5 Steps to Improve Your Google and Apple Maps Presence
When searching for businesses, consumers use mapping products 44% of the time.* And on average, 41% of those place visits result in an on-site visit - and listings with photos were twice as likely to generate interest. Those numbers are from a Google study conducted in 2014 - we can only imagine what that percentage is now.
We also know that in 2021, 81% of consumers used Google to evaluate local businesses, compared to just 63% in 2022.** While those searches may not have happened directly in the Google Maps app - have you noticed just how often map results are the first thing to show up in a Google browser search? There's even a "Find Places Through Photos" result below the map listings.
So, this begs the question…
When was the last time you looked at the photos for your store on Google Maps? More importantly, how current are the photos that are there?
We'll pause here while you check your listing. And check Apple Maps while you are at it - they started rolling out reviews and photo uploads in late 2021 in the US.
How does your store look?
If things are looking good - that's great news! Keep encouraging your shoppers to leave good reviews and uploading photos.
Not looking so hot? Don't sweat it. Here are some quick steps you can take to freshen up that first digital impression for potential shoppers.
If you haven't already, claim your Business Profile:
Click for help articles on how to get started with Google and Apple.
Store Photos
Take a few nice photos of key parts of your store that will help shoppers understand your store:
- Your entire street-view storefront
- A view from just inside the front door, looking into the store
- Your check-out area - feel free to include your smiling staff!
- A handful of key areas within the store, to give an idea of the merchandise assortment
Go to your listing, and add the photos
Over time, be sure to add new photos as your product assortment changes
Watch as the photo views rack up. In Google, you'll be able to see views on each photo over time - and the results just might astound you.
The best part of adding photos to mapping apps? It costs you exactly $0.
For only a few minutes of your time, you show up better in search, give new and potential shoppers a level of comfort that they are in the right place for what they are seeking, and the photos are evergreen. Unlike a social post or an email that will fade quickly from memory, these photos are easily discovered again and again by people outside your normal sphere of influence.
What's not to love about that?
*https://www.google.com/intl/en/streetview/
**https://www.brightlocal.com/research/local-consumer-review-survey/
