By now, you may have heard of Google My Business, the online profile platform that’s changing the way that business owners connect with their customers online. Google My Business ensures that customers can get the most up-to-date information about the businesses they want to know about. It also provides a way for businesses to communicate with their customers regarding reviews, products, and what’s going on. Business owners everywhere are discovering the benefits of Google My Business for auto dealers, shop owners, restaurants, medical offices, and more.

A Brief Review of Google My Business

For those who are new to the platform, Google My Business allows companies to take ownership of and modify the information that appears when a customer comes across that business in Google Search or on Google Maps. It’s a common occurrence for data such as location or office hours to be old or inaccurate; making sure this information is up to date is essential for customers to find and contact you. 

Google My Business also gives businesses the opportunity to reach out and connect with customers by publishing posts and photos as well as responding to reviews. Customers like feeling as though they’re being heard, and the platform helps establish direct contact with them.

Google My Business for Auto Dealers 

While Google My Business is helpful for many different types of businesses, it’s particularly useful for auto dealers. Why? A 2016 study by Autotrader showed that customers shopping for new cars spend 59 percent of their time researching vehicles online. While they’re researching online, their top activities include researching car prices, finding actual cars for sale, and locating an auto dealership.

Google My Business for auto dealers enables dealerships to inject themselves in the process, ensuring that customers have accurate information and steering them in the right direction. They can do this through optimizing their Google My Business menu, going behind the scenes to analyze customer search data, and making a web search more visually appealing with photos.

Optimize Your Online Presence

From general online research to car-buying apps, today’s customers show up at a dealership far more educated on various vehicle options than in years past. The Google My Business menu is a primary source of information for people doing car and dealership research via web searches. Once they’ve verified that there is a Nissan dealership ten minutes away and that the business hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., the next thing a potential customer will likely look for is what cars that dealership has for sale. 

Rather than making a customer go to your dealership’s website and navigate through the menus to find your inventory, you can add a menu URL to your Google My Business dashboard to direct customers directly to the vehicles you have in stock. When they find what they’re looking for more easily, you increase the likelihood of them picking up the phone or driving to see you.

Another great use for the platform? Car dealerships can use Google My Business to determine what search terms brought a customer to their listing in the first place. Whether you’re getting lots of traffic from people searching “affordable trucks Chicago” or “reliable car Houston,” you can use this data to optimize the content on your website.

Bring Customers Closer Through Photos

Many auto dealership owners know they can boost customer engagement by using photo apps to connect with the public. Taking full advantage of Google My Business for auto dealers means utilizing their photo feature to give the public a glimpse into your dealership before they even set foot through the door. This includes getting customers excited by showing off photos of new automobile models as well as giving them a behind-the-scenes glimpse of your team hard at work. 

It’s been proven that social media has a huge impact on brand loyalty, and photos on the Google My Business platform are an excellent way to connect in a visual manner. Just keep in mind that if your photos all look too professional and polished, it may be harder for viewers to feel connected with your team. Take dazzling product photos, but remember to have a bit of fun, too. 

More and more businesses are realizing that an online presence is a must these days. The next step beyond establishing a website and social media accounts is utilizing Google My Business for auto dealers — and for any businesses — to take full advantage of all traffic from every online customer.