I am quite often asked by clients ‘Do I need to put my address on Google My Business?’ The simple answer would be no you do not have to, but I advise it. Let me explain why…
Google themselves state Local results favour the most relevant results for each search. Businesses with complete and accurate information are easier to match with the right searches.
Important: Make sure you keep your information up to date as your business changes.
Make sure that you’ve entered complete business information in Google My Business, so users know what you do, where you are and when they can visit. Provide information like, but not limited to, your:
Physical address
Phone number
Category
Attributes
With the majority of searches on Google having ‘local intent’ having your business listed on Google Maps is a key to success. You can of course add service areas to your listing but without a registered address you will not get a pin drop on Google Maps. Or, in other words, you cannot set up a Google My Business page if you are an online-only or virtual business with no premises. You will need to use an address when setting up and verifying your account, however, you can choose not to display this publicly.
If you work in other people’s homes, say for example if you are a plumber, you may not think that it would be necessary to add your address as it may well be your home address however, let me show you how adding an address to one of my clients listings dramatically increased her search results…
Case study – Flowers by Helen Elizabeth
Helen is a florist, she specialises in wedding & event flowers and therefore generally meets her clients at their chosen venue. She was working from a family members home but moved into commercial premises due to volume of workload. I added a physical address to her listing and the results speak for themselves.
Let’s look at this in the context of the whole quarter!
Summary
So, in summary. You do not have to add an address to Google My Business in the long term, but you will need one for the initial set up and verification process. If you do choose to hide your address, be sure to double-check that the locations listed as your service areas (the section below on the main ‘info’ screen) are correct and add any others you serve that are not there.
I would however always encourage you to add an address to your listing for your business. Use a local telephone number on your listing (you can always buy a local number and redirect it to your mobile as I do) and ensure that your listing is kept up to date with business news and events.
Marketing packages which include google my business management are available click here to find out more.
To find out more about how Google determines local ranking click here
Thanks to Flowers by Helen Elizabeth for letting me use her Google My Business search results to demonstrate. Have a free backlink!