Understanding Google My Business & Local Search
Google Local Announces New Local Product and Promises Better Communications
The newly appointed head of Google Local Product Manager Brian Fitzpatrick today announced the rollout of a completely revamped local product to replace the Places dashboard. As written about in the Wall Street Journal in June, 2012 the product is called “The Business Builder”. With the rollout of the Business Builder Google Local is announcing a totally rebuilt local product that offers the best of local and social as well as easy to use self provisioning of sophisticated Couponing, Adwords, Offers and other paid options.
National multi-store brands as well as single storefront businesses will be able to take advantage of this new functionality with the free local and social products as well as the easy to deploy paid products for their locations. Local analytics have been totally revamped as well. With the rollout of the new couponing product Google will be able to offer search to sale tracking analytics in an easy to use reporting format that can grow in sophistication with the business user and use cases.
Fitzpatrick, a dynamic multi skilled developer in the world of Maps, noted “It was a great relief to finally get the merged and updated product out the door. The reason for its long delay was our commitment to make the product bug free the first time and not have to push weekly updates and bug fixes. We think we have met that milestone. The days of lost reviews, lost listings and unfounded closings are behind us.”
“More importantly we will be holding public monthly briefings going forward laying out upcoming developments in our local products. This will allow for businesses, big and small, that depend on our Business Builder products to better plan their SEO and SEM activities in Local.”
Brian Fitzpatrick is a the newly merged head of the Local & Maps division within the web search team. His duties, roughly akin to those of Marissa Mayer who left for Yahoo last July, had previously been filled by a troika of individuals.
© Copyright 2024 - MIKE BLUMENTHAL, ALL RIGHT RESERVED.
Comments
18 Comments
I’ve been writing about Google’s April Fool’s Day jokes all day on Search Engine Land, and was literally just thinking that they could really make us laugh by doing a blog post about how they’re going to provide actual customer service to local/small business owners.
And I come here to learn that you stole their thunder. Well played, Mike!
Published at 12:01 AM on April Fool’s Day…nah, this couldn’t be a gag 🙂
My favorite part was the quote about getting it right the first time 🙂
Is this really an April Fools piece? Say it ain’t so. This was the first time in YEARS that I’d had any hope that Google would finally fix local search. And then I get to the comments section to be reminded of today’s date. Cruel, cruel, cruel joke.
So sad I was reeled in on this one. I was so excited that I read this OUT LOUD to my coworkers. Sigh…
“we will be holding public monthly briefings”
LOL if earlier content didn’t tip readers off, this one should 😉
As someone who maintains a positive attitude through the battledore and shuttlecock of changes that occur in the Local side of Google, I dreamed a dream that although this may not be true today, maybe it will be in a year or so. But so long as the data stream exists as it does today, I don’t see a total disappearance of lost listings and reviews. Thanks for getting my hopes up :p
@DavidMihm — in my defense, it’s the day after Easter; I was still thinking about the promise of redemption (for Google) and a new beginning (for us). 🙂
Was halfway through an overjoyed response when I realized today’s date. Mike Blumenthal: local maven, dream crusher 🙂
Well played, Mike. Well played 🙂
Google has been setting this joke up for such a long time, I almost fell for Mike’s punchline.
Good one Mike. Let’s hope that next year at this time, your joke will become a reality.
You never know what tomorrow will bring.
“make the product bug free the first time and not have to push weekly updates and bug fixes” – LOL
Great post Mike, although I thought the only things possibly missing in it was unicorn sightings.
My understanding was that Brian was also going to be providing his personal cellphone number, as another way to enhance support. I see this a good step moving forward… 😉 Thanks for the scoop Mike
@Andy
Last time I displayed a Googler’s personal/business cell phone number there was hell to pay. So I chose NOT to show Brian’s.
Or could it be an unintentional April Fools joke, based upon prior “improvements”. Ar ar ar. 🙂
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