Distributors with branches or store locations need to make it easy for customers and prospects to find them. One of the best ways is to ensure your information is available and accurate on the major search engines. Did I mention those listings are free?
Just getting a listing is no longer enough. Google confirmed a few days ago that businesses must have activity within a six-month period or risk becoming unverified.
The statement from Jade Wang, with Google said:
In some cases, we may contact Google My Business users via email to confirm that they are still actively managing a business page. If a user is unresponsive to our attempts to contact him or her and has not logged into Google My Business for a significant length of time, then we may unverify pages in the account. We’re doing this in order to continue to provide users with the best experience when they’re looking for local businesses like yours. If you find that a page in your account has been incorrectly unverified, please contact support to get assistance restoring verification.
It’s a good idea to keep an eye on the inbox associated with your Google My Business (Locations) account. It’s also a good idea to regularly log into Google My Business (Locations) to confirm that your business information is current and accurate.
Generally, Google+ has been downplayed as a marketing channel for distributors. Keeping your business listing accurate and up-to-date in Google My Business and Bing Places is always a good idea to make it as easy as possible for your customers to find you.
Action item:
- Make sure you claim and verify each of your business locations in Google My Business and Bing Places.
- Log in at least every six months to update locations, hours, and other relevant information. Engage with customers on the Google+ platform.
What if your business and/or location(s) have become unverified? In that case, go through the process to become re-verified, and your listings will be back!
Have you claimed and verified each location of your distributor locations on Google and Bing?
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