Case Study: How One Jewellery Wholesaler Achieved a Brilliant 120% Increase In Google My Business Views In Five Months

One of our clients is a relatively new custom jewellery wholesaler with a family tradition of over 70 years behind it. They were referred to 10|20 Marketing by another one of our clients – they wanted help with organizing and optimizing their existing Google My Business listing and getting on other online directories. Though the reputation of the owners was well known in the community, the new business name and location were not.

The following is a Local Listing Case Study about a jewellery business that shows how adding posts and online reviews to your Google My Business listing can have a significant impact on the number of times Google presents your listing in search results. With more views comes more website visits and other purchase intent-based actions.  

BACKGROUND

Maison Goldberg Bijouterie has worked with 10|20 Marketing since November 2018. When we first met, the client explained that their website was changing, notably with the addition of an e-commerce platform. Also, they were starting to establish a following on Instagram and Facebook, but relying solely on organic growth.

After meeting with us, the client decided to move forward with three of our services:

SERVICES DESCRIPTIONS

Our local listings management offer helps clients own, organize and optimize their listing on Google My Business and the web’s other most relevant directories, such as Facebook, Yelp, Bing, Foursquare and Apple Maps. We make sure that all the information in these listings is consistent from one directory to the next by monitoring them for changes from directory users. The more consistency you build across the web, the more Google rewards your business with views of your listing.

Review marketing helps clients monitor their online reviews and respond to them from a single platform. Also, our clients can send email or SMS invitations to their clients, asking them for Google reviews. The best reviews can then act as marketing content, sent automatically from our platform to the client’s Facebook or Twitter account as a post or tweet. Google appreciates these authentic reviews and will again reward businesses with more views as new reviews come in. Gaining new positive reviews also helps businesses solidify their credibility with people searching for what they offer.

To understand Google My Business posts, you’ll have to think of a Google My Business listing as a social media channel. As part of your listing, you’re able to add business updates or product descriptions with photos and links. Google My Business posts are powerful because they allow you to add more written content to your listing. The more content, the more terms you feed into Google to index for your listing. For Maison Goldberg Bijouterie, we post content at least twice a week.

RESULTS

Maison Goldberg Bijouterie’s goal is to build awareness of their business, establish credibility and build online sales. After accessing data from the Google My Business platform, we have a year’s worth of data from before the client started working with us and five months of data since being placed on our Local Listings Management and Review Marketing platforms.

Here are the monthly averages for views and action clicks, as well as the total number of reviews before subscribing to our service and after:

Before

 After Difference % Increase
GMB Views Per Month

871

1,917

+1,047

+120%
GMB Actions Per Month

26

65

+39

+150%
GMB Reviews 2 17 +15

+750%

While these numbers are impressive to us, our client is even happier.

“We’re thrilled with the way we’ve been able to increase the visibility of our business with the help of 10|20 Marketing,” says Keely Goldberg, owner of Maison Goldberg Bijouterie. “More specifically, though, we’ve listened to their advice on how to approach building a deeper bank of reviews on our Google listing and we’ve received authentic reviews from our clients about their experience working with us – all in a very short time. This helps us establish immediate credibility with people who are looking for our services and helps us create more business.”

The proof is in the charts as well. Have a look at the 18 months of data we’ve collected.

We believe that this is the beginning of the first new plateau, as we discussed in our optometry case study. Also, by helping the client generate reviews, they’ve been able to maintain a stellar 4.9 average rating on Google. This is a reflection of their excellent personalized service and their ability to drive the right reviewers to their profile. While we can’t help with the former, we do help with the latter!

MOVING FORWARD

We monitor metrics on an ongoing basis to help our clients understand the impact of our optimizations on their Google My Business listing. In the coming months, we will continue to collect and trend the client’s metrics, digging out insights and suggestions to continue to improve their results. Of course, we’ll work with the client to generate more reviews, post new content to their Google My Business listing and continue to build consistency with their listings.

We’ll leave the last word to our client. “10|20 Marketing has helped us understand and utilize all the tools that Google has to offer,” says Keely.  “Our business wouldn’t be where it is today without their help.”

Thank you, Keely! We’ll update this case study in the fall to see where these metrics stand.

10|20 Marketing Case Studies

We invite you to read our other case studies to learn how our services have brought tangible value to other clients in different industries.

Get educated on local!

Take advantage of our advice, tips and handy how-to content to help your business get noticed online. Visit our blog today to see what’s new!

Case Study: How One Restaurant Owner Was Delivered 47% More Calls Per Month With Google My Business

One of our clients is a very well rated pizza restaurant located in mid-town Montreal. Reviewers have often cited that their pizza is the best in town, with one reviewer even claiming that it’s the best pizza in Canada. Like every restaurant owner, though, our client is always looking for ways to increase the number of orders that come in. They want their phone to ring more, online orders to increase and they can never have enough walk-in clients.

The following is a Local Listing Case Study about a pizza restaurant that showcases how getting your local listings organized, consistent and error-free can help increase your sales through Google My Business.

BACKGROUND

10|20 Marketing has been working with Pizza Prima since May 2018. When we first met the owners, they explained how they really see an increase in orders when they send out flyers. We shared the benefits of optimizing their Google My Business listing and, for $100 per month, they decided to try our service.

For the 12 months prior to  working with us, their Google My Business account delivered  monthly averages of:

  • 160 calls;
  • 138 clicks for directions;
  • 264 website visits.

We set out to increase those numbers. And we have – big time!

OPTIMIZING GOOGLE MY BUSINESS

When a client chooses to work with us, we collect all of their pertinent business information, including their address, phone number, business hours, business description, photos, links to their online properties and more. We then syndicate this information across the 15 to 35 most important online directories. This extends their web presence and creates consistency across the web that’s difficult and time-consuming to maintain manually.

The best part? Google rewards this consistency and, as a result, places more value on the information you’ve given to them. While we have clients who opt-in for services to further optimize their listing, Pizza Prima does not. They wanted to see how our starter package would impact their sales.

RESULTS

Fast forward 12 months and we now have a full year’s worth of data to evaluate. We can definitively say that there’s been a real increase in the number of action clicks on the restaurant’s listing. What’s an action click? That’s the total when adding up all the clicks on the call, directions and website buttons from within a Google My Business listing.

Here are the monthly averages on these action clicks before subscribing to our service and after:

Before

 After Difference % Increase
Calls per month

160

235

+75

+47%
Directions per month

138

207

+69

+50%

Website clicks per month

 264 330 +66

+25%

CALCULATING RETURN ON INVESTMENT

Now here’s where the increase in action clicks becomes really interesting. When Pizza Prima assigns a value to these improved metrics, it’s easier to understand what they’re getting for their $100 monthly fee. This means answering two questions:

  1. How does each of these different actions convert to an order?
  2. What is the average value of a sale?

First, let’s look at how each of these actions converts to a sale:

Metric

Increase

Conversation Rate

New Sales Created
Calls

+75

90%

67.5
Directions

+69

90%

62.1
Website clicks

+66

20%

13.2

TOTAL

142.8

Adding up the “Sales Created” totals, we see that Pizza Prima is getting about 143 new orders a month. That’s almost 5 more orders a day than they were getting before working with 10|20 Marketing.

While our client told us what his average sale is, we’re not at liberty to disclose it. A quick Google search suggests that a fair industry average is $20 per order. The results are tangible:

143 new orders per month * $20 average value of an order = $2,860

From the optimization of their Google My Business listings, Pizza Prima has generated approximately $3K in new business a month. Put another way, that’s about $36,000 a year.

For a small business with one location, that is a significant difference.

MOVING FORWARD

Pizza Prima has nowhere to go but up. What can they do next to further optimize their Google My Business listing? So many things:

If they choose to move forward with any of these ideas, with or without the help of 10|20 Marketing, they’ll bring more attention to their Google My Business listing. And with the increase in views will come an increase in the total number of actions generated. So, more phone calls, website visits and map clicks. The math is easy from there.

CONCLUSION

10|20 Marketing was able to help Pizza Prima increase their sales by about $3,000 per month. Without any further optimizations, building consistency and cleaning up errors in their most basic business information across the web has increased Google’s trust in the restaurant’s Google My Business listing. As a result, Google has presented this listing in search more often, which helps Pizza Prima get more calls, clicks and walk-in visits.

Today, we continue to monitor this client’s listings through our local listings management platform, and we provide monthly reporting to the client so the impact is transparent. This ensures that the consistency they’ve built across 15 directories is maintained, which in turn helps Google continue to trust the information we’ve provided to them. We expect that new plateaus will be hit in the coming months, furthering the benefit for our client.

10|20 Marketing Case Studies

We invite you to read our other case studies to learn how our services have brought tangible value to other clients in different industries.

Get educated on local!

Take advantage of our advice, tips and handy how-to content to help your business get noticed online. Visit our blog today to see what’s new!

Optometry Case Study: Hitting New Plateaus On Google My Business

One of our first clients is a well-known optometrist in downtown Montreal. While on our platform, we’ve helped them grow the effectiveness of their business listing on Google My Business (GMB) in a significant way. The following is a Local Listing Case Study for Optometrists that shows how giving your Google My Business listing some love can help increase awareness of your location and drive actions from your listing.

Background

When our client first came to us, they were averaging under 15K monthly views of their listing on Google My Business. Their business was well established in one of the city’s best-known areas, and we knew that their listing was underperforming. Shortly after signing up, the client was planning a move to a new location. We advised them to get their listings in order before the move and have us make changes once we claimed their location.

Level 1 Google My Business Optimization

Our platform works by automating the process of updating listings across 15 to 35 Tier One Online Directories and mapping technologies. Google My Business appreciates this because it uses other directories to verify and corroborate the information it has for your business. By pushing all the same information to these directories, ensuring that all the littlest details remain consistent across the web, Google places a higher value on the information you’ve provided to them.

Even if you do nothing else to optimize your listing on Google My Business, creating this consistency across the web offers significant potential benefits.

Results

In the six months immediately after joining our platform, our optometry client saw an immediate increase to an average of 24K+ views of their listing on Google My Business. These views represented an immediate improvement of 69%.

Over the next six months, however, we saw tremendous growth, as the client settled in with a new average of over 45K listing views. This represented a 217% increase in views when compared to their metrics before joining our platform.

The Plateau Effect

Using raw numbers, you can see what we call “The Plateau Effect” taking form.

Without any further optimizations, such as employing a review building strategy or adding Google Posts to their listing, our client established two new plateaus for listing views. The difference between the two levels is what’s so stunning, as their average increased by over 21K views per month when comparing the second increase to their first.

For those who are skeptical, we have seen the same effect for clients across several sectors, including other professional services business and medical clinics.

Benefit

The main reason for wanting to increase views of your listing is to increase actions from those views. You’ll note that people who view your Google My Business listing have options to call you, visit your website or look up directions to your location right from your listing.

For our optometry client, we’ve been able to increase action clicks by 20% overall. This increase means that they are enjoying more calls, walk-ins and website visits from their Google listing.

This chart clearly shows that their action clicks have enjoyed the same Plateau Effect as views have.

It is normal for actions to increase at a slower pace than views, as these two metrics don’t scale. Views increase awareness of your location and actions increase location visits. Both are important.

Conclusion

10|20 Marketing was able to help its optometry client increase views of their Google My Business listing by 217% and action clicks by 20%. After optimizing their listing, we were also able to change their address on 15 Tier One Online Directories quickly and easily with consistency.

Today, we continue to monitor their listings through our platform, which uses an automated process to ensure that their listings stay consistent across the board, maintaining their advantage with Google’s crawlers. Doing so helps businesses reach new plateaus over time.

Say Hi To The Local Search Association’s Website And You’ll Understand Why Optimizing Your Location Online Is So Important

The Local Search Association offers a wealth of resources for retailers, small business owners and local business operators. Their mandate is to help bring clarity to the value and importance of local online marketing optimization. While reviewing the Infographics section of their website, we found some data points that stand out.

Let’s review them.

Local Search Association Statistics

Most Helpful Sources For Finding Local Business Info

Digital channels are the most helpful for finding local business information, lead by search engines. Search engines are even more important than the company website, which highlights the critical importance of optimizing your Google My Business account (GMB). A big part of GMB optimization includes ensuring that ratings and reviews are added to the listing and responded to by business owners.

Doing so helps Google decide how often to present your listing and, more importantly, they help consumers decide whether to visit your location or not.

Local Marketing Reaches Undecideds

4 in 5 consumers using search engines to find local information. 63% of local search queries made by people who are undecided on a provider or retailer. So you can begin to see why it’s so important to be optimized. Try these other statistics on for size too: Local Searches lead 50% of mobile visitors to visit stores within one day, and address and location are the primary pieces of information sought by local searchers.

Put all these numbers together and it’s clear why Google My Business, Bing Local and other services such as Yelp and Foursquare are so important for your local marketing. Mapping technologies such as Apple Maps, TomTom and others also help you get found easily, while serving to provide additional SEO benefits to GMB.

Ask For A Local Review

The above statistic is fantastic and what you should take away from it is simple. If you don’t ask, you don’t get. Reviews actively play an essential role in consumer behaviour and are used as the tiebreaker for where to shop and what to buy.

BirdEye is an online reputation tool that helps small business owners generate positive online reviews. They cites that 92% of customers read online reviews, and 68% trust a local business more if it has positive reviews. So if 68% percent of the people you ask for reviews will give you one, and you ask people who think positively of you, you’re more likely to convert someone who searches for local solutions like you offer to a sale.

Conclusion

We’ve often cited this one last statistic, also from the Local Search Association, in our marketing materials.

According to a study conducted by the Local Search Association, about $10.3 billion worth of potential annual sales are lost because of wrong, missing, or incomplete local business information.

Think of the power of that statement. And then think of the power of being optimized to intercept searches from your business listing. The business potential is unlimited.

Full disclosure: 10|20 Marketing is a BirdEye believer. We resell their platform to our clients and have seen them enjoy tremendous success generating new reviews on their directory listings when they use this platform.

Why The Apple Watch Is An Important Location Marketing Consideration for Small Business Owners

The new Apple Watch Series 4 was released last week, and now that we’ve been able to play around with it, we see some incredible potential for it within the location marketing world. As a result, small business owners should be aware of some of the more obvious reasons to keep tabs on the Apple Watch – and some that are more obscure.

3 Obvious Location Marketing Apple Watch Uses

Connectedness

Let’s start with the obvious reasons and why they’re essential to the small business owner. First, it’s important to note that the Apple Watch, since the Series 3 iteration released last year, is available in an LTE version. LTE functionality allows users to stay connected via data and phone services to people and their apps. As a result, iPhone apps are now available on your wrist, for the most part, even when you leave home without a phone.

Online Directories and Reviews

Apps such as Maps, Yelp, Trip Advisor, Booking Now and other vital directories become even more crucial. At the turn of their wrist, your customers can now find you, read reviews about your location and decide whether or not your business is worthy of theirs. As a result, having a strong directory presence and review building strategy becomes even more critical to small business owners.

Apple Pay

Another way that Apple Watch can impact small businesses is through payments. Apple’s Wallet app is available on the watch, making it easy for customers to pay you. All it takes is a tap of the watch your terminal and, just like that, you’ve received your payment. This makes having a console that is optimized for tap and Apple Pay even more important than ever. For some consumers, knowing that you keep up with technology is a key reason for them to visit your business location. As of February of this year, it was reported that over 127 million people worldwide are using Apple Pay. And that number is only going up.

2 More Obscure Location Marketing Apple Watch Uses

Geofencing + Business Alerts

Geofencing is the use of GPS or RFID technology to create a virtual geographic boundary, enabling software to trigger a response when a mobile device enters or leaves a particular area. As a result, you can push an alert or coupon to Apple Watch users who are close to your business. With the haptic feedback from the watch “tapping” the wearer on the wrist, people will be aware of your alert sooner because they will feel it – and not discover it waiting on their phone when it’s too late because it was sitting in a purse.

Running Your Small Business

Time to look at the other side of the coin as well. While the Apple Watch can help you attract people to your business, it can also help you become a more efficient business owner. There are several apps designed to help you run your business and keep you on task. From CRM apps to ones for accounting and invoicing, or note-taking applications to reminders and to-dos, the Apple Watch can help you focus on what you do best and service the people who do come through your doors – all thanks to the navigation apps on their wrist.

As a small business owner, what’s important is being aware of the potential of this watch. It’s not that you’re expected to do all these things, but trying even one of the tactics may be the one thing to get on the radar of your potential customers. And that might very well be enough to turn someone’s indifference for your business into a real difference for your business.

Lo-Lo-Lo! Why It’s Important To Think Local Marketing For the Holidays

Halloween is about to come and go and, with it, Christmas lights and displays will arrive. With the big shopping season just around the corner, it’s vital to think about your local marketing efforts to get your retail location ready to generate traffic.

This means ensuring that your online local business listing is updated and accurate.

Retailers are always thinking about how to increase foot traffic to their store. And with 72% of all in-store purchases made following online research, it’s vital that your business details are correct. Even more so during the holidays. As hours and other details change, you must make sure you’re optimized online.

What should be the first thing on your holiday list then? Ensuring that your holiday hours are accurately represented. This means everywhere. On your website, social networks, and local listings on search engines, maps and review sites. Consistency matters!

Inconsistencies across networks can easily lead to consumer confusion and a loss of foot traffic. During a recent bank holiday, it was found that 85% of brands never updated their opening hours online. This included not only major retailers, but also local shops and businesses that need every advantage to attract people to their door.

Back home in Canada, this can account for a significant loss in revenue. According to the CPA Canada 2016 Holiday Spending Monitor, last updated in January, 37% of Canadians planned to spend over $800 during the last holiday season. It’s easy to see just how easy it would be to lose out on your fair share of the pie if shoppers were frustrated with the accuracy of your business listings.

Something else to think about is that the shopping season starts earlier than it has traditionally. Last year, retail sales in Canada decreased 0.5% in December over November – a decline that followed four consecutive monthly increases in Canadian retail sales. Sales made during Black Friday and Cyber Monday are pulling more money into November – which gives you all the more reason to ensure that you’re all set up and ready to go with your listings before then.
So, with all this in mind, we ask you this: It’s October 19th, are your listings ready?

Online Local Business Listings Defined

What is a local business listing?

A local business listing is an online profile that contains:

  • Your business name
  • Address
  • Phone number
  • Hours of operation
  • Written descriptions of your business
  • And other important details.

When you claim your listing on search engines, social networks or review sites, more people who are looking for what you offer in the area where you operate will find your business. This makes it easier for them to call you, get directions to your business, click through to your website or share details about your location with others.

When there are errors in your business information across the internet, your chances of being presented in search engine results diminish when potential customers search online. According to a study conducted by the Local Search Association, about $10.3 billion worth of potential annual sales are lost because of wrong, missing, or incomplete local business information. As a result, it’s important that your business information is presented consistently across several directories, as it helps validate your business on each network. This has an impact on your listings’ SEO overall and makes your locations more findable overall.

Ratings and reviews matter too

A business listing also contains ratings and reviews of your location, which help people find your business. The more reviews you have, the greater the SEO benefit. The higher your ratings, the more likely that customers will choose you. When customers have a positive experience and help create buzz, your reputation grows. In fact, 90% of respondents who read online reviews claimed that positive online reviews influenced buying decisions. As a result, a lack of reviews – and a lack of positive reviews – for your business can lead to lost customers.

With the volume of “near me” searches only growing, it’s important to be optimized – and understand what online local business listings mean for your business.

Learn More

Have a question about your online business listing and how to claim it? We’re happy to help. Please complete the form in the right-hand sidebar and we’ll be happy to reach out with the information you’re looking for. Thanks!