- Mistake number one: Not selecting the right business category. You may think this can’t be messed up, but based on your competition, you need to select the category that your competitors have listed first in order to compete. Visit a few of your competitors GMB’s and look at their main business category, then go back and make sure you’re listed under the same category as they are. Then, make sure you complete all the categories that are available (I think there are 10 total you can select). The more categories you choose the more likely your ad is to show to a potential customer.
- Mistake number two: Only selecting a small service area. Make sure you’ve entered as many cities, counties and towns as far out as you can. The more service areas the more chances you have of your ad appearing.
- Mistake number three: Not setting up FAQ’s and a welcome message. There is an option for a Q&A (this is where real potential customers can ask a question and the company can respond) but did you know there is also an FAQ that you can set up? It’s hidden under ‘messages’. So if you have messages turned on, you click a button that says, ‘set up FAQ’s and a welcome message for anyone who wants to send your business a message. The FAQ will help complete your profile and you can also add keywords to help with rankings.
- Mistake number 4: Not creating an offer. This may not apply to everyone, but anytime you can create an offer for your business you should add it to your gmb. There is an option to create an offer in the settings of your gmb that allows you to create an offer title, start date, end date, and details with a photo, coupon code, link to redeem offer and terms & conditions. If you can create an offer, do so, it may help your rankings and make your ad stand out!
5. Mistake number five: Not adding the directions map to your website from your GMB. If you’re a local business you should take advantage of this in your GMB. There is an option to create a map to add to your website to help customers find your location. I think anytime you can marry your gmb and website is ultimately a good thing!
