your page's content and see activity on it, including comments, shares, and likes by others who have visited the location. You can also delete or hide content from the location if it doesn't accurately reflect its offerings or reputation--for example, if negative reviews are being posted about a business that has since moved out of town (or even changed its name).

Claim your page's verified badge and verified logo.

Claiming your verified badge and logo is a great way to show customers that you are trustworthy. If you have not yet claimed your verified badge and logo, do so by following these steps:

Go to [Google My Business]
Click on "Claim your page's verified badge and/or verified logo."

Once you've done this, the badge will appear next to any listings with a star next to them in search results and on other websites where Google shows local business information.

Report a missing or incorrect location for your business.

Reporting a missing or incorrect location for your business is easy. Just follow these steps:

On the left side of the screen, click on "Businesses" (underneath "My Account").
Find your business in the list and click on it to open its details page.
Scroll down until you see "Report a missing or incorrect location." Click on this link to report that there is no current listing for your company's physical address or phone number where it should be listed, or that their information needs updating because it's out of date (e.g. if they've moved offices).

You're ready to get started :)

You're ready to get started! Here's a quick recap of what you've learned so far:

You've created your business listing and added photos, videos, and links to your business.
You have claimed your page's verified badge and verified logo if applicable.
You have reported any incorrect or missing location information for your business through the Google My Business dashboard.

Conclusion

Google My Business is a great tool for managing your business' presence on Google. It's free and easy to use and it has some powerful features that can help you get found online. If you want to learn more about how we can help with this process, please feel free to reach out today!

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