Directory Submissions

Google Places formerly known as Google Maps and Google Local is the small map like area just below the Pay Per Click (PPC) top 3 or a few down into the Search Engine Optimization (SEO). It is also perhaps the single biggest opportunity for service businesses or unique destinations. This is a product that Google provides free of charge and it is free to use, although they have recently begun offering $25 upgrades to the product.

At the same time, this service is one that Google exercises the most control over, by far, of the many products they offer and it is the most rapidly changing to keep up with. Not that it is a bad thing, we believe that they are doing this primarily to honor their mission of delivering relevant content to the user. Unfortunately, many people are getting caught in the in the middle of some competing and rapidly changing policies.

Google Places and Google Local are most beneficial for localized businesses that provide a service or some type of unique product. Otherwise they simply serve as a directory listing. Having your name listed in directories is very important so that people who are looking for you specifically can find you, they do little to bring you new sales. Because Google Places is tied to a specific location it focuses on specific information and it gathers that information for multiple sources, many of which you may not even know about or control.

Google Places ties every listing to a physical address. If you try to list yourself multiple times and don’t have multiple addresses Google will catch you. Even if you do have multiple legitimate addresses Google still often penalizes you because few people actually manage, input and validate those addresses correctly.

If you own a restaurant or a retail store that sells similar products to a number of other competitors your customers are probably not using the Google Places listings. People who use Google Places listings are generally looking for some specific sort of service or product in a very specific area. Auto repair, furnace repair or perhaps a store that carries a specific item nearby. The issue with products is that unlike keyword advertising you can only have 1 listing in Google Places. So you can be the hamburger guy or the television guy but it is much harder to draw any new clients from a general listing such as restaurants or electronics. Even as I am writing this I get confused about what works and what does not.

The bottom line is that there are some best practices and absolute “dont’s” and knowing how to implement the product correctly can significantly impact the result.

*Google Places is a registered trademark of Google, Inc.