{"id":2884,"date":"2015-01-30T11:14:15","date_gmt":"2015-01-30T11:14:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pmpazure.co.uk\/blog\/?p=2884"},"modified":"2016-09-07T10:45:06","modified_gmt":"2016-09-07T10:45:06","slug":"get-on-page-1-of-google-with-google-my-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.promotemyplace.com\/blog\/get-on-page-1-of-google-with-google-my-business","title":{"rendered":"Get on page 1 of Google with \u2018Google My Business\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since publishing this post Google have changed, or at least strengthened, their view on holiday rental\u00a0listings appearing on Google My Business. It now clearly states in their terms that holiday rentals are ineligible to be listed.\u00a0Sales or leasing offices, however, are eligible for verification. So if your sales office is in the same town or village as your property, or you’re running a B&B or guest house (sales office on site) this is still a great option.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Is your holiday accommodation\u00a0listed on \u2018Google My Business\u2019?<\/p>\n

If the answer\u2019s yes then great.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no need to continue reading you\u2019re already benefiting from local SEO.<\/p>\n

If not then it\u2019s time to listen up.<\/p>\n

You could be missing out on the increased exposure that a page 1 position in Google will give you.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s just one small caveat. If you\u2019re not comfortable about displaying the address of your accommodation online, then I\u2019m afraid this isn\u2019t an option for you.<\/p>\n

This is because the purpose of \u2018Google My Business\u2019 is to display local<\/em> business listings when people search using location based keywords. Therefore an address is a pre-requisite.<\/p>\n

But if you are<\/em> prepared to show the address of your property, read on to find out how you can benefit.<\/p>\n

First up, what exactly is Google My Business?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Google created Google My Business (formerly Google Places) to make their search results more location relevant.<\/p>\n

This gives local businesses a better chance of appearing on page 1 of Google for location-based searches.<\/p>\n

When you join, your holiday rental business is automatically given a local listing on Google Maps.<\/p>\n

Which means that when a website visitor carries out a local search i.e. they include a location within the search, those businesses registered with \u2018Google My Business\u2019 will usually be displayed near the top of the page.<\/p>\n

Most of the other non-local results or those not registered with \u2018Google My Business\u2019, will be displayed beneath.<\/p>\n

How your<\/em> holiday let business can benefit from \u2018Google My Business\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s give an example here to make it crystal clear.<\/p>\n

Imagine you\u2019re looking for a place to stay in Salcombe. You might enter \u201choliday cottage salcombe\u201d in the search bar:<\/p>\n

\"Search<\/a><\/p>\n

In this example, appearing on page one of Google under the first three paid-for listings are the local listings. The Google My Business listings.<\/p>\n

\"Search<\/a><\/p>\n

Where the local listings appear on page one does depend on the competition, but getting your listing anywhere on the first page is going to give your holiday let increased exposure.<\/p>\n

The number of local listings that appear on page one, depends on the search term used. In this example, just three local listings are displayed.<\/p>\n

But that\u2019s 3 more chances<\/strong> of your holiday let being among them. To appear on Page 1 of Google.<\/p>\n

Another search may display more<\/em> local listing results.<\/p>\n

Either way, that\u2019s a pretty big incentive to list your holiday accommodation on \u2018Google My Business\u2019.<\/p>\n

But not only that, a listing automatically gives you a Google+ Business page. Here you can add photos, videos, encourage reviews, share updates and more … all of which will help increase your visibility in search results.<\/p>\n

And one last thing – it\u2019s completely free!<\/p>\n

How to set up your Google My Business listing<\/strong><\/p>\n

To get started, sign up to Google My Business<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Search<\/a><\/p>\n

Click \u2018Get on Google\u2019 and then enter your business name in the field provided \u2013 this will take you through to the next step.<\/p>\n

Assuming your holiday let doesn\u2019t already appear, there\u2019ll be an option to add your business.<\/p>\n

Enter all the details, and as you do so the location map will adjust to represent the location of your holiday let.<\/p>\n

\"Search<\/a><\/p>\n

Complete all the relevant fields, paying particular attention to the category field. This field lets Google know whether to display your business in the search results.<\/p>\n

Here are some possible category options:<\/p>\n