Understanding Google My Business & Local Search
Google Adds “Are you the Business Owner?” Link to the Brand Knowledge Panel
Googler Jade W posted in the Google for Business forums that they have now added a link to the branded Knowledge panel result for local businesses that allows business owners to claim their listing directly from the main search result page. The link only shows on a direct branded search not on a category search. Here is here post:
Managing your business’s presence on Google is now easier and more accessible. Now, when you search for your business on Google, under right-hand-side panel, there’s a link that says Are you the business owner? Clicking on this will direct you to become the verified owner of this business on Google Places for Business, or to manage the page for your business if you’ve already done so.
It’s easier than ever for business owner to begin the verification process, right from searching for your business on Google.
At some level it is a very small change. It does however point out two things. 1) Google is ready to accept new listing claims into the recently updated Places for Business Dashboard and 2)that Google has the power to ramp up SMB engagement at any moment by adding a link to their home page.
Google’s home page gets significantly more traffic than Maps or Places or G+ local ever has or will. The fact that Google has added this link to the front page should send a clear signal to the market that Google can easily increase the numbers of SMBS claiming their business listing and engaging with Google’s free and paid products. Are they finally starting to do just that?
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Comments
16 Comments
getting better… day by day
Mike,
I may have this wrong, but if you have already claimed a business Place Page and Google+ page, the “Are you the business owner” would not show? I have clients that have already been claimed and “Are you the business owner” shows and allows you to go through the verification process again.
@Andy
It is getting better. Hopefully once this transition is complete we can see not just stability, service and a functioning product but regular updates…
@Cheryl
It will show even if the listing is claimed.However with the new dashboard it won’t allow the listing to be claimed again. It will flash a warning and require that you call Google.
It will show even if the listing is claimed.However with the new dashboard it won’t allow the listing to be claimed again. It will flash a warning and require that you call Google.
Ok, that makes sense, now to explain that to clients!
Great sign as far as the confidence G must have in the updated dashboard for SMBs. Its been pretty clunky so far so perhaps they are ready to re-engage business owners with advertising and G+.
Very tiny signal IMHO, but as a test and a message to all smb operators of all businesses and all competitors out there trying to hit on smb’s for advertising dollars a signal none the less.
A signal for sure…. small, big? not yet sure. Would love to see the increase that such a small link increases sign ups.
per mike….” Would love to see the increase that such a small link increases sign ups.
what do you think the odds are that google will report, and verify the volume of contacts that they get from this message??
90%?
75%?
Slim?
…or a big ZERO. 😉 but as you suggest they are getting the word out on a more direct basis. We’ll see how much more they do over time.
@Dave
Me loving and the world doing are not always going to be in sync….
Mike:
I’m simply making observations on this. Google will internally take responses from that message.
How many or not is actually not my business. Moreover, since I have zero experiences in fielding responses from something like this…a teeny tiny message low down on the page..but with up to billions of views in total let alone who knows how many from the smb’s themselves…I’m in the dark about expectations.
But they do have experiences of this ilk. In any case I think you made the correct call suggesting that google is ready, willing and able to claim a lot more listings…and they can ramp up the engines and visibility to take them on like no other entity out there.
This little option is very helpful. It became pretty messy when Google rolled their Google Places into Google+ Local Profiles. I personally had to basically rebuild local listings for a few of my clients because it wasn’t a smooth transition. However having this link right there on the Google SERP allows business owners to easily navigate their way to updating their local profile.
Google is definitely on the right track. Yahoo and Bing however… may god have mercy on my local listing. Yahoo has 0 support and takes ages to approve listings / delete duplicates. Bing is a cluster.. youknowwhat… when it comes to listing management. They managed to delete our listings completely after requesting for duplicate deletion.
Hi
Apologies that this is off topic, (I couldn’t locate a topic addressing this question)
Would anyone happen to know if having your local business listing appear in the local/places listings automatically removes your organic listing from the search results if it also happens (happened) to be a first page listing?
I can understand the logic of Google doing it to avoid duplicate listings on the first page of results, but trying to find info on this anywhere is proving difficult. Thanks
I manage some sites for businesses, but its didn’t work.
I have setup the Google Places page for local business, but this is still not showing on the google search even if I search for exact company name.
Think I’ve managed to answer my own question (via *extensive* searching) in case anyone else stumbles on here with the same question.
No, you cannot rank for both Google Local AND first page organic.
It’s one or the other.
PS. Mike, I’m fascinated to know how your system recognised me as a past visitor, given that I’ve moved address, use a different email address, have a different ISP and a new computer since I last visited/commented!
All the changes to G local have been more than a little maddening recently.
For me, the fact that they are doing very little in the way of usability testing is underscored by the fact that even when I am logged in as the owner it asks me if I am the business owner.
I have to agree with Gene above though. Yahoo and Bing are far worse. I’ve gotten at least 2 emails from Bing reminding me to log into their tools and verify my site. The site was verified months ago and it says so when logged in.
Yahoo has now created a “marketing dashboard” to manage local listings, and have been emailing me every week to remind me to go in there.
I actually got an email from them yesterday that threatened that my yahoo account would be disabled if I didn’t log in by July 15th.
One can’t help but wonder if they wouldn’t resort to begging for paid “Local Enhanced Listings” if only their search results sucked less.
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