If we’re already taking care of your Internet marketing needs, you don’t have to worry about any of this. However if you wish to tackle it yourself or just understand more about it, below you will find information about correctly configuring your business’s Local Google+ Page.
Create a Local Google+ Page:
If you have an existing Google Places for Business business listing, formerly referred to as a Google Maps listing and also Google Places listing, a Google+ Local listing should already exist for you. You need to go to this page and “claim” the business and get it verified; you then have a Local Google+ Page.
New business listings:
If you are just getting your business listed, you can skip the Google Places for Business step and create your Local Google+ Page using these steps:
http://support.google.com/plus/answer/1713911
Verify your Local Google+ Page:
To get verified, follow these steps:
https://support.google.com/plus/answer/2609871
Link your Website with your Local Google+ Page:
Your website should be linked with your Local Google+ Page, and your Local Google+ Page should be linked with your website. Don’t take my word for it though, Google “strongly recommends” this. It also makes the site eligible for Google+ Direct Connect.
To link from your site to your Local Google+ Page you will to add either some code to your website, at least the home page, or better yet in the footer or a section that exists on every page, but what I prefer to do is add a Google+ Badge.
To add the code you add:
Find us on Google+
Or to add a Google+ Badge to your site, pick one out and get the code here:
https://developers.google.com/+/web/badge/
To link your Local Google+ Page to your website:
Log in to your Google+ Page, go to About | Links | and enter your website’s URL. Once entered click the Test Website button.
Use the Google Webmaster Tools Structured Data Testing Tool:
This tool has multiple uses. For now, use it to be website is properly linking to the Google+ page. Type in the URL and click Preview. On the results page, scroll down to the Publisher box and be sure it reads Verified.
The Structured Data Testing Tool is located here:
www.google.com/webmasters/tools/richsnippets
All of these services could be renamed soon, but as of March 2013, the above should be fairly accurate.
- Google “Pure Spam” Penalty Deindexes Sites March 6 2024 - March 12, 2024
- What Happened to ChicagoNow.com? - August 30, 2022
- The December 2021 Google Local Pack Algorithm Update - December 17, 2021
