Get More Direct Bookings with ‘Google My Business’

Get More Direct Bookings with Google My Business

Google My Business listings are free and is highly effective marketing. It can be easily set up and updated.

**Typical ‘Google My Business’ listing as shown on the right hand side of the Google Search results**

Google My Business is one of the most cost effective ways for your business to be easily found at the top of Google searches. Find out how to easily optimise your Google listing to help you generate more direct bookings and customers.

Most owners and companies have their business listed on Google. But are they making the most out of their listing?

Be at the Top of Google Search

Over 92% of searches are conducted on Google. Google My Business is one way to ensure you can guarantee that you appear top of the search results for your company / business name and location. By having a good listing this provides very useful information to potential visitors about you. As a result it will give them confidence and trust that you are a viable business.

It is vital to ensure your business is well represented and up to date. It needs to provide all the information that potential guests would like to know about you.

Why Have a Google My Business Listing?

You can be found easily directly & stand out from rivals.
Guarantees a top Google listing for your property or business name
It increases trust & confidence for potential guests
You have full control over the content displayed
Showcases your headline photos, videos & also guest photos
Displays all your business contact details, telephone number, address, business hours etc.
Direct link to your website home page
Provides an exact Google map location & business category
Guest Reviews – Shows your latest Google Reviews & comments
Helps your SEO, Google ranking & website visibility
Provides detailed analytics of searches, map requests, pictures viewed, etc.

Generate More Direct Bookings via Booking.com or AirBnB

Do you list your property on Booking.com & AirBnB? How about re-directing some of those bookings direct to your or your website homepage. By doing so, this will save you commission and give you direct contact with your guests?

Many holiday cottage owners rely almost exclusively on Booking.com and AirBnb to generate their bookings and income. But what if you can generate more bookings direct? If you have your own website then it is imperative that you have your own up to date Google My Business listing. This will help direct traffic directly to your website.

Love the Property, Great Location – Do They Have their Own Website?

**Google My Business web search for ‘Nyhavn Lakeside Cottage’**

Recently I found a lovely property on Booking.com that I was interested in booking, it was in a great location for our proposed weekend away. Before I booked it I wanted to check it out.

Next up, I ‘Google’ that property and see if I can find it elsewhere at maybe a better rate. Bingo, I find it straight away. The owners website is lovely and the property looks even better than we thought. What’s more, the guests reviews were very complimentary. We checked the availability and the price was a little bit less so it was a ‘no brainer’. I wanted to book direct, have that personal touch too. This would help us be able to get local recommendations and information. As a result, we did book it direct. Sound familiar?

Even if I had not booked directly with the owners it had given me confidence to want to book it via Booking.com so either way the owner is going to get the booking.

How Google Determines Local Ranking – 3 Key Factors:

Google Maps showing local businesses close to your search criteria

“Local results favour the most relevant results for each search, and businesses with complete and accurate information are easier to match with the right searches.” – Google My Business Support Pages

Google determines local ranking based on three main factors:

Relevance: How well a local listing matches the search request.
Distance: How far is each potential search result from the location search term.
Prominence: How well a business is known by Google (based on various factors).

Choosing The Right Business Categories:

There are a number of options that you can choose as your main business category and also add additional categories (up to 10). Here are several options you can choose from.

Holiday Home
Self-Catering Accommodation
Cottage Rental
Holiday Apartment Rental
Lodging

Post Latest News, List Products & Highlight Events

On your Google My Business listing you can create posts related to your business. These can be used to keep visitors up to date with latest offers, upcoming events and any new products or services you may be offering. Google loves new relevant content and will reward your web listing and information accordingly.

Freshen Up Your Content and Ask for Google Reviews

There are so many Google listings that once set up are just left and forgotten about. Do not be one of them.

Have a look at your Google listing and update it with new photos (or video), some new and fresh content and any important information. Bump up your reviews and send out a Google Review request to your most recent happy guests from this summer. This way you can build up your number of reviews. All of which will top to build up your credibility.

Build Trust, Confidence and Drive Customers to your Website

In summary, having a good Google My Business listing will help drive traffic to your website. It will help build trust and confidence of those who may be looking to book a holiday with you or via a 3^rd party. It is free and does not take long to keep up to date.

Your Homework List:

Search for your property or company name on Google as a customer would and see how your Google My Business Listing appears on the right hand side?
If you do not have a Google listing or it is not verified then now is a good time to get yours set up – Set up Google listing here
Check all your contact details, map listing and location and web links are correct.
Is your ‘Business Description’ up to date, is there anything you can add
Add your latest photos, external, internal, your logo and a video if you have one. Is your profile photo your best one?
Do you have ay Google Reviews and have you responded to them all, ask your most recent guests to review you too.
Add more business categories where appropriate.
Add a few posts (with photos), local or upcoming events and any latest offers

Do not forget, it is free marketing. What are you waiting for?

Good luck.

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