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Google Posts offer a new way for businesses with brick and mortar locations to be heard online, in real-time. Learn how to leverage Posts, with GPO.
Google Posts offer a new way for businesses with brick and mortar locations to be heard online, in real-time.
Released to all businesses with a Google My Business (GMB) account on June 22, this feature allows local businesses to effortlessly create content to display in their Knowledge Panel in Google.
“Your Google listing is the ideal place to showcase what is unique about your business,” says Google, and Google Posts is “an easy way to help attract new customers and build relationships with the customers you already have.”
With a maximum word count of 300 and a lifespan of seven days or less, Posts are built for instant consumption and to drive action. They can be used to:
Take a look at how a jewelry store (above), therapist (below), and secondhand sporting goods franchise (below) are using Google Posts to drive brand awareness and action.
Barbara Oliver Jewelry uses Google Posts to share stories about her customers (Shane and his girlfriend) and send visitors to product pages and customer reviews. Just Mind uses Posts to explain what they do in relation to a certain social problem (in this case, traumatic events) and drive newsletter sign-ups. Play It Again Sports uses Posts to let customers know about the latest and greatest products. Come and get your skateboards while they last!
This feature is essentially a new way to make social media type posts directly in Google Search and Google Maps. As a business’s organic reach in Facebook continues to decline, Google Posts offers an opportunity to be heard in an equally crowded, but just as trafficked space—all in real-time.
Google hopes that this new content will keep users engaged in the Knowledge Panel and search in general, for longer.
No one is yet sure the extent to which Google Posts will be beneficial for search from a long-term perspective, as it’s not clear where or how Posts that have expired will live (if anywhere at all), and whether they will be indexed, searchable, and discoverable in search.
From a short-term perspective, however, Posts could prove to be a powerful way to increase in-store traffic, especially when it comes to generating an audience for an in-store event or limited-time offer. Posts can also be shared directly from Google across Facebook, Twitter, G+, and email.
Now is the time to start brainstorming how your business can leverage Google Posts. Will you promote limited-time offers? In-store events? New product arrivals? Customer testimonials?
Creating a Post for a single location is incredibly simple. Within your GMB dashboard you can add text, an image, link, and select a CTA button (Learn more, Reserve, Sign Up, or Buy). If your post is designated as an Event, it will live as long as the event timeframe. Or, you can schedule up to ten Posts ahead of time and give each a lifespan of up to seven days.
Currently, Posts can only be displayed for one location and cannot be applied to all locations within an account. Analytics is limited to Post views and actions, is not integrated into Insights, and cannot be viewed in aggregate. Google has indicated that this lack of functionality will soon be addressed.
Connect with your Presence Management team or Client Partner for more information on how to utilize this exciting new feature. Are there business goals that Google Posts could help you achieve? Let’s talk about!
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