GOOGLE MY BUSINESS OPTIMIZATION 101
GMB 101: New Updates to Google My Business in 2022!
If you’re a local business owner, you might have seen the recent changes to Google My Business. We’ve taken a look at all of the recent announcements and digested them for you! What does it mean for how you should be running your page? Let’s dive in and investigate!
Google Business Profile Manager
The biggest change to the Google My Business platform in 2022 is the name itself! Google will be renaming Google my Business to Google Business Profile. You may have noticed that a few users have already been switched to the new name.
What does this mean for you?
With the change in name, Google is preparing to retire the Google my Business dashboard entirely in 2022 for users managing only a single business. That means that business owners will need to update business information directly on Search and Maps.
Of course, Map Ranks subscribers do not need to worry as our service includes consistent updates to your Google Business Profile. Simply let us know what needs to be changed and we will save you the hassle and make sure it is done right!
Distance, Prominence, and Relevance
Google’s algorithm takes into account three factors that matter when it comes to ‘near me’ searches: distance, prominence, and relevance. With more and more users searching from mobile devices to find local business that are nearby, it is important to keep Google three ranking factors in mind when setting up your Business Profile.
- Distance – Businesses that are closer to the searcher’s physical location will typically be shown higher on search engine results pages.
- Prominence – Prominent businesses that are searched for more frequently by other searchers will appear more prominently as well.
- Relevance – Google defines relevance as the amount of customer interactions your Business Profile receives. Some customer actions that Google uses to determine your relevance are amount and quality of reviews, ratings, and click-through rates. Relevance can help your business appear higher on Google searches even if your business is further away or less prominent than your competitors.
Distance and prominence are difficult to change in order to increase rankings. Relevance, on the other hand, has a lot of room for optimization because there are lots of ways for you to increase relevance on Google such as creating regular content on your Business Profile, asking your customers to leave a positive review, and answering questions in the Google Knowledge Panel.
Customers who update their profiles more often are more likely to appear in search results based on Google’s ranking algorithm. Due to the importance of relevance in Google search rankings & 3 pack rankings, Map Ranks focuses on increasing the number of customer actions for all of our customers through a combination of regular profile updates, responses to customer reviews, weekly posts, and much more.
Reviews & Keywords
Reviews are one of the most important factors in local SEO. Google sees reviews as a great indicator of how business owners interact with customers, and by extension, a great indicator of how they will treat customers in the future.
Google has made it clear that reviews are one of the top ranking factors on Google Business Profile listings. Reviews and ratings from customers will carry additional weight in an effort to help consumers make more informed purchasing decisions when searching for local businesses in Google Search.
This is great news for businesses that have been building positive online reputations through positive online reviews.
What happens when your company doesn’t have many reviews?
It might seem impossible to compete with large chains that have thousands of reviews – but it’s not. There are plenty of way you can to get reviews from your customers and improve your local SEO ranking.
The easiest one is to simply ask for reviews from your clients! As simple as it sounds, asking for reviews is still one of the best ways to increase your overall review count.
Map Ranks has developed effective strategies to get more reviews for our clients and help them boost their relevance and rankings in Google searches.
Relevant Keywords Can Help Boost Rankings
Since Google’s algorithm is always changing, it is difficult for businesses to know exactly what will affect their ranking in the future. However, based on current trends, there seems to be a strong correlation between the number of relevant keywords used throughout the Business Profile and its rankings within Google’s search engine results.
Optimizing your content for the keywords you want to rank for is one of the most powerful and most effective ways to increase Google search engine rankings. However, keyword research is not a “set-it-and-forget-it” type of job. It’s an ongoing, dynamic process that requires constant monitoring and adjustments.
Map Ranks conducts extensive research into the right keywords for your particular business so that we can use them in our optimization process and help you increase your customer actions!
Conclusion
Google my Business has gone through a number of changes that can affect the way that your business is being found of Google. Overall, these changes may seem relatively minor but can affect rankings significantly if not taken into account. We hope that by reading this blog, you are ready to keep your business rankings high as we enter 2022.
Overall, the frequency of interactions that customers have with your Google Business Profile will impact rankings and help you appear higher in Google searches.
Trying to manage your GMB business listing on your own can be challenging, especially if you are juggling other priorities. It’s easy to make mistakes that can jeopardize your standing in search results, or worse, not get the visibility you need to attract new customers.
Leave the Work to Us!
Map Ranks is an all-in-one Google Profile management service that keeps your business profile up-to-date, optimized, and ranking higher on Google Maps. Leave the small details to us:
- Perform keyword research for your industry
- Setup products/services/descriptions with the proper keywords
- Manage your customer reviews
- Create weekly posts for your listing
- Setup the integrated GMB website builder
- Create and manage citations/directory listings
- Send weekly performance reports
Businesses large and small are finding success with Mapranks. Call us today and learn more about how we can help you grow your business.
Read Our Google Reviews
Real reviews from our actual clients on Google
- Mapranks has been awesome to work with. The attention to detail they display gives us comfort and confidence in using their services. Looking forward to growing our relationship together along with our business.Scott Sullivan4/22/2023
- The best service and pricing there is! Thank you to the team at map ranks for always providing numbersFidal Zora3/22/2023Map Ranks and the entire crew are absolutely amazing. I recently started with Map Ranks, and their onboarding is not only thorough; they want you to understand how they will help you increase traffic, how to look at metrics, and what they plan to do moving forward to have Google rankings be a success. They also immediately removed several... read moreMap Ranks and the entire crew are absolutely amazing. I recently started with Map Ranks, and their onboarding is not only thorough; they want you to understand how they will help you increase traffic, how to look at metrics, and what they plan to do moving forward to have Google rankings be a success. They also immediately removed several negative reviews that were clearly incorrect about our business which I know is very frustrating for us business owners who get reviews that don't truly reflect our business. Map ranks and my business are going to have a long-standing relationship. I can't wait to discuss how we rank in the next couple of months. So far, they are deserve 10 stars if I could give it to them! It's so refreshing to work with an ethical company in the online ranking world that delivers on its promises. read lessamir karkouti3/13/2023
- We highly recommend working with Map Ranks! We have worked with a few similar companies with minimal success. Not only is Map Rank very reasonably priced but we saw a major increase in our calls within a week or two of them beginning to clean up our business listing on Google!Painting Plus Co., Inc.3/04/2023I’d give Mapranks 6 stars if possible. This company has allowed for clients to hear what we have to offer and has helped our business significantly. We have a phenomenal online presence now which allows for clients to actually call us for pricing and info. Thank you so much! I recommend this team to everyone.The L.A. Staging Company2/23/2023
- I recently worked with Map Ranks for GBP optimization, posting, and citation services, and I was thoroughly impressed with the results. The team at Map Ranks is highly knowledgeable and dedicated to helping businesses succeed online. They went above and beyond to ensure that my Google Business Page was optimized for maximum visibility and exposure. Their thorough research and analysis... read moreI recently worked with Map Ranks for GBP optimization, posting, and citation services, and I was thoroughly impressed with the results. The team at Map Ranks is highly knowledgeable and dedicated to helping businesses succeed online. They went above and beyond to ensure that my Google Business Page was optimized for maximum visibility and exposure. Their thorough research and analysis process ensured that my business was optimized for the right keywords and that all my business information was accurate and consistent across all platforms. I also appreciated their exceptional customer service, providing personalized attention and support throughout the entire process. Thanks to the hard work of the team at Map Ranks, my business has seen a significant increase in online visibility and has attracted many more customers. I highly recommend Map Ranks to anyone looking to improve their online presence and drive more traffic to their business. read lessElie Waked2/11/2023
- We've been impressed with how Map Ranks has helped us setup our business listing and connect us with Google Local Services. Their customer services is very good and they communicate frequently. MUCH better than our last SEO company.Andrea Ruano2/03/2023
- We came to Map Ranks after our SEO and internet marketing took a tank and we couldn’t bring it back to life. Map Ranks and their team turned it around in two weeks. Two weeks we starting getting new patients from google ads and good searches and just our website. Website traffic increased dramatically. Social media exposure as well. Extremely... read moreWe came to Map Ranks after our SEO and internet marketing took a tank and we couldn’t bring it back to life. Map Ranks and their team turned it around in two weeks. Two weeks we starting getting new patients from google ads and good searches and just our website. Website traffic increased dramatically. Social media exposure as well. Extremely impressed with their knowledge and skill. Thank you Map Ranks. read lessDr. Cameron Hall1/24/2023
- We went through several companies to try to help us improve our Google presence and to generate an overall interest and activity in our company. Map Ranks helped us understand what was needed to succeed in the google arena. The service transformed our company where other companies couldn’t adequately guide us in the right direction. This company did not only... read moreWe went through several companies to try to help us improve our Google presence and to generate an overall interest and activity in our company. Map Ranks helped us understand what was needed to succeed in the google arena. The service transformed our company where other companies couldn’t adequately guide us in the right direction. This company did not only turn the light switch on by getting our company up in front of clients, it literally saved our company. Thank you Map Ranks! read less321 Cutz1/02/2023Elena Ahtaeva12/29/2022Map Ranks has unbelievable service, great pricing and are always ready to help. I've gone through numerous companies to help take our business to the next level and failed. I've been with Map Ranks for about a month now and I'm already seeing improvements!! Highly Recommend!!jivan mansour12/13/2022
- MapRanks has helped our company increase it searchability and ranking in the first few weeks alone. They have helped update our photos, add products and services, and correct errors in our listings.Tricked Out Accessories12/01/2022It's been a pleasure I've been working with Map Ranks a few months now and Shaun and his team stay on top of things. I hope all continues to go well and grow togetherdclsandiego12/01/2022We are happy we chose Map Ranks for help marketing for our nail salon. Since we’ve been working with them we are ranked #1 on Google Maps for our top keyword ‘nail salon in Corpus Christie’. They are very fast in making updates and are always available for when we need them. If you are considering using them for... read moreWe are happy we chose Map Ranks for help marketing for our nail salon. Since we’ve been working with them we are ranked #1 on Google Maps for our top keyword ‘nail salon in Corpus Christie’. They are very fast in making updates and are always available for when we need them. If you are considering using them for your business, do not think twice. They are the real deal! read lessLeslie Nails11/27/2022
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