Technology has improved many aspects in human life. The difficult tasks now have become easier, the complex things become incredibly simpler. Let’s say the phone book that once assisted you in looking for local information has been replaced by Google Maps that provide you information not only from local but from all over the world. The availability of Google Maps is also really helpful for the world of business and marketing especially for you who own small businesses.Google Maps give you a way out to solve your marketing problem. It is an important tool that can help you to control and improve your small business. Through Google Maps, people may find your specific business in certain location. One significant point in using Google Maps is that it doesn’t charge you at all, you can control and watch your bottom line for free. All you need to do is by publishing your business on Google Maps which is certainly not complicated.
Therefore, here are simple steps that will guide you to register your small business to Google Maps. First of all, type your business address into Google Maps. If your business hasn’t existed in the general location, entering your business’s basic information will be acquired. However, if your business address has existed, it will appear as a result.
Secondly, soon in a minute, there will be a form to load after you pick the listing and click the command “Claim Your Business”. Afterward, you will be obligated to fill the form that demands your web site address, business hours, business categories you want to be listed under, a description, and also up to 10 photos. It enables you to upload video as well if you have any. This content will give influence for your site to get a significant rank.
After filling the form completely, you click submit and then Google will ask you how you will want to verify the account, you can choose whether through mail or by phone. In case you click by-phone way, prepare yourselves with pen and paper because you will receive a call in seconds. You will need to write down a five digit PIN you get through that phone call and you type the PIN into the box on your screen.
Once you have been registered in Google Maps, you should check periodically to see charts that show your listing’s activity. After you click your website and direction of your establishment, you can obtain information about how many times your site address shows up on Google Maps. The last step, you should update the contents in your website with new information like related photos, videos, or even coupons. Since your websites is a storefront of your business in internet where many people may see it, you should check it for at least once a month to show your professionalism.
Getting Listed in Google Maps and Yahoo! Local
Getting listed in Google maps and Yahoo! local is fairly simple. In fact many local business may find that they are already listed. If not, or if an existing listing needs to be edited just follow these steps:
How to register with Google Maps: Go to maps.google.com, you'll see a link in the left hand column that says "Add or Edit your business: Learn More." Simply fill out the form and your business will appear in map searches.
If your business is already listed, but the information is out of date, you can click the "add or edit your business" link and submit changes. Google will hold these edits until it confirms you are the business owner by sending a postcard to the existing address. The postcard contains a confirmation code. When you receive it, go back to your listing in maps.google.com and return to the edit screen and enter the code.
How to register with Yahoo! Local: Go to local.yahoo.com and scroll to the bottom of the page to click "Add a Business." You'll need to set up a Yahoo! account before you can enter your business information. You can also edit your listings through a Yahoo! user account.
Registering with other map sites: The other local engines use sources like InfoUSA for their business data. These sources use telephone directories for their databases, so directly updating these sources is not possible--just make sure your phonebook listing is correct and they should correct themselves in time.
Registering is the easy part, but once you're registered you need to start thinking about what your customers want to do when they see your listing in these places. The first thing they'll likely want to do is check out your website.
In a traditional print Yellow Pages ad it's helpful to offer a website as a means for consumers to get more information--helpful, but not essential. A listing on Google Maps or Yahoo! Local, on the other hand, almost always requires a website. After all, if you were looking for a gymnastics studio online, wouldn't you check out the ones with websites before the ones without? The days when a website was an optional luxury for a small local company are over. Now it's essential.
If a small business website is essential, what kind of website should a small local business (with a small budget) have? Let's review the essentials.
