Continue reading to find out how to set up a Google My Business account, validate your company, and improve your listing.
What is Google My Business?
You can control how your company appears on Google Maps and Search using the free Google My Business tool. This includes posting your company’s name, address, and operating hours; monitoring and responding to client testimonials; uploading images; finding out where and how customers are finding you online, and more.
Your Google My Business profile is a terrific spot to concentrate your initial efforts if you’re new to local SEO. One in two individuals who perform a local search comes to a shop that day, so it’s safe to say that when consumers look for a good or service nearby, they’re almost ready to buy.
Therefore, every detail about your company that appears in Google searches must be as precise, comprehensive, and optimized as possible.
Make a listing on Google My Business
- Enter the Google ID that you wish to have linked to your company (or register for one if you don’t currently have one).
- Visit google.com/business and choose the “Start now” option located in the upper right corner.
- Put the name of your company here.
- Put in your company’s address.
- Select “I deliver goods and services to my customers” if you visit your clients instead of having them come to you. Additionally, check the box next to “Hide my address (it’s not a store) Only show region” if you work from home or another place you would prefer not to have publicly visible. Choose your Delivery area lastly.
- Select the category for your business. Selecting the most precise category is important since it basically tells Google which kinds of people should see your company profile.
- Include your company’s website or phone number.
- Select a verification method. To postpone verifying your business, select “Try a different method” → “Later.”
How to Authenticate Your Company on Google?
There are a few ways to authenticate your Google My Business listing.
- Postcard Confirmation
- Phone Approval
- Email Approval
- Instant Verification
- Bulk Confirmation
Postcard Confirmation
- Go to Google My Business, if you haven’t already, and choose the company you wish to have verified. (If you’re in the verification stage already, then you’re done.)
- Verify the accuracy of your company address. Not required: Include a contact name so that we know to whom the postcard should be sent.
- Select “Mail.” To avoid delaying the process, please make sure you don’t modify your company’s name, address, and category, or ask for a new code before the postcard arrives, which should arrive in five days.
- After receiving the postcard, go to Google My Business and sign in. Choose which of your locations for business you wish to get verified. If there’s only one, click “Verify now.”
- Insert the five-digit verification code found on your postcard in the Code area. Press “Submit.”
You may get a new code by logging into Google My Business and selecting the “Apply for another code” blue banner at the peak of the display if your postcard never arrives or is lost.
Phone Approval
Some companies may use Google to confirm their location over the phone. When you begin the verification procedure, you’ll be presented with the option to “Verify by phone” if you are qualified.
- Go to Google My Business, if you haven’t yet, and choose the company you wish to have verified. (If you’re in the verification stage already, then you’re done.)
- Verify the accuracy of your phone number before selecting “Verify by phone.”
- Put in the code for verification that you received in your SMS.
Email Approval
Some companies may use Google to confirm their location over the phone. When you begin the verification procedure, you’ll be presented with the option to “Verify by email” if you are qualified.
- Go to Google My Business, if you haven’t already, and choose the company you wish to have verified. (If you’re in the verification stage already, then you’re done.)
- Verify the accuracy of your email address before selecting “Verify by email.”
- Open the Google My Business email that appears in your inbox, then click the verification link within.
Instant Verification
You may be able to rapidly validate your email if you have already confirmed your company’s identity with Google Search Console, a free service that allows you to control the search effectiveness and condition of your website.
Using the same account that you used to authenticate your business with Google Search Console, log into Google My Business. (You’ll need to utilize an alternative verification method if you don’t receive a message requesting you to validate the listing; some company categories aren’t suitable for rapid verification.)
Bulk Confirmation
You may also qualify for bulk verification if you manage more than ten sites for the same company and are neither a service provider nor an agency overseeing many companies’ locations.