Many parts of the country are still seeing very slow business growth, and some places seem to be slipping back into the same depressed business conditions as 2008-9. This has led many companies to search for more efficient methods for finding new customers. The old ways of yellow books and newspaper ads just don’t pay off today. On-line resources like Craig’s List, Google, and local advertisers seem to be how most people find service providers today.
The transition from print advertising to on-line is accelerating for most businesses. One of the first questions we hear on this topic from our Numbers Cruncher and Flat Rate Price Book users is, “How do I get started in Internet Advertising?” For most businesses that are just starting the move to the web, the answer is Google. Since the vast majority of searches for services are done through Google, that’s still the place to be for companies transitioning from traditional print media advertising.
In July we had a post highlighting the Google Tags program that provides a low cost way to make your company stand out on the Google Local results page. Tags are based on the free Local listing that Google allows you to set up. For service businesses both of these offerings are an easy and inexpensive way to get noticed on line.
Google has added a new feature to their local maps service that will benefit any business that services a local area. Google Service Areas will allow you to define the geographic region your business covers. If you run a Plumbing, Electrical, or HVAC service shop, this can be significantly more meaningful to your target customers than a business address. And, this can result in higher response rates to your free and paid entries in the Google search world.
If you list your company on Google with a service area, the map of your listing can show your service area with a click of your customer’s mouse. Setting up your service area in the Google Local Dashboard is easy. You can enter it by zip code, city, or by distance from your business address. And, if you do not have a retail space that your customers need to see, you can hide you business address in your listing. This allows your service area to speak for itself. Your customers will only know your defined service area, and will not select a competitor who may be physically closer.
Here’s a very short video showing the highlights of this free service from Google.