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Unlocking New Opportunities: Updates to Google Business Profile You Need to Know

Last Updated: February 8, 2024

Hello there to our community of small business champions!

We at Prospect Genius are back with some hot-off-the-press insights, and this time, we’re zooming in on the Google Business Profile platform— one of the many keys to your small business’s online success!

1. Celebrating Diversity with New Attributes

Google is on a mission to make the business world more inclusive and accessible, and they’re doing it by introducing “disabled-owned” and “indigenous-owned” attributes to Google Business Profiles. These join the existing lineup of “black-owned,” “LGBT-owned,” and “women-owned” attributes. This is your chance to showcase your business’s unique identity, and connect with customers who are looking to support diverse communities. It’s a simple, self-assigned tag that can make a world of difference in establishing a personal connection with your customers.

2. Searching Near and Far

In a world that’s constantly on the move, your customers’ location can change in a heartbeat. Google knows this, and that’s why they’re giving users the option to search based on their “precise location” as gathered by GPS data, or an “estimated location” as gathered by past user behavior. For businesses like plumbing services, appliance repair, or junk hauling, this means customers who are just around the corner or planning a move can find you with ease, making sure you’re connecting with the right clientele at the right time. This is one of the many reasons it’s important to make sure the location data on your Google Business Profile is 100% accurate— if it’s not, you could be missing out on leads!

3. Social Media Integration

Your Google Business Profile is becoming more sociable than ever! Now, you can flaunt your social media prowess right on your profile. This is a game-changer for businesses looking to showcase their brand personality, recent projects, or customer testimonials. It’s about creating a holistic image of your business, giving potential customers a sneak peek into what makes you unique, and why they should choose you.

4. Streamlined Booking Experience

For businesses utilizing third-party booking software, things just got a whole lot smoother. With the new “Book Online” button feature, customers can seamlessly book your services right from your Google Business Profile, through integrations with 200+ platforms including but not limited to HouseCallPro, Square Appointments, Wix, and Yelp. This not only streamlines the booking process but also opens up new avenues for customer interaction and conversion. If you use a third-party booking software, you should certainly consider capitalizing on this new feature! You can view a list of booking services compatible with Reserve with Google here.

5. A Smarter Way to Search

Google is all about creating intuitive, user-friendly experiences, and their new UI feature is no exception. Introducing an expandable list of business categories related to user searches, this update means that if a customer searches for “appliances,” they’ll be greeted with a comprehensive list including categories like “appliance repair service,” “appliance parts supplier,” and more. This ensures that your business gets found under the right category, increasing visibility to the most relevant audience.

At Prospect Genius, we’re here to help you navigate these exciting updates and ensure your Google Business Profile is optimized to perfection. Our team of experts is ready to guide you through every step, helping you unlock the full potential of your online presence.

Remember, your success is our success, and we’re just a phone call away. Let’s make the digital world work for you!

Is Your Google Business Profile Really Suspended? Beware Of This New Scam

Last Updated: February 8, 2024

In today’s digital landscape, bad actors are continually crafting new strategies to take advantage of unsuspecting individuals. Small businesses, with their heavy dependence on platforms like Google to boost their online visibility, find themselves in the crosshairs of these deceptive tactics unfortunately often. One such scam involves fraudsters posing as Google representatives, falsely alerting businesses that their Google Business Profile has been suspended. As a small business owner, you’ve likely been on the receiving end of one of these spam calls lately. It’s essential for businesses to understand this scam and spot these attempts quickly. In today’s blog post, we’ll fill you in on this all-too-common scam, advise you on how to identify legitimate calls from Google, and give you more tips for protecting your business’s online reputation.

Smartphone in hand, showing incoming call from unknown caller

Understanding the Scam’s Context

As a small business owner, we’re sure you understand the importance of maintaining an active Google Business Profile for your business. Google is, by far, the most popular search engine among American consumers, so it’s key to ensure that your business is visible on the platform. Scammers, too, have realized the deep trust many place in Google. This trust, combined with the significance of online visibility for businesses, creates a fertile ground for deceit. Small businesses, often lacking dedicated IT teams or comprehensive cybersecurity measures, become prime targets for such scams.

How the Scam Works

The scam begins with a phone call, typically automated, alerting the business owner that their Google Business Profile has been suspended due to suspicious activity. The caller may introduce themselves as a representative from Google and press the urgency of the situation, emphasizing the potential loss of customers.

The objective? It varies. The scam might be a ruse to get the business owner to divulge sensitive information, such as login credentials, or to pay a fee to have their profile “reinstated.” It’s manipulative, leveraging the fear of losing potential customers.

Should a business fall for this ruse, the repercussions are vast. Direct financial loss from fees paid to the scammer is just the start. If the scammer is able to manipulate you in to handing over access credentials, they could completely hijack your business profile. From there, they could alter details on your profile, potentially sending your leads to a competitor. They could even just delete your profile altogether, costing you all of your hard-earned reviews! Needless to say, the reputational damage from such intrusions can be long-lasting.

Confused man

Is Your Profile Actually Suspended? Verify Before You Act

Before panicking, there’s a straightforward way to ascertain the status of your Google Business Profile:

Login to Google: Head over to Google and ensure you’re signed in to the correct account linked with your Google Business Profile.
Access the Manager: Navigate to the Google Business Profile Manager. This is your command center for all things related to your business’s Google presence.
Check the Status: Once in the Profile Manager, look for notifications or alerts. If your profile was genuinely suspended, this is where Google would notify you.

Will Google Ever Call You Regarding Your Business Profile?

It’s important to note that Google rarely cold calls small businesses. If there is a genuine problem with your Google Business Profile, they will likely alert you via email. Direct calls from Google representatives are exceedingly rare, though they can happen. It’s essential to discern between legitimate communications from Google and a scam. Here are some tips to help you make this distinction:

Authentic Google calls will typically originate from a (650) area code, signaling their Mountain View, CA base.
A real Google representative will never request direct payment, press aggressive sales, or push for immediate actions under threat.
- Remember that Google Business Profiles are completely free! No Google representative should ever request payment to list your business on their platform.
Unsolicited calls from Google, when legitimate, tend to be benign. They may call you in order to verify simple details on your business profile, such as your operating hours.

Two women at desk in office

Our Final Word: Stay Safe and Informed

The digital realm, while rife with marketing opportunities for small businesses, has its fair share of dangers. It’s vital to approach unsolicited communication with a dose of skepticism, especially if it’s a cold call asserting affiliation with Google.

Remember, if you’re concerned that your Google Business Profile has been suspended, always verify directly through your Google account before taking any actions. And, if you’re ever in doubt about online scams or the status of your Google Business Profile, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at Prospect Genius. We’re here to assist and ensure your online business presence remains secure and flourishing.

How to Compete on Social Media Without Spending a Dime

Last Updated: June 8, 2017

You’ve heard that social media—particularly Facebook—is vital for small, local business owners. But why?
In many ways, social media has become its own form of search. Many people today search on Facebook before ever turning to Google when they’re looking for a local business. They turn to their social network and ask for recommendations or referrals for whatever service they need. (“Can anyone recommend a good plumber in the Albany area?”) For most people, it’s easier to poll their friends and family for trustworthy input than to blindly scroll through search engine results.
This makes it crucial for you to create and maintain a presence on Facebook (and other social media platforms), where locals are already looking for and discussing your products and/or services. This way, they can find you without having to navigate to another website. And when they do find your Facebook page, they’ll see your posts, photos, reviews, and contact information—basically, everything they need to decide whether they want to give you a call.

But How Can You Stand Out Without Paying?

Unfortunately, the most effective way to grab attention on social media is to pay for sponsored posts. Facebook and other social media platforms want to make money from ad revenue, so they’ve severely restricted the organic (i.e. unpaid) reach of company pages. In other words, if you want your posts to reach a larger audience, you have to pay.
However, due to tight budgets and a rugged opposition to being forced to do anything, many small business owners are reluctant to pay for each and every post. Completely understandable. However, since being on social media is no longer optional, you need to find a workaround. So how do you stay competitive in a game that largely follows a pay-to-play model? How do you keep from blending in with all the organic static? That’s what we’re going to look at in this post.
There’s no silver bullet for beating Facebook’s algorithms, but there are certain things you can do to ensure your posts are as interesting and engaging as possible for the people who see them. Keep reading to discover how you can stand out in your audience’s news feed for free!

1. Don’t Write Long Posts

Let’s face it: Most people don’t like reading. (We hope you’re not one of them, because you’re already more than 300 words into this blog post…)
So, if you’re sharing a status update, keep it short and sweet. This is especially true for when you have a specific piece of information you want to communicate. By and large, your audience isn’t likely to read more than a few lines of text, so make sure your updates are straight to the point. Say what you need to say, and hit “Send.”

2. Write Posts With Your Readers in Mind

If your posts have a lot of technical jargon, too many ten-letter words, or just generally don’t appeal to your audience’s sensibilities, then they aren’t going to grab your audience’s attention. Avoid this problem by asking yourself:

What are your audience’s interests?
What do they care about?
What kind of problems do they want to solve?

Mold all of your posts—written or visual—to fit what your audience wants to hear about. It may seem like a no-brainer, but don’t bother posting anything that doesn’t apply to the above questions.

3. Show Off Your Personality

Whether it’s a status update or photo, make sure whatever you’re posting is an authentic representation of your personality. Don’t be afraid to make your presence personal. People want to see the real humans behind the company logo, especially when it comes to small, local businesses. Showing off your personality will differentiate you from the competition.

4. Build Relationships With Your Biggest Fans

Who are the people who most often engage with your posts? Who are the people in your local community who have a lot of influence and a wide audience? Try to connect with these individuals via social media and build a relationship with them. They’ll be more likely to promote you on social media, and they may even remember to refer you to their friends.

5. Play Off Emotions

People respond in a stronger manner to advertisements that evoke an emotion. Jeremy Ellens says it best in his article, “Effective Marketing Appeals to Emotions Instead of Reason”:

The best way for your business to stand out is by building emotional connections with your audience. Your business needs to acknowledge that selling a product is no longer enough. Now it’s all about the experience you provide with it. This experience is dependent on your ability to trigger the right emotions, from the right audience, at the right time.

Apply this to your social media presence. What’s going to make people remember you? If you provide them with an emotional experience, you’ll make an indelible impression. For the purposes of your social media content, you want your posts to:

Make them laugh.
Amuse or entertain them.
Captivate them with a story.
Inspire them.

By following our recommendations in this post, you’ll be able to capture your audience’s attention and attract more prospective customers through social media—without paying a dime to sponsor a post!

Which of These Online Marketing Strategies Will Be Your Next Step?

Last Updated: February 15, 2024

“What are the best next steps for my marketing?”
This is a question we hear a lot from our clients. As your small business’s online marketing campaign flourishes, it’s natural to wonder what you can do to multiply your success. Regardless of which online marketing strategy from Prospect Genius you’re currently using, there’s a way for you to keep climbing the ladder, if that’s what you want.
Of course, what you do next depends largely on what you’ve already done. You can’t just start hiking halfway up a mountain, right? You have to start at the bottom and work your way to the top.
So, in this post, we’ll explore your options for advancement based on which of our online marketing strategies you’ve already succeeded with. Let’s dive in!

First, the Bare Necessities

Before you can try any advanced online marketing strategies, these are your must-haves:

Basic website
Google Maps listing

Basic website: You’ve heard the old saying, “All roads lead to Rome.” Well, when we’re talking about your online presence, all roads lead to your website. An optimized website forms the basis of your online presence because it’s tied to every listing and gives your business the SEO fuel it needs. Find out more about the connection between websites and local search in this blog post. (And remember, a website must be optimized for mobile devices as well as desktop computers!)
Google Maps listing: Since Google Maps listings are tied directly to Google’s search engine and algorithms, having one is absolutely, 100% essential. You can’t have a local web presence without one. Read more about Google maps listing optimization on our website.
This is why the overwhelming majority of our clients purchase both a CoreSite and Google Maps optimization.

Now, Choose Your Own Adventure

Once you have these fundamentals covered, you can take your own path. Here are the online marketing strategies to consider:

SEO content writing
More directory listings
Paid advertising
Social media outreach
Paid social media advertising
Remarketing

SEO content writing (a.k.a. Ghost Writing): Add more pages to your CoreSite to target specific keywords. This boosts your SEO and, therefore, your local search rankings. More visibility means more visitors to your site!
More directory listings (a.k.a. Directory Dominator): Push your business’s information into all the right directories. The more your business info appears on quality websites, the stronger your SEO and local web presence will be. This option works great when you already have lots of website content, but it can be effective on its own as well.
Paid advertising (a.k.a. Pay-Per-Click): As we like to say, “Why walk when you can run?” Boost your visibility in local search by promoting your business in sponsored ads. They appear right at the top of the search results page. For best results, do this after you’ve optimized your website.
Social media outreach (a.k.a. SocialStream and/or SocialBuzz): Put yourself on the social media platforms where your customers are already spending their time! In competitive industries, it isn’t enough to be visible in Google results. You also need to interact and engage with your customers on Facebook and Twitter to demonstrate your accessibility. Since social media doesn’t add much SEO-wise, we don’t advise focusing on this until you feel you’ve fully optimized your website and directory listings.
Paid social media advertising (a.k.a. Facebook Ads): Get even more exposure on social media by sponsoring your own posts. This is next-level social media outreach for businesses that already have a well-established presence.
Remarketing: Go beyond sponsored ads on Google. Remarketing allows you to target ads at people who previously visited your site, so your business and brand stay top of mind. This is another next-level option, so be sure you’ve maximized your website’s SEO as much as possible before investing in it.

Consider These Outside Add-Ons

After you’ve achieved a certain level of success with our online marketing strategies, you may wish to add a service or two that Prospect Genius doesn’t offer ourselves. For example, you may want to leverage:

Customer review aggregators
E-mail marketing blasts
Professional answering services

Customer review aggregators: These services contact customers on your behalf and request reviews from them. Then, you can add those reviews to your website. In the past, we’ve had success using Customer Lobby for our own customer review needs.
E-mail marketing blasts: Want to keep your customers up to date on special deals and company news? Communicate en masse with the help of an e-mail marketing service. We like ActiveCampaign and MailChimp.
Professional answering services: If you’re too busy to answer the phone when customers call, enlist a remote answering service. They answer your calls with professionalism and record all your messages. We have a partnership with Professional Answering Service, Inc. that gets you a discount on their services!

Your Unique Circumstance Determines a Lot

Of course, your next steps will depend on several variables, including your short-term needs and long-term goals. For example, if you want to use paid advertising long-term, then you should only do so after you’ve completed substantial SEO work on your website. This ensures good ROI because it lowers your AdWords costs and makes your ads more potent. On the other hand, if you’re only looking for a temporary campaign to promote a special offering or discount, then you probably aren’t as concerned with long-term ROI.
Geographic location also influences which online marketing strategies will work for you. For instance, if you’re in a rural area without much competition, then you may only need a Google listing and a three-page CoreSite. However, if you’re in a densely populated area, then you’ll have to do significantly more work and narrowly target specific keywords to beat the competition.
Countless other quirks can dictate how each program works for your business. That’s why you should discuss your needs and goals with your Prospect Genius account manager. We’ll make sure you’re using the best strategy for your business.
Ready to make the next move for your online marketing? Call today!

How Local Search Empowers Small Businesses to Compete

Last Updated: February 9, 2017

How can a small business like yours compete with big brands? Four words: Focus on local search.
The fact that you operate on a local level can be your biggest strength in the battle against large corporations. Many big names rank nationally in organic search results; however, they don’t necessarily have the upper hand when it comes to local search. So if you leverage local search the right way, you can stay competitive with larger brands and come out on top. Here’s what you need to know.

Local Search May Be Replacing Organic

First of all, what do we mean by “organic search” and “local search”? Maybe you’ve seen these terms tossed around but you aren’t quite clear on what they mean. Here’s the gist, without putting you to sleep:

Organic search gives you results based solely on their relevance to your search terms. The opposite of organic search is paid search, which promotes paid advertisements that match your search terms. Learn more about organic vs. paid search here.

Local search, on the other hand, is a search that targets places in a specific location. On Google, you’ll see local results on the first search results page in what’s called a “local pack,” which shows a nearby map and several local businesses. Local searches can also be done on Google Maps itself.

Historically, organic search has been the cornerstone of search engine optimization (SEO). However, organic search rankings are now slipping in value. In 2016, the top two organic search results received, on average, only 25% of the clicks on search results pages, as compared to more than 50% in 2006.
This trend is significant, and it makes sense. Typically, when people are on the hunt for a nearby store, restaurant, or service provider, they’re not looking at organic results. Instead, they’re perusing local Google listings to see which businesses fit their needs, have good reviews from past customers, and are closer in proximity. The days of people walking down the street and exploring their neighborhoods for good businesses are, by and large, over. Now, people do a quick search before they leave home so they know exactly where to go.

Mobile Devices Are a Strong Force in Local Search

The uptick in local searches applies to people who are looking for local businesses on the go, as well. Instead of wasting time driving around aimlessly when looking for the closest gas station or coffee shop, they search their phones to find the nearest one.
As Jayson DeMers writes for Forbes,

In general, I suspect local search will rise in importance, and more local businesses will step up to take advantage of this. Mobile technology will become even more mobile with wearable devices and similar technologies, and cumulatively, user preference toward local results will grow. As most “local” businesses are small- to mid-sized businesses, these trends will work in their favor.

Here, DeMers draws a clear parallel between local and mobile. And it’s supported by Google’s own data, which shows that an entire one-third of all mobile searches are for local places. With more people using their mobile devices for local searches on the go, your small business’s Google Maps listing is increasingly likely to become visible.

Optimize Your Local Search Listings

Here’s the main takeaway for you: Corporations don’t have the monopoly on proximity anymore. Local search is a more democratic platform than organic search, giving small businesses a fair shot at appearing in local results—so long as your local listings are optimized.
Here are some ideas for making your Google listing as strong as possible:

And if you need any guidance on local search strategies, please don’t hesitate to reach out! Prospect Genius is always happy to help. Good luck!

Prospect Genius

Unlocking New Opportunities: Updates to Google Business Profile You Need to Know

1. Celebrating Diversity with New Attributes

2. Searching Near and Far

3. Social Media Integration

4. Streamlined Booking Experience

5. A Smarter Way to Search

Is Your Google Business Profile Really Suspended? Beware Of This New Scam

Understanding the Scam’s Context

How the Scam Works

Is Your Profile Actually Suspended? Verify Before You Act

Will Google Ever Call You Regarding Your Business Profile?

Our Final Word: Stay Safe and Informed

How Local Search Empowers Small Businesses to Compete

Local Search May Be Replacing Organic

Mobile Devices Are a Strong Force in Local Search

Optimize Your Local Search Listings

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