While many firms were forced to go solely online during the Covid-19 pandemic, small and medium sized businesses nationwide are now recognizing the importance of mapping programs to help consumers learn where the business is along with allowing them to look up online reviews. Indeed, communicating the location of a business and giving access to reviews are an increasingly important aspect of marketing for most small businesses. As a result, location-based mapping technology has taken on increased importance.
Worldwide, Google Maps, which relies on satellite technology, has more than one billion users across more than 220 countries. Moreover, 41% of smartphone owners use the app once a week or more, and Google Maps is the top choice of more than two-thirds of consumers who use search consoles. Because of the propensity of consumers to use a mapping app to find a certain type of business, Google Maps has become a critically important geotargeting device for many businesses with local trade areas. As shown in the Wall Street Journal video below, Google Maps has revolutionized location-based information technology.
The importance of a high ranking on Google’s search console should not be understated. According to Podium, the top three organic results (typically called the “Google Map Pack”) receive nearly 80 percent of all clicks. Consumer behavior theory tell us that limits on both human memory and willingness to expend effort on search favor information that is easily accessible and memorable. As a result, a wide variety of types of firms, especially “brick and mortar” businesses (e.g., trade businesses, medical offices, HVAC professionals, landscapers, and many more) benefit from being listed high in search results.
The case of a landscape designer (hardscaping specialist) in Newark, DE is illustrative of how a high listing on Google Maps can make a difference. The company estimates that it generated an additional seven figures for its bottom-line revenue by following rules recommended by Dynamic Wave Consulting – a Philadelphia-based Digital Marketing Agency as part of a customized, geo-specific marketing plan. Dynamic Wave (led by Owner/Operator Bruce Leto, Jr. and Art Director Jonathan Snyder) began by adding locations to the landscaper’s Google Business profile, optimizing search-order results via hyper focused landing pages and keyword-enriched Google Ads campaigns. This strategy streamlined and directed leads to a fully responsive business website.
Similarly, a small HVAC company based in Manhattan added nearly $900,000 to its bottom line in 2023 by utilizing similar strategy. This HVAC company additionally set up an account with “Google Local” or “Google Guaranteed” – a “fast track” to the top of Google listings (as indicated by a green check mark). According to Leto, Jr, many companies implementing this type of geotargeting strategy characterized by a SEO-enriched digital marketing approach has benefitted from it.
Leto, Jr.
emphasizes the power of local search results in driving business. “Having an optimized Google Business profile is paramount in today’s ever-changing, off-page Search Engine Optimization (SEO) algorithms for your business,” he says, “ Think about it: when you are searching for an electrician, or a chiropractor, or even a restaurant – how often are you searching for ‘nearby’ results, rather than generalized, nationwide searches? You don’t want your competition to dominate your business directly on Google, especially if a few tweaks, keywords, and landing pages could potentially make a major difference in your bottom-line.”
Dynamic Wave has developed five quick tips for businesses striving to improve their ranking on Google search consoles that are effective in getting a first page Google Maps listing:
1) Have a Clear Location and Trade Area
Google tends to “favor” businesses that have a verified address and serve a geo-specific area. The verified address signals to Google that the business is legitimate and operable. Thus, having a physical address (as opposed to only a website address) associated with your business on its Google Business Profile will help get a higher listing.
Leto, Jr. observes that having a geo-specific trade area can give a further boost. He says: “Google wants to know that your business has a centralized location and is most importantly – operable.” He says: “if your business is completely online and serving a nationwide general audience – it becomes harder for Google to algorithmically recognize which audience (and geographic areas) you are attempting to reach.”
2) Create Geo-specific or Service-specific Landing Pages
Building in hidden, search engine optimization-enriched pages focused on a company’s website can be effective in streamlining leads and leading prospects to a specific goal or action that the business is trying to prompt the consumer to take (e.g., make a purchase or reservation). Some businesses have “pop-ups” or “lightboxes” on their website that prompt a prospect to fill out a contact form for a 15-minute free project estimate, or to book an appointment with a med spa specializing in cryotherapy in Virginia Beach, for example. These techniques tend to be effective.
WSI Marketing, a leading digital marketing firm observes that “Landing pages convert more traffic because they are focused on one goal or call to action by providing information about a specific offer or item. It has limited navigation, and the simplicity keeps a visitor focused on the goal rather than distracted by multiple links that take them away from the page.” Essentially the idea is that SEO-centered programs can increase the digital footprint and give the brand wider exposure.
3) Establish Social Proof Via Reviews And Testimonials
Based on Google’s latest algorithms, person-specific and relevant content can both supplement and augment a company’s Google Business Profile. Posting about holiday discounts, project initiatives (such as air vent cleaning or kitchen remodeling), or even awards that a business has received can be identified as “qualitative content,” which Google tends to rank well. Additionally, reviews by customers, prospects, and clients are another source of content, which can bolster your Google Business listing and visibility. If customers are leaving relevant, positive reviews about a business on Google with service-related keywords and tags (even relevant to service areas or business location), algorithmically this will give Google a reason to push a company higher up in “nearby” or “near me” searches on Google Maps.
Leto, Jr. observes: “Typically, we have found that once a business starts accumulating near the magic one hundred mark of relevant reviews (with text specific to the services offered, location-based keywords), it begins to generate more noticeable, organic leads through its website or Google My Business profile (which are unrelated to paid search ads). Consistency is critical here – the goal of effective SEO is always to improve your digital footprint and brand ubiquity.”
4) Link Content Updates Regularly And Wisely
Google’s recent algorithmic changes are also “triggered” by content updates (namely products, photos, or backlinks – a form of “off-page” SEO), which are linked through a company’s Google Business Profile to your website. Thus, when adding an update or product offering to the Google My Business listing GMB listing, a business should make sure that it has a specific location and/or service indicated in the headline.
For instance, a surf shop in New Jersey could add a relevant Google Business update such as “Ocean City, NJ – August 2024 Surf Camps” if interested in attracting sign-ups via the local, South Jersey region (and with the summer calendar in mind). This “product” offering through the surf shop’s Google Business Profile indicates the “what” (Surf Camps available this summer) and the “where” (Ocean City, NJ). Again, this example demonstrates the importance of specificity and keywords when it comes to off-page SEO, specifically.
Leto, Jr. further elaborates: “We have seen businesses struggling to generate leads make a few location-based adjustments to their Google Business Profile, and all of a sudden they receive a batch of fresh, organic leads over the course of the next few weeks.”
5) Make Responsiveness A Key Goal
In the context of Google Maps listings, responsiveness does not just refer to making staff available during off-hours. Dynamic Wave advises clients that ensuring that a website is fully-responsive is essential. It is important to optimize the website for responsiveness not just for the desktop, but also for mobile devices and tablets. The issue is that if a website isn’t fully responsive (or takes too long to load), this can negatively affect a company’s ranking and performance on Google.
While it is necessary to properly message key locations served, target prospects, and service offerings on the business website itself (on-page SEO), optimizing a Google Business Profile can help improve your Google Maps ranking directly – a form of authoritative “off-page” Search Engine Optimization. When thinking about it through the lens of clients and customers – involving how, and where a company may be losing out to your direct competitors, improving the profile can help generate organic leads (from Google Maps directly) that can help a company at all levels of the sales funnel.
Collectively, these five tips can be very helpful in geotargeting and ultimately increasing sales.