How to Get Your Business Listed on Google Search?
You’ve been running your business for a while now. You have a healthy base of regular customers who love what you do. You have a fine business account and your socials are bustling and - along with your website - represent your business well.
But for some reason, you’re just not getting enough new customers from online channels. Sure, a few find you through your social profiles every now and then, but it’s just not enough to grow your business. Do people do a google search for your business? Can they find your business on google maps? Wouldn't it be great if people do a google search and your business page or business location is found online? Before it's too late, help people find your business online and rank higher.
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So, what’s the trick to increasing visibility online?
- List your website on search engines and perform local SEO
- Share relevant information
- Optimize your website for engagement
- Enable customers to share feedback and make queries
- Increase your business credibility
Your entire digital marketing strategy needs to start with listing your business on google search and other search engines. While using social media platforms is vital for digital marketing, web search is still the go-to for customers when considering a purchase. It is typical of potential customers to resort to a quick Google search! According to Google, 46% of all searches involve local intent, like finding out the business location or business address, timings, phone number, etc. Laying down relevant results when people search for your business or try to find more solutions from similar businesses while searching online, incredibly helps to find more customers. Undoubtedly, business listing also helps in creating a smooth verification process creating a sense of legitimacy to your website. This means getting your business listed locally can get you all the traffic you’d need to begin growing your business, be it an online business or offline! But before we go about studying how you can get listed on Google, let us first understand what it is.
What is a local listing?
A local listing is the most basic and efficient way to appear in the search feed. Business listing introduces people to the company, with the core business description such as its address or physical location, contact details, website or ecommerce site, business category, social media handles, and other key information. It acts as a local directory listing for websites. Most business owners that provide important information and images rank better in the search engine results, are apt for google searches and are considered to be trustworthy organizations.
Let us now look at how you can optimize your local business and ensure it appears on the first page of Google search.
1. List your website on search engines and perform local SEO
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Local SEO is the practice of optimizing your website to improve its visibility in local searches. When we google search for a store or service online, the results are based on the user’s location. Google maps allow customers to see the nearest store from their location. This is why listing your local businesses on search engines can bring you greater visibility and a better online presence. For the best results, you could consider hiring an SEO agency and also get things done more professionally.
It is important to conduct customized SEO for different businesses, for instance real estate SEO, travel SEO to benefit as much as possible.
Local listing equips you with high-ranking keywords based on your geographical location or business address, making your business more visible on web searches. The best part is, it attracts customers who have not heard or seen your company's website before. However, it is important to note that there should be no online clones or old abandoned pages of your company’s website. When cleaning up these listings, you must either update or remove any incomplete profiles.
2. Share relevant information
Listing allows you to put all important information about your business such as your address, contact information, and business hours. Additionally, you can share more information on news, updates, announcements, promotions, etc. As these appear on Google Search and Maps, it allows your customers to know about your services and remain in touch with you.
However, before you post blogs or newsletters, it's a good idea to think about what you want to accomplish. Do you want to let people know about a new service or do you want them to visit your physical address? It is important to create content that aligns with your goal. Not to forget, this could be your first step to serve customers- getting them a clear idea about your business and services which they could also verify!
3. Optimize your website for engagement
While your website may be ready to go, making these additional changes will improve your customers' experience. Categorizing your business according to the industry sector will help you in connecting with the right consumers. Including a Call to Action on the listing will create engagement from probable customers.
Another important aspect is the speed of the website. If your website is currently taking too long to load, it will be frustrating for customers. Reducing the waiting period for pages will give seamless results and be less time-consuming. For instance, you can start with adding photos, minimizing HTTP requests, reducing the size of images, GIFs or videos, and more. It will ensure that they visit the website, thus increasing your lead generation.
When creating engaging content for your site, focus on strategies that build your business credibility and improve domain reputation. A strong domain reputation can boost your site's visibility in search engines, ensuring more potential customers find you online. Make sure to check out this comprehensive guide on how to improve domain reputation to make the most out of these efforts.
4. Enable customers to share feedback and make queries
Assume a potential lead finds your company via search results and is in need of a specific service. How will guests contact or enquire about your business straight from the search results? Remember that a business can only grow if it eliminates as many friction points as it can. Creating healthy and comprehensive websites is one thing.
It is essential that you minimize the number of steps the customers would need to connect with you or your business page via the web. Google's messaging tool, which allows you to talk directly with potential consumers who see your profile on the search results page, is an important tool. It allows businesses to swiftly respond to queries in real-time and assist existing and new clients. Moreover, it helps you enable or disable the messaging functionality.
5. Increase your business credibility
Customers rely heavily on reviews and ratings before making a purchase. In fact, 91% of consumers trust businesses with positive reviews. Local listing allows people to evaluate and submit feedback on your business. Verification of your listing is crucial for its visibility and performance. This not only raises your value to prospective clients but also gives you constructive feedback on what you're doing well and where you can improve and thereby manage your business better.
Moreover, Google search and other engines use reviews as a contributing factor to rank your business during the search results. Ratings also boost customer trust and confidence in the business as the reviews are written by people they can trust and relate to.
Listing your business on Google and other engines gives potential customers easy access to your business information, directions, website, and hours of operation – all with little to no effort. With help of a search engine, local business listings always bring in relevant clients, and enhancing your listing will deliver highly profitable results for your company in the long run.
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Related Readings:
Local listing your store is a good way to appear in the search feed. It acts like a local directory listing for the internet with information on the company.