What is Google My Business?

Some helpful advice from Which? Trusted Traders…

• Google My Business enables local businesses to manage their online presence and improve their visibility in Google searches.
• Google My Business enables local businesses to manage their online presence and improve their visibility in Google searches.
• Google My Business is a service provided by Google that literally puts your business on the map. It’s a handy business tool that costs nothing to set up and improves your search ranking and makes it easier for customers to find you. It’s easy to use and only takes a few moments to set up, but many businesses simply overlook it or don’t realise it’s there.

While the Which? Trusted Traders and HETAS websites gives you a great online presence linked to trusted brands, it is always a good idea to improve your visibility on a general Google search. Creating and verifying your Google My Business profile helps synchronise all your business listings on Google platforms (maps, general search, Google+).

When you have completed your listing and someone searches for you online, they will find your business profile. This is what the Which? one looks like:

In addition your business premises will appear on Google maps like this:

Create and Manage your Google My Business listing

Creating your listing is very easy. Go to Google My Business and follow the straightforward sign-up process. You need to fill in a template with details about your business name, address, business area, telephone numbers and so on. You can add as much little detail as you like – it can helpful to add photos, directions and business hours to help customers get in touch.

Keep your listing up to date to allow existing and potential customers to find your business details more easily. You can edit your listing when needed. This can be particularly useful around bank holidays to indicate when you are open, for example.

It’s up to you how detailed you want to be, but much like your Which? Trusted Traders profile, you can add images of your work and videos to encourage other potential customers to use your business. Check our guide to how to get the best pictures on your profile, to ensure you’re getting the best images.

If you have more than one business location, you can add these in bulk from the handy Google My Business dashboard. Google My Business also allows you to see how many people are viewing your business and look at the traffic to your website.

Which? Trusted Traders

As you know, Which? Trusted Traders and HETAS are two not for profit organisations that have a longstanding relationship. The partnership was designed to raise the profile of reputable HETAS installers by further endorsing your accreditation with HETAS.

As your a HETAS registered installer, you get a 50% discount on the first 6 months of being  a Which? Trusted Trader. Click here to find out more about the Which? Trusted Traders scheme and request a call back from our helpful team.