Are you just getting your business started, or maybe you’ve been around, but have been getting by with word-of-mouth referrals? If so, you may not have a website, and that’s ok.
Ultimately, I do believe that nearly all service-based businesses will benefit from having a professional, well-designed website, but there is something you can do first that costs less (it’s free), can grow your business in the short (and long) term and will actually make your website easier to build when you’re ready.
Your Google Business Profile, Don’t Wait
Your Google Business Profile is a critical factor in how your business shows up across Google Products, like Maps and Search. This profile helps people find you and learn more about your services. It works whether you see your clients at a particular location (clients come to you) or if you serve customers within a designated service area (you come to your clients).
Why your Google Business Profile matters?
There are four big benefits to maintaining an optimized Google Business Profile:
- Increase your visibility on Google
- Build credibility with reviews
- Help potential clients learn about your services
- Give potential clients an easy way to contact you
How Your GBP Increases Your Visibility
If you’ve ever searched for something like “plumber near me,” you’ve probably noticed the map with the business listings next to it. This is sometimes call the “local pack” or “map pack.” Here’s an example:
This map pack appears for location-based searches. So if a user searches for your business type “near me” or with a specific location (“plumber Seattle”), your profile has a good chance of showing up – especially if it’s optimized.
This is completely free visibility that your business could be earning, even if you don’t have a website yet.
How Your GBP Builds Credibility
Reviews are a big deal in the modern service business world. According to one estimate, over 90% of users read online reviews before hiring. (add source)
Your GBP allows you to collect and display your reviews directly on your business listing. This helps in a few ways.
First, the more reviews and the higher average review directly contributes to how well your profile ranks. In other words, the more 4-5 star reviews you have, the more likely you are to show up in the map pack when someone searches for your service near your location.
Second, once users see your business listing, they’re more likely to take the next step and contact you if you have lots of positive reviews.
Last, by beginning to collect reviews early in your business timeline, you’ll hopefully have many reviews to include on your website when that time comes.
How Your GBP Informs Your Potential Clients
When a user clicks on your business listing to learn more, they’ll see a range of information such as your business hours, contact info, specific service details, images and even the option to message or schedule directly from the profile listing.
I won’t go into specific optimizations here, but in short, the more relevant and detailed information you provide, the more likely a user is to contact you.
So nice, original photos, detailed descriptions of your services, business updates such as promotions, accurate hours, etc, all help you stand out and get an inquiry from your potential client.
Here’s an example of a well-optimized Google Business Profile:
I hope this article has given you some encouragement get to started on your Google Business Profile. It’s a relatively easy way to start getting more leads in both the short and long term, even if you don’t have a website.
If you’d like some professional help setting up or optimizing your profile, don’t hesitate to reach out. We can help you get the most out of this important part of your online presence.
