Basic Setup Series: Google My Business Account Setup

The goal is for you to get a quick tip that you can then quickly apply in 15 min to make an impact in your business.

What is Google My Business?

It’s a free tool for your business to manage your online presence across Google to include search and maps. 

Why do you need Google My Business for your business?

According to Google, 50% of all the mobile consumers who search for a local business in a day visit it as well. Furthermore, 18% of them end up making a purchase.

• You can create Google Posts, where you can promote offers and services.
• Google Q&A is a place where your customers and consumers can ask each other questions about your business.
• The most important is Google reviews. If you work on getting positive reviews and engage with them by responding, this will create the most significant impact on your rankings and clickthrough rate.

What if I don’t have a website and I’m just starting? Google Website Builder.

Good news, you don’t need a website to get started. In fact, after you create this you can create a free website with google’s free website builder. 

1. It’s free to use
2. It’s mobile-friendly
3. It automatically updates
4. You can manage it on your mobile phone
5. You can easily place ads on there. 

But to be clear, this is only a simple one-page site and you do have to purchase your domain through them to have a custom domain name. I recommend this to start off with only if you are bootstrapping your business and really need a web presence other than a Facebook Page and Google My Business.

Otherwise, find someone who can help you build your website with a user-focused design to tell your business story and engage your users in order to convert them into clients.  

What you need to set up a Google My Business Account

1. Name of business
2. Contact information
3. Address of business (this can be your home, you would just select to hide that specific address from the maps and people would only see the general location)

This doesn’t cost anything to set up, but you will need a physical location for a postcard to be sent to with the verification code.

Google My Business Account Setup

1. Go to https://www.google.com/business/
   1. Click on manage now
2. Type your business name and create a new business with your business name.
3. Choose a category that fits your business best. Here is a link to see them all
   1. https://pixelcutlabs.com/blog/google-my-business-categories/
4. Choose the services that apply to your business (only for certain categories of businesses)
5. Do you want to add a location customers can visit, like a store or office? (this is required for certain businesses)
   1. If you choose yes, fill out your exact address.
   2. You can check the “Hide my address” box if your business is not a store and you don’t want people coming to it. It will then just show the general area. 
6. Where do you serve your customers (optional) Put in your service areas?
7. What contact details do you want to show to customers? Contact phone number, current website URL, or create a site with them.
8. Finish & manage this listing. Promote your business with photos and posts, track business analytics to understand your customers, respond to customer reviews.
9. You will now have to wait up to two weeks for the postcard with the verification code to arrive.

Verify Your Business on Google with Postcard Verification

1. Login to your Google My Business Account
2. In the code field, enter your 5 digit verification code on your postcard and click submit.

If you never receive your postcard, request another one and verify that the address you have it going to is correct.

Your last and final step is to optimize your Google My Business Listing. 

If you have any questions, or it is too time-consuming please contact us at any time.