For CPAs, estate planners, and other companies in the financial services industry, creating an online presence that makes it easy for potential clients to find you is essential to remaining competitive. This process includes numerous components, including a website, blog, and social media profiles. However, your Google Business profile is perhaps one of the most important resources you have.
What Is Your Google Business Profile?
Also known as GBP, formerly Google By Business, your profile is a listing on Google’s search engines that allows you to tell the search giant that your business can meet the needs of consumers in the local area. Your Google Business Profile is a:
- Free listing tool
- Valuable marketing resource
- Centralized location for your branding
- Support for search engine optimization
- Resource for getting more clients
Here’s how it works. A customer might be looking for an estate planning service in Philadelphia. They go to their search box and type that in. Google displays a pack of three companies closest to the searcher’s physical location that offer the services they are looking for. The profile then displays:
- Right at eye view, making it the easiest location for people to click on to get the services they need
- Your name, services, and Google review rating
- A map with your location showing how close you are to the client
- Information about who you are and what you can do for them
The complicated part of this process is the competition. To attract more visitors to your Google Business Profile, it must be optimized. You need to stand out from all of the other financial service providers within your metro area in order to make it into that slim three-pack of listings. So, how can we increase Google Business profile traffic? Let’s dive into the process to do just that.
How to Create a Google Business Profile for a Financial Services Company
A Google Business Profile for a CPA, financial planner, or other party must be optimized for the reader as well as for the search engines. In the following steps, we’ll help you create a GBP for your financial services business.
After claiming your Google Business Profile, follow these steps to optimize it. Setting it up is free.
1. Create an Optimized Google Business Profile
Optimized is the word of the day here – it is critical that you focus on two areas while creating your GBP. That includes providing a keyword-rich, highly targeted description, but also ensuring it is super engaging and enriching to your customers. Do not just create a description for the search engines.
Be concise, but ensure everything is both accurate and compelling. Focus on the following:
- Ensure your brand’s story or mission is on display. Give people a sense of who your company is.
- Incorporate strategic keywords. Use words that your clients type into the search engine to find services you offer. Do some keyword research to create a very targeted, localized keyword list.
- Ensure your description defines your competitive edge. Remember to consider what your client is looking for in a service: skilled, licensed, professional financial services.
Put some time into this process to attract more visitors to your Google Business Profile. It will allow you to showcase what makes you the best choice.
2. Add Photos That Are Brand Specific
The next step is to add visuals to your profile. Don’t choose generic images for your site. Instead, ensure that all photos are specific to your brand and are clearly representative. For example, a Google Business Profile for a CPA should include the CPA’s photo. You might also include an exterior or interior view of your office so customers can see where it is located.
Photos help to ground your profile, making it locally intriguing and interesting. Here are some strategies to get the best results with photos:
- Showcase what makes your financial service business unique. Are you using advanced technology or have a unique service to offer? Use a photo that represents what you do.
- Be sure all of Google’s photo guidelines for size and clarity are met.
- Post different types of photos. For example, a Google Business Profile for estate planners may include photos of one-on-one meetings with clients, images of your team in a home, and a profile shot of your estate planning team.
By incorporating authentic visuals like this, you can make your financial business seem personal. This encourages interaction with those who see your profile. They are more likely to click through if they recognize that your building is close to home or that you have extensive experience in an area important to them.
3. Post Content to Your Google Business Profile
Think of your Google Business Profile as a mini blog. It’s an area to update frequently with small bits of information that could be helpful to someone searching for your services. By taking these steps, you’ll always give the search engine fresh content to rank. That helps with optimization and ranking.
Google posts allow you to do this very easily. Let’s say you’re working to boost engagement on a Google Business Profile for financial planners. Here are some types of posts that could be beneficial to the searcher:
- Publish services based on time-of-the-year needs. For example, after tax season, you might want to share a short post encouraging clients to reach out to create a tax savings plan for the next year.
- Incorporate posts about the services you offer. If they change, update them.
- Provide updates to education, certifications, and services that are new or updated.
- Offer guidance (that you can do within compliance requirements) for changing financial concerns, such as economic conditions. You might say, “What to do if you’re worried about a stock market crash.” Then, offer insight into when it is beneficial to reach out to a financial planner for help.
4. Detail Your Services
Another valuable way to build your business’s presence on the search engine is to make sure your specific services are included and broken down. That helps provide valuable information and helps drop in important keywords that people are looking for. Let’s say you’re working on building your Google Business Profile for estate planners. Some of the descriptions of services to include might be:
- Wills
- Trusts
- Estate planning tax mitigation
- Living wills
- Life insurance planning
- Probate services
Offer a short, keyword-specific description for each of the services you offer. If a person is searching for an “estate planner that does wills in Atlanta” you want to be sure you have the best access to that party.
5. Respond to Customer Reviews
Customer reviews are a huge component of a successful Google Business Profile. It offers a clear way for you to demonstrate to prospective clients that you know what you are doing. This is where some people get a bit hung up, though, because they worry about getting reviews, getting bad reviews, or not being sure how to manage reviews. Because it’s so valuable, focus on these areas:
- Get reviews: Send your existing clients a link in an email or even a text message that takes them right to your Google Business Profile. Ask them to leave a review so that you can build your presence online.
- Request reviews after services: Send a follow-up email to your customers after they have an appointment with you that asks them to leave a review.
- Reach out to old clients: Are there other people you’ve had particularly good success with? Ask them to share a short review.
- Respond to negative and positive reviews: Leave a short note of thanks for a good review. If you encounter a bad review, that’s okay. Ask that party to contact you, apologize that they feel that way, but simply request them to reach out for more help. Remember to maintain their privacy.
- Respond to reviews that need more information: You might have a customer provide questions in a review. Give them direction.
Monitor your reviews on a consistent basis. Doing so allows you to show the search engine just how committed you are to creating high-quality content that meets their searchers’ needs. The more reviews you get, the more valuable you appear to prospective clients. When people trust you to manage their money, they need to see positive reviews that demonstrate their confidence in you.
Let Surefire Local Help You Navigate the Process
Building a strong presence online starts with creating and optimizing a Google Business Profile. That’s not as complicated or time-consuming when you partner with Surefire Local. Attend a Surefire Local demo now to find out what we can do for you.