How do I Claim My Business on Google: The Ultimate Guide

Online recognition of your business has proven tobe ever important in this pandemic ridden situation. In fact, it forced people into searching for businesses online while working from home. And frankly, this is the perfect situation when you'd want to know - how do I claim my business on Google? It may also leave you thinking –

Let's use some very important statistics to answer this question.

• 88% of all consumers who look for any local business online from a mobile device either call or visit the business in a span of 24 hours. (Nectafy)
• More than 50% of all mobile device users use Google Maps or maps in general to find businesses (Nectafy)
• 46% of all traffic on Google searches for local business (Synup)
• 97% of customers that search online looks for a local business, and 34% searches every day (BrightLocal)
• In June 2018, 72.47% of all desktop device trafficused Google Search. (NetMarketShare)

All these statistics lead to only one fact – an online presence is massively important for gaining huge traffic. The end result is good for you because the traffic can convert into your potential customers.

Since Google owns the largest influx of web traffic across the globe, it's fair to say that claiming your business on Google is a good way to start.

But, first…

Google My Business is a free web tool provided by Google. It helps business owners in two ways

• To manage a local business online
• Focus on the presence of the local business on Google Search and Google Maps

It takes just a few clicks to register your business on Google My Business, and all it needs is a Google account. By registering your business on Google My Business, your company will be visible on the search engine ranked pages whenever someone in your area search for you with relevant terms.

Let's take an example. Suppose you searched for – 'hospitals near me' in Google search. Now, if you're the owner of a hospital whose business is enlisted on Google My Business, then your company will pop up in the search results along with other competitors.

So, enlisting your business in the sea of options should be your first priority. So, with that in mind, let's take a look at how to get a Google My Business listing.

In 4 simple steps, you can create a Google My Business listing. But first, you need to create and personalize your Google My Business Profile and a business listing. Here are the four steps –

1. Creating A Google Account for Your Local Business

Head over to https://google.com/business and create a new account. Or simply log in if you already have an existing account.

Enter your business credentials such as – name of your business, type or category of your business, delivery or service area (if you have any), genuine contact information, business address, a website link, and a phone number.

2. Head Over to Google Maps

Go to https://google.com and type your business name and city into the search bar. Go over to the tab for Google Maps and add your business.

You'll find the name of your business listed hereif you've already listed your business on Google. If that's done, head over to the next step and claim your business.

3. Pin-point Your Business on Google Maps

If your business hasn't popped up in the previous step, then add it. Click on the hamburger menu or the three bars to the left of the search bar.

Scroll down and select 'Add A Missing Place.' Fill up with the necessary information along with the physical location and your contact information.

However, if you don't have a brick and mortar or a physical store, you can add your home address or any address from where you operate.

4. Get Your Confirmation

Submitting the missing information should add your entity on Google My Business and pin-point location on Google Maps if you search by its name.

Within 24 hours, Google will confirm the new place via an email.

After the confirmation, you can search for your address on Google search and Google Maps for a test.

This bit should be fairly easy if you have a Google account and your company appears in the Google My Business listings. Claiming a business on Google gives you more access as it gives you a full control over the information. Let us know how you can claim your business in just 3 simple steps

1. Locate Your Business on Google Maps

Head over to Google Maps. Search Google Maps on the search bar, and it will take you there. Search your business from the search bar on the top left corner of the screen. You can also use the link in the confirmation email to head there directly.

2. Click on 'Claim Your Business'

Go to the menu option to the left of the map. It should be a hamburger icon beside the search bar on the top left corner.

Open the menu, drop down to find 'Claim My Business' and click on it. Fill out the necessary information. Don't worry; you'll have the power to change it later on if there's any mistake.

3. Complete and Verify Your Claim

If you've entered new information in the listing, then you'll be able to claim your business automatically as your own. But, just in case if anyone else had already claimed a business by the same name and information in the listing, then you need to confirm that you are the real owner.

In that case, you can head over to the next step and follow the steps that should help you claim the legit ownership of your business on Google.

It only takes a few minutes to verify your business on Google. There are few ways in which you can verify your ownership of a business.

Look for a verification button in your business dashboard. You'll also get a notification almost instantly if you've set up your business using the Google Search Console.

Besides, Google can send you a verification code on the owner's phone number to verify the contact number. You can choose to receive a PIN code via a phone call or sent it to you via a text message. So, there's no reason to worry if your business uses a landline.

Another way you can receive the code is via email. And if everything goes sideways, Google can send a postcard to your business address. But you can guess that a text, phone call, or verification via email are the easiest options.

Claiming, confirming, and verifying your business on Google is just the tip of the iceberg of benefits you're going to get by claiming your business on Google. You can start getting real leverage over other business to secure more leads if you work on two things –

Firstly, work on gathering genuine reviews. Positive feedback really helps to create a strong impression. And the morepositive feedback you can, the better it gets.

Secondly, respond to the reviews given by your valued customers or associates. This interaction may seem unnecessary or a waste of time for you. But it ultimately helps Google understand that the engagement between the customers and the business is highly important.

• How do i claim my business listing on Google?

Claiming a business on Google takes only a few steps. But first, you must check whether your business had already been claimed or not. Simply search the name of can city of your business to see if it exists on Google. In case if it exists, you should see a knowledge section on the right side of the search results page.

If your business is still unclaimed, you will see two options at the bottom of the knowledge section, namely – 'Suggest an edit' and 'Own this Business?' If you only see the first option, it indicates that your business has already been claimed.

• What does it mean to claim a business on Google?

Claiming a business on Google means you have full ownership of that business, according to Google. You'll be visible to a customer searching if he/she searches with a relevant term. Also, you'll receive a fair share of organic traffic for your business.

• How do i list my business on Google for free?

Listing your business on Google My Business (GMB) is completely free. All you need is a Google account, and you're all set. Follow these steps to list your business on Google –

• Visit https://google.com/business and fill in the form with relevant information about yourself and your business.
• Head over to Google Maps and check for your business in the search bar. Write the name followed by the name of the city.
• Add relevant information about your business.
• Complete and receive confirmation.

• Is Google my business free?

Yes, Google My Business (GMB) is a completely free web tool provided by Google to help you establish and manage your business on Google. It is, in fact, the most powerful marketing tool to get organic traffic from Google.

• How do i access my Google business account?

Access your Google account by searching it on Google. Type in the exact name and the city to find your business.

Besides, you can also search for 'my business' on Google to get your business information. Also, you can update your Business Profile from View Profile in the menu above the search results.

• Is Google my business worth it?

A survey from 2019 shows that almost 50% of the web traffic comes from Google and is growing by the day. So, an identity of your business on Google opens up an opportunity of the influx of organic traffic, which is only good for your business.

• Do i need to Google my business?

Of course, Google My Business is important for your business. It brings in organic traffic for your business from Google search and generates leads for your business without any cost. So, it's a win-win situation for everyone who has a GMB account.

• Do i need a Gmail account for Google my business?

A Google account sets the platform for all the services offered by Google, including Google My Business. Creating a Google account once helps you to fill all the redundant information in all the other places if it's needed. So, not only does it allow you to use Google's services, but it also allows you to enable the services with the least amount of hassle quickly.

• What is the difference between a personal and a business Gmail account?

The only difference between a personal and a business email is that one is free, and the other is paid. Business Gmail comes under the name GSuite where the user can use an email by their own domain, such as – johndoe@johnify.com, and it also has additional features designed for community users.

• How do i recover my Google business account?

First and the easiest way to recover your GMB account is to contact GMB support via Twitter, Facebook, Google Support, or have Google Contact you.

Besides, if you fail to provide the information for the account recovery, you'll have to create a new account and request ownership again.

In a tech-savvy world, the competition to be on top of a relevant Google search is as important as finding a gold mine. It lands you the ideal customer for your business and not only one but thousands! And all that could be free if you just register your business on Google My Business.

It's important to know what strategies can keep you on top of the game, and knowing how to claim a business on Google is just the thing you need.