TIP #1 OPTIMIZE YOUR GOOGLE MY BUSINESS PAGE

Many business owners search for their own businesses and are surprised to find that they aren’t in the top handful of businesses listed, let alone page one. What’s worse, they aren’t found in the all-important #Google search “local 3-pack” which is in that map box just above the fold on the results page. Some can’t even find themselves in #AppleMaps, #Waze, #Siri, or any other typed or spoken search apps that provide directional and listing information. It drives many business owners mad.

What makes matters worse is that if you’re not on page one, you are virtually and literally cloaked. Few people searching for businesses make it past the first page of search, and 89% of them are ready to buy when in search mode. YOU HAVE TO BE ON PAGE ONE! There are several reasons for lack of ranking, but over time and at a relatively low cost, you can become visible north of the fold in the Google 3-Pack search block.

#SocialOrdeals has mastered the technique for business ranking using a suite of products in their platform that SMBs from Veterinarians to Car Dealers, Restauranteurs to Attorneys, Carpenters to Retailers, Franchisers and Associations of all shapes and sizes can utilize to grow their business’ visibility and sales volume. There are other companies out there that offer platforms with a similar suite of services but few are as affordable and for lack of a better description, credible in the execution as is Social Ordeals.

Tip #1: Google My Business is responsible for 25% of your ranking in search. The days of a dominant webpage are over. It’s Google’s plan to control as much of the web as they can and want you on their property for as long as possible – so we need to play by their rules.

Step 1: Claim the page as your business and make sure all information on it such as Business Name, Address, Telephone #, and Web Address are 100% correct. Google will send you a postcard verifying the location at the outset of claiming your GMB page.

Step 2: Load it up with your businesses specialties so people can see what differentiates you from competitors. If you’re a medical specialist, make sure prospective patients can see what you focus on, laser therapy, surgery, MRI machine on premises, etc. I suggest the most profitable products and services be spotlighted. If your a restaurant, post some of your specialty dishes, so on and so forth. Post pictures of the facility as well, along with smiling employees and customers if they oblige but not in the business’s products and services section.

Step 3: Pre-load popular questions and answers in the appropriate section given so the public can research you right then and there, and click to call instantly. The Q&A section is public so if you don’t answer any questions that come up without warning, someone from the public will, and you may not like the response. Keeping a vigil on this section is crucial because it’s so forward facing to a public likely in buying phase. Putting revised hours of operation here is a good idea because so many governments are vacillating on who opens and who doesn’t. Some only offer curbside so…you get the idea.

Step 4: Drive as many positive reviews to your GMB as possible. Reviews account for 15% of your search ranking score so make sure to have a review generation and reputation management strategy bought and paid for before you open your doors OR, get one in place if you currently aren’t employing one. Almost everyone looks at business reviews before making a decision. If you aren’t pulling 4.5-5.0, you are a B business in the eyes of the public. But it’s not just high scores that count, rather the volume of reviews that will lift you on any of the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) of which Google gets 70% of the traffic.

Step 5: Drive all of your social media posts to your GMB page. Consider it a crucial social media element to your businesses positive visibility to the public. After all, the GMB page is one click away from the customer’s search engine operation so put your best content forward. Hashtag all of your social media posts (as well as your specialties) as you would on any social media platform because those hashtags WILL help you rank in search on Google. It may be a lesser known fact, but we’ve seen it applied.

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