At the bottom of some Google search result listings you may have recently noticed a little “+” symbol wrapped in a square next to another link. This is the new Google Plus Box and if you click it an expandable map will appear with the business name, address, and additional info.
The first thing many will ask is “how do I get that for my business?”. The great thing is that this catchy little doo-dad feature is free and easy to get! Just go to Google’s Local Business Center and sign up.
So what can you get included in this Plus Box? More than you would think.
- Business Name
- Address
- Phone
- Fax
- Web Address
- Description
- Payment Types
- Hours
Wow, that’s a lot of stuff you can include, and all for nothing? What’s the catch? Well there does not really seem to be a catch but if you want people to click through to your web site I wonder how much info you want to display. Will this keep people from clicking through to your site? It might be a good idea to check up on your stats once you are listed to see if traffic from Google goes up or down. If you don’t have a web site it’s a no-brainer and a great way to get found free and easy.
Matt Cutts has a great rundown on the Plus Box and how to sign up. Phoenix (Benjamin Pfeiffer) at Search Engine Roundtable gives it a nice mention too.
1 response so far ↓
Paul Jahn // Dec 12, 2006 at 8:19 pm
Ah, this is dear to me
I’m for including all the biz profile information you can. It’s great for consumers to click to your site, but many people need an emergency dentist, auto repair shop, chiropractor, etc… want to see an address, phone number, good user review… might as well get them on the horn.
I recently hounded an old orthodontist client to sign up for the G local biz center, but they never did. They’re in the Maps results now for others reasons and do have the map icon in the organic results. Pretty slick.
Thanks for the post, Chris!
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