Category: GMB

With the COVID-19 crisis, businesses are facing unusual challenges. Some struggle to stay afloat and retain relevance while others are overwhelmed with brainstorming strategies to help them recover when it’s over.

It’s at a time like this that most businesses can commend Google for some of their actions geared towards helping users and businesses.

On March 20^th, 2020 Google released the first update to inform users and businesses of the new limiting features in GMB.

Let’s look at what they are and what they mean for your business.

New Reviews, and Review Replies

Following this period of the pandemic, users will be able to leave new reviews for businesses. However, while the users can see the review, it will not be publicly visible and will not impact the business star ratings or be added to their review count.

As for replying to these new reviews, Google disabled that feature as stated in the March 20^th report. The reason being that the new reviews do not show publicly or count, anyway. Businesses were still able to reply to old reviews and even edit them.

But, as of April 7^th, 2020 Google provided a new update now restoring review replies. They also say that “New user reviews, new user photos, new short names, and Q&A will gradually return by country and business category.”

Q&A

For some businesses, their Q&A’s appear to have vanished. We believe Google aimed to limit users’ ability to post new questions, and that led to removing the feature completely.

Adding, Claiming, and Verifying Listings

Thankfully, it’s still possible to add, claim, and verify listings. There is only one small change which is that Google now prioritizes healthcare or health-related businesses for these processes. So those who are not under this niche will experience delays when performing any of these actions on GMB.

Takeout/Delivery Available Option

Now more than ever, customers need to know what options are available for food vendors across countries. To assist both users and businesses, Google has loosened its guidelines to allow restaurants to add ‘delivery available’ or ‘takeout available’ to their business names.

Temporarily Closed Option

Yes, many businesses have shut their doors during this pandemic, but how do customers know who’s open and who’s closed? To help both parties involved, Google now includes a temporarily closed feature. While this might influence business rankings because Google prioritizes open businesses, we can’t say for certain that the effects will be permanent.

What do the changes mean for you?

Depending on the nature of businesses, the implications differ. But there are ways to make the most of the situation. Google’s recent updates are helpful for the crisis and users. You can take this opportunity to boost your reviews and ranking on other sites like Facebook and Yelp. If your business can’t perform optimally due to the crisis, switch strategies to becoming a source of information, helpful tips, or encouraging messages. Stay relevant and preserve your business reputation through this time.

“A picture tells a thousand words” they say but we sometimes think this refers to a drawing of Mona Lisa or some other interesting piece. The thing is, any picture can speak and the loudest of them all are the pictures that represent your business–in this case your Google My Business photos!

Before the questions flood your mind, we will get right to answering them.

Why is your GMB photo important?

Studies have shown that 60% of customers are drawn in by local search results with good images and this usually influences their decision.
Another study discovered that businesses with more images get up to 520% more calls than competitors.

When a customer looks at your business page, believe it or not, they are searching for reasons NOT to buy from you and poor quality or stiff photos may just be that reason. Photos are more than a requirement you include to fill that spot on your GMB listing. They are another chance to convince your customer of your expertise. Let’s breakdown what customers look for in a business photo.

Are you like them?

Of course, you want to do business with someone that has the tendency to think like you and ultimately offer customer satisfaction. They use photos to vet your values and ethos. If a customer can find the tiniest conviction of kindred spirit, they will stay.

Can they trust you?

This sounds awfully like a lover seeking assurance but it is very similar. At first, every customer is looking to avoid the likelihood of a bad experience. We can’t speak for what happens after that.

Social class

Customers want to get a sense of your social class. They want to know just how much trust and respect to accord your business. And we don’t have to tell you how impactful a photo of Bill Gates having lunch in your restaurant will be.

So what now?

Now that you have discovered the importance of your Google My Business photos, what can you do?

Do you spend all your time finding the perfect photo? Absolutely not. Here are some tips to guide you.

• Think about the ideal customer you want to attract. For example, if you are a luxury hotel after elite clients, then you want to show off your pristine environment, luxurious rooms, and other elite clients who come to the hotel.
• Don’t get confused about your target audience, because if you attract the wrong people they will repel the right ones.
• Take or find real photos that tell a story. You can take the pictures yourself to show people what your business really stands for. If you have to choose online images be very picky too. Let the images represent your business and tell a story. Avoid stock photos because they are mostly staged and unreal. Customers can see that.
• Go for quality photos. They should be clear, bright, and beautiful. If you are taking the pictures yourself, capture your business at its best.

Sometimes your customers’ photos can be the best selling point. If you know you did a great job with your customer, ask them to provide you with photos of the work in their public review. Your potential customer will love seeing other customer photos!