According to Google, businesses with complete online listings are twice as likely to be considered reputable by customers.
Moreover, Consumers are 38 percent more likely to visit and 29 percent more likely to consider purchasing from businesses with complete listings.
Unfortunately, not nearly enough business owners are taking advantage of this relatively easy boost in credibility. Only 37 percent of businesses have claimed a local business listing on a search engine.
Google launched an initiative in 2011, called Get Your Business Online, to help businesses capitalize on these missed opportunities. That’s a lot of missed opportunities for small businesses.
In that time, Google has gone to every US state conducting workshops to teach thousands of business owners how to create free websites, as well as update their Google Search and Maps listings.
However, there is still more work to be done, Google says, so today the company has introduced a new initiative called Let’s Put Our Cities on the Map. This new program is designed to help 30,000 cities get their local businesses online.
Google explains how every program will be unique to the city it’s being held in:
“… this tailor-made program provides each city with a custom website where local businesses can find helpful resources, including a new diagnostic tool that shows businesses how they appear on Search and Maps, a step-by-step guide for getting online with Google My Business, and a free website and domain name for one year with our partner, Startlogic.”
In addition, Google will provide free training to local organizations, like chambers and business development centers, so they can provide workshops like the ones offered by the Get Your Business Online program.
To see how you and your business can get involved in this new initiative, visit www.gybo.com and navigate to your city’s website by entering your zip code.
