How to use the posts feature on your Google My Business Page

Google Posts are completely FREE, and, they are really easy to manage on Google My Business. 

Google posts allow you to publish a variety of messages to your GMB page, which means they are on your listing when you appear in search results and in Google Maps

Posts appear as a small snippet, which customers can click on to read in full. You can use posts to keep customers informed about daily specials, upcoming events, new products, or anything else that can help your business.

Posts can include text, photos and a call to action. These calls to action can be used to get customers buy something, promote a link or a special offer, to make a booking or even to sign up to a newsletter.

 Posts are mostly used to share information about:

• Products.
• Special offers.
• Events.
• Announcements.

The main purpose of posts is to help your customers connect to your local business in their area. If someone searches for your business directly, the Post will be displayed just below your contact and location information on your Google My Business Listing. 

Posts typically remain visible for 7 days, or you can choose to take them down earlier, and you can have up to ten posts running at the same time. Event posts are different in that they will stay up until the date of the event.

Top 5 strategies to use when putting together a Google Post: 

1. Attention Grabbing Images

As with any marketing your choice if image is so important when grabbing someone’s attention, and captivating, high-quality photos are a must.

The best size to use is 750px x 750px, either in a JPG or PNG format. 

As it is a square, make sure the focus of the image you want to use is in the centre to prevent anything from getting cut off.  

2. Actionable Headlines

As I have written about it in other blogs, headlines are one of the most important thing to get right in any piece of marketing.

The headline is what entices someone to read further and without a killer headline, your prospect will read no further. You could have the most brilliant offer or product but unless someone reads your post they will never know. 

For Google Posts, the headline is the most important thing. It’s human nature on the internet that people quickly scan for the information they need.

All the headlines and titles on the page are competing for your customer’s attention. That being said, yours needs to put across:

• What you are offering
• Why people should be interested

You are limited with the number of characters you can use, so your headlines must be short and snappy.

For example, let’s say you are a beautician, and you want to promote an offer for Mondays, your quiet day of the week. You could use the headline: “20% off all treatments on Mondays !”

Depending on the product or service, coming up with killer headlines isn’t always easy! A good idea is to brainstorm 10 ideas and one will jump out at you as the best

3. Succinct and Informative Descriptions

This is also a tricky one! You are limited to about 80 characters for your visible description (including the headline). This is what people see before they click on the post.

So, your writing needs to be concise and contain your key words.

Full descriptions are best to be about 150-300 characters. Just don’t forget that your key information needs to be in the first 80.

4. Clear Call-to-Action

Your call to action is exactly what it says on the tin! Something to make your potential customer do what you want them to do!

In term of Google Posts, in which you are very limited in the number of words you can use the most important thing is to keep your call to action short and sweet.

• “Learn More”
• “Order Now”
• “Download Your Copy”

5. Be Consistent

Google Posts generally only stay up for a week, and Google will send you a notification just before it expires.

To take advantage of Google Posts, you need to have fresh content posted regularly and consistently. Put together a plan for the type of content you will publish, and how often.

For promoting events, Google Posts are great and event posts don’t conform to the 7-day rule. Google will only take it down after the date of the event.

If you do using Google Posts to promote your products or services, then plan to make sure there is always something displayed.

Whilst these five points are all important, above all you need to remember to be including your key words in your Posts to really boost your ability to be found. 

Want Some More Ideas?

To discover the best marketing foundation blocks you can use to grow your business. Call Us