What is Google My Business? If you landed on this page, that might be the question you’re asking. Google My Business, also known as GMB, is a free online SEO tool that marketers use to develop a company’s online presence on Google, including in search results and on maps. While this tool is incredibly important for all industries, it’s especially critical to RV parks and their success, because it makes it easier for potential customers to find quality RV parks nearby.
Read on for a deeper dive into what GMB is, how to create an online profile, and why it’s one of the most important tools in an SEO marketer’s toolkit. We also go over why your local RV park can benefit from it.
What is Google My Business?
Google My Business gives your RV park better visibility online, in search results, and through Google map listings. It offers existing and former customers the chance to leave reviews and interact with your business, and provides in-depth information to potential customers before they make a reservation. Furthermore, it’s an easy way for RV parks to update their company information, including their:
- Company Name
- Address
- Phone Number
- Description
- Available Services/Products
- Hours, including holidays
- Sales/Current Offers
- Company Updates
- Website
- Photos
- Videos
- Reviews
A GMB profile also allows RV park owners to update the kinds of amenities they offer, including whether the location is veteran- or female-owned, or if it has wheelchair accessibility. These days, while COVID-19 continues to be a concern, Google My Business has also extended these amenities to include updates on whether masks or temperature checks are required upon visitation so your customers always know what to expect before they move forward. Herein lies the true benefit of Google My Business.
Benefits of Google My Business
Increased Visibility
In most cases, customers flock to Google when they want to learn something, get directions/information, or make a purchase. More specifically, 46% of all Google searches include local search intent, which in layperson’s terms simply refers to someone looking for a service that’s nearby. Unsurprisingly, the term “near me” has increased by over 500% in recent years as a result. Keep this keyword in mind when creating content for your GMB and website.GMB listings are designed to let customers know which companies/services are local to them, as well as aid them in their purchasing decision.
Promotes Customer Engagement
Since customers can leave a star rating and review on your RV park’s GMB, it helps make your business more visible in search results. The more feedback you get, the better you do in Google’s algorithm, and the more credibility you gain in the eyes of the people who are searching for you.This increased engagement also helps drive business. There’s a proven correlation between good reviews and sales that can help you generate more leads and make more sales. With this, it’s also important to remember that even the best businesses are prone to get a bad review once in a while, so it’s best to engage with them professionally.
It Provides Insights
GMB provides several different insights for analysis to help you decide what is right for your business strategy. The insights provided by this feature include engagement, search queries, views, clicks on the website link, and your audience. These factors can be used to plan out your approach to making decisions and figure out where your audience is coming from, and what kinds of posts you should create to attract them.How Often Should You Post on Google My Business?
Ideally, you’ll want to post a minimum of once per week. This is because GMB posts expire after one week, so to make the most of your account, this is the recommended minimum amount. However, keep in mind that you’re not limited to that.
While there are rules to posting on Google My Business (which we’ll get to later), there is no set rule that says you have to post X amount of times to keep your profile active. However, companies that post once a day tend to see better results.
Truthfully, there is no set formula when it comes to this because it’s going to depend on the type of content you’re posting. If you’re sharing innocuous posts about the company or services you offer, then posting more often is probably to your benefit. If you have a company event or big announcement to make, though, making that your only post for the week will get you better web traffic because it’s not buried by a barrage of other posts.
Remember, Google My Business posts are live, so the more you post, the more people are going to see them. Google tends to rank companies that are highly engaged on GMB more favorably since it adds to their level of trustworthiness online.
How to Sign Up for a Google My Business Profile
To move forward with a Google My Business profile, you first need to register an email with Gmail. Once you do this, you can go ahead and start building your GMB profile. Here’s what you’ll need to do:
- First, visit google.com/business and click on the “Manage Now” button. If a business listing already exists, this will walk you through the process of claiming it.
- If you are creating a brand-new listing, you will need to enter your RV park’s name and other important contact details, as well as information on the types of services you provide, business description, and hyperlink back to your website. Once you complete your profile, you may have to verify it with Google.
- Verification can be done in several ways, with the most common being telephone verification or a postcard. If you opt for the postcard option, Google will mail out a postcard to your address on file within 5 days. However, depending on the situation, this could take up to 14 days to arrive. This postcard has a code on it, which you’ll need to enter into your GMB profile. Once you do, your profile is officially verified and ready to use.
How to Optimize Your Google My Business Listing
It’s not enough to simply have a Google My Business listing. You need to optimize it. More than that, you need to optimize it for SEO if you want any chance of showing up in the Local 3-Pack; these are the first three search results customers see in Google Map listings that are local to their the search query, provide relevant information relating to the search query, and how prominent they (the business) are in this industry.
For example, let’s say someone types in “RV park near me” into Google. They get 10 results. How will they choose? While you’d think that Google will recommend the RV park closest to the customer’s location, they may actually rank an RV park that’s a bit further if they have more reviews, more engagement, and are featured more prominently online. So, your job as the RV park owner is to not only optimize your GMB for your service area, but also to keep it highly engaged so you can outrank other RV parks.
We know it’s a lot, but here are a few key tips to keep in mind:
- Keep everything legitimate. Far too often companies may want to falsify information on their GMBs to help influence Google’s algorithm, but this always backfires. Remember, people are looking at your GMB profile for up-to-date, ACCURATE information, so if you are closed every Sunday, make sure your listing states that. Likewise, don’t add services you don’t technically do just because it’s an option.
- Add keywords! Keywords are a critical component of successful SEO strategies. Once you develop your list of target keywords, be sure to include them in your description and weekly posts.
- Add optimized photos. Geotag your photos with map coordinates of your RV park’s location to help with ranking, and name your photos as your relevant keywords before uploading to your GMB profile.
- Add videos. Videos are quickly becoming one of the most consumed forms of media, so if you have videos you can share to your GMB profile, do it.
- Respond to your reviews. The more reviews you respond to, the more favorably Google is going to rank you. This applies to negative reviews as well. While no company wants to receive less-than-stellar reviews, responding to them shows future customers you care about your RV park and your customer’s experience.
- Make sure your GMB information is IDENTICAL to other mentions online. If your address uses “street” on your website, don’t shorten it to “St” on your GMB. Keep things consistent. Google looks at these inconsistencies to determine whether or not your company is credible.
Let RV Park SEO Handle All Your RV Park’s Google My Business Needs
We know that setting up and maintaining a GMB profile is a lot of work. At RV Park SEO, we can do it for you. As RV parks become increasingly popular around the US, having your information available on maps can be a huge boost to your business. Call us today or schedule a consultation at this link. We’re happy to help!
