It is not easy for a new business to enter a highly competitive market and rule it instantly. They have to attract consumers, generate profit and also find a foothold for themselves amongst the competition. Since traditional marketing techniques have taken a backseat for brick-and-mortar storefronts, they need Google Maps assistance to be found.

Did You Know?

84% of customers perform a Google search to find local businesses

Although, ecommerce is trending, the fact to note is that around 90% of purchases still happen via stores offline. You have to keep in mind that just listing your business on Google is not enough. Your business has to show up on Google Maps.

Let’s take a look at an example. Check this image below:

You can see that there are quite a few established business restaurants on the east side of Preston Road. Please note there are 5 new restaurants on the west side too. Can you spot the difference?

The established restaurants (on the right) vs. the new restaurants (on the left) — Do you see the red dots? They are the news businesses. And there is only one on the left that is visible out of the 5 restaurants listed around the same location.

So what gives?
Why the established restaurants show up and new ones don’t, while both of them are listed in Google Map results for the search term “restaurants”?
Take a look at these tips and you will get your answer.

1. Accurate Information And Claiming Of 3rd-Party Listings

You need to claim all your third-party listings. Let it be TripAdvisor, Yelp or any other profile. You need to claim your third-party listings and make sure that accurate information is listed on them. It would help in keeping your brand consistent with Google searches and improve your visibility. Ignoring listings from authoritative sites can hurt your Google listing’s strength, especially if you are a newbie.

2. Keep Your Social Page Active

Social media sites like Facebook add value to your Google listing. So, ensure that you post regularly and keep your social media pages active. Fresh content on the social media pages gives positive signals to Google about your business. The more engagement you have on your social media pages, the better the chances are for your listing getting popular in Google.

3. Produce More Location Specific Content

You may have a chain of stores spread all across the globe, but you will not be able to boost your local search if you don’t produce location specific content regarding your brand. While generic content will still further your brand’s name and reputation, but local search will not be influenced with that kind of content.

Let’s take an example from the above shared image which is a zoomed-in version of Image 1. We did a search for Lazy Dog Plano and we received results that are specific to the Plano location. But when we did a search on other new businesses, we received results for other locations instead of Plano. It clearly suggests that Lazy Dog has focused more on producing location specific content that puts them in front of the others.

Well, you can create and share location specific content on sites with online menus or other third-party ordering platforms. You can also get local media to write about your local business.

4. Approach & Help Local Media To Write About Your Business

Again, if you take the example of Lazy Dog, you could see that it is the only business that has content shared from other well-known Plano media sites. One of the articles tells an in-depth story about the business and includes HD images of the place as well.

You can approach local media to do a cover story on your business. Don’t forget to help them out with content and images that can attract potential consumers. Helping local media with content, interesting facts and pictures help you form a wholesome content package that is likable for local users. Getting popular in local media is definitely noticed by Google and would strengthen your Google Map visibility.

5. Focus On Building An Online Presence

A simple Google search can tell a lot about your online presence. Reviews on third-party ordering websites and other sources can strengthen your online presence. Google looks for relevant information associated to your business when you are being searched. So, it is imperative that you have your business mentioned by varied sources (preferably high authority sources) in order to build a strong online presence.

How to get mentioned?

Take a look at what your competition is doing to get mentions. Get listed on relevant third-party sites. Get your users to write reviews of your business/services. Do guest blogging or get listed on coupon sites, local guides, local government tourism sites etc.

Lastly, you can always hire some digital marketing experts to help you boost your local search and gain an edge against your competition. We hope these tips will help new businesses like yours to gain more visibility on Google Maps. Let us know in the comments section below if you have any queries or contact us for more information regarding Local SEO services.