Google Business Profile is a free listing provided by Google themselves for your business. You do have to claim this page to manage it and be sure that no one else can alter it, but once you have, you really can make it work for you to increase your visibility and attract new clients for your med spa.
There is a lot involved with setting up your profile, so follow along with our Google Business Profile tips for med spas to ensure you make the most of your profile.
What is a Google Business Profile?
You’ll no doubt have seen business directory listings, such as Yelp or YP.com. Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is simply another business directory listing. Though we would argue it’s the most important one. If Google provides you with a free page where you can list everything your potential customers need to know about your med spa, then it’s a good idea to use it to its fullest extent.
There are a lot of benefits to having a fully optimized and completed GBP, including the fact that Google will let you tell them what description to use in their own search listings. If nothing else convinces you to try this and make the most of your profile, it really should be that.
What you’ll see when you visit your GBP is a page where you can add in all your business details, including your NAP (Name, Address, Phone number,) your location, services and products, Q&A, images, opening hours, and so much more.
Once completed, what you want is for customers to see a regularly updated, vibrant, and well-branded page that gives potential clients everything they need to know to book with you.
Benefits of having a Google Business Profile
Your GBP gives you many benefits, including increased visibility in both general and local search. Here are just some benefits you’ll get from using your GBP and fully optimizing it:
1) Increased visibility and better rankings in local search results
We mentioned above that you have to claim your Google Business Profile. We’ll talk you through how to do that below, but as part of claiming your profile, you need to verify who you are. Once you’ve done that, no one else can claim your profile. That gives you complete control over your profile, allowing you to shape it to suit your med spa and to complete it with SEO optimized content that will help you gain visibility in the search engines.
Not only that, but a complete GBP is more likely to help you get featured on the Local Pack at the top of Google Maps. You could be one of only three businesses listed right at the top of the results if you take the time to fill in your profile fully and make it highly attractive to potential customers.
If you do get listed in the Local Pack, then you’ll have all the visibility you could want from such a prime spot, and you’re likely to get far more interest and inquiries from potential clients.
Filling in your GBP also adds to your efforts to be listed in the general search results and can help with building brand awareness too. The more business directory listings your med spa appears in the better it is for your visibility, and you really don’t get much more visible than you can with your GBP.
2) Makes it easier to get more reviews
There is a dedicated space on your Google Business Profile specifically for clients to leave you reviews. You can link to this and promote it to your clients as a good place for them to leave reviews for you. The more reviews you have on your profile, the more trust you’ll build with Google, and the more you’ll rise in the search results.
Having regular reviews also provides excellent social proof for any potential new clients. They’ll be able to see what others think of your services and what results they got, which can encourage them to reach out for a chat or even to book.
It’s also really helpful that Google lets you reply to your reviews right on your profile. You can simply log in and start replying, so it couldn’t be simpler. This is also very important, as customers want to see that you do care about what they think and that you take the time to say, “Thank you.”
3) Free and easy to use
Where else can you get a full, dedicated page given to you by the biggest search engine in the world? Even better, it’s completely free to claim your profile and use it. Where else can you get something that will have such a major impact on your marketing and SEO without spending a single cent?
Seriously, grab this profile with both hands, if you haven’t already, and ensure you optimize it to get the best results from it.
How to set up a Google Business Profile
You’ll first need to claim your profile. To do this, go to Google Maps and search for your business. Then you need to click “Claim This Business/Manage Now.”
Google will then give you several options to verify your business. You can use email, text, phone, or video to do this. The good news is that once this is done and Google has verified you, you’ve automatically built trust with the world’s biggest search engine and your customers.
It may take around seven days for Google to verify you, but they will let you know when they have. You should then be able to go to your Business Profile Manager and begin filling all the sections in.
To find your Business Profile Manager, using Google Chrome, click on the box for Google Apps in the top right-hand corner of any Google tab. You’ll see a drop-down menu and your Business Profile Manager should be a blue icon on the top row. Click on that, and you’ll go straight to your listing.
Optimizing your Google Business Profile to attract more clients
There is quite a bit of work initially to optimize your GBP, but the results are definitely worth it. And once you’ve set it up, it’s then much easier to maintain and update it going forward:
1) Complete your profile
By “complete your profile,” we really do mean complete all of it. It’s vitally important that you don’t miss out on any available sections. If you can put text in it, fill it in. If you don’t do that, your profile won’t be completely optimized and you won’t get the chance to be listed in the Local Pack on Google Maps.
Most importantly, select the right category for your med spa, and then add as many other relevant subcategories (up to ten) as you can. It all helps you to gain visibility and be found.
Next add in everything you can think of that your clients will want to know, including your opening hours. Don’t forget this, because when you are open, people can search for “med spa open now” using voice search, giving you yet another way to be found.
Of course, you must include your NAP (Name, Address, Phone number), add in your location, including your website address and anything else that will be useful for potential clients.
Your NAP must also be accurate and consistent in this listing and in every other listing online. You must even write your phone number and each part of your address in the same way every time. Even including the area code in some listings but not in others can make a difference. What this does is create doubt for Google and your clients, leaving them wondering if you are the same business. Google will ding you with lower rankings and you might have lost that potential client for good. That’s how important this is.
2) Write a compelling and authentic business description
This is the main area of your profile and it’s your main chance to get across who you are as a business and what you can do for your clients.
Don’t forget to add in your main keywords to help with SEO and also to follow your brand voice guidelines here too. It matters that your business sounds the same whether you’re sending an email, answering the telephone, or creating content anywhere on or offline. You want people to get to know you and to learn what you’re about and what your values are. You want to build trust, and a consistent brand voice can help you do that.
Talk about why your med spa is different and show how much you genuinely want to help. Give your audience an insight into what it’s like to visit your med spa and receive treatment. Show off any awards and accolades you have too. This is no time to be shy.
3) Upload photos and videos of your business
Again, this is your opportunity to give potential clients a glimpse of what it’s like to visit your med spa. Show off your treatment rooms and your professional equipment. Give them glimpses of your reception area and waiting area and show your smiling members of staff. You want your profile to look just as welcoming as your med spa does.
Provide a great image of the outside of your building and any signage you have to make it easier for new clients to find you.
Of course, it’s just as important to ensure that you use sharp, quality images and videos on your profile. You want to create the best possible impression that you can.
4) Respond to patient reviews
While it’s important to consistently collect patient reviews, it’s equally important to respond to them, especially the negative ones.
When someone has taken the time to leave a review, it’s important to respond and make them feel heard and understood. Say, “Thank you” for any great reviews and respond to any questions and suggestions.
When it comes to negative reviews, apologize and offer to speak to your patient on a phone call. This takes the exchange off your profile so that you don’t end up arguing in public with an unhappy client. Then try to help as much as you can and see if you can turn that negative review into a positive one.
Again, you’re trying to create a great impression here. You’re trying to give a small example of what it’s like to deal with your med spa and become a patient there.
5) Answer questions from the Questions & Answers section
Your Q&A section is another great place to educate your potential clients and show how much you care.
This is another important section that allows you to answer your most frequently asked questions. This can save you phone calls and emails from prospective clients just looking for information but aren’t ready yet to become legitimate clients because the answers they need are already right there.
If you don’t initially have any questions from people to answer, then look at the most likely questions people could have and answer those to start this section off. You can then add more as questions start to come in.
Again, don’t forget your keywords and brand voice when filling in this section.
6) Post regularly on your Google Profile
There’s room on your profile for posts, just like you have on your blog. You can use this to regularly update your audience on what’s happening at your practice. This also has the advantage of making your practice look lively and busy, and as a place people really benefit from visiting.
You can talk about your latest news, show off new equipment, introduce any new staff, include educational info, create special offers and discounts, and anything else you want to share with your audience.
7) List the services/products your business provides
There’s also a section for you to list your services, and you can also add your products and link your online shop.
This is very helpful for potential clients as they can see at a glance what you offer before they go on to read your more in-depth business description. Google will also use what you list here when looking for local businesses with specific services to answer search queries, so this really is an important section.
In fact, every section on this profile is important, so take your time and do it justice. Your med spa and your client list will thank you.
Attend a Surefire Local Marketing Platform demo
It might sound like a lot of work to get your Google Business Profile up and running and to keep it regularly updated. We’re not going to lie. It certainly can be, especially when you have so many other demands on your time. But Surefire Local can help.
Our all-in-one marketing platform lets you update your Google Business Profile right from our dashboard so you can maintain it in the same place you manage the rest of your online marketing activities…reducing time wasted from signing in and out of other platforms to get everything done.
You can update your profile, add posts, reply to client comments, ask for reviews and reply to them from our software too, and manage all the important aspects of your marketing as well as your GBP.
Use our professional business intelligence marketing software to also manage your email marketing, paid ads, content marketing, social media, images, leads, and so much more, all within our easy-to-use dashboard.
And you can generate a range of reports to give you everything from the finest detail to the widest overview of your marketing.
Why not hand over some of the marketing work to our platform and make life easier?
Book a demo today with our team and see how we can help your med spa.