Google My Business for Real Estate: Why Agents Should Take it Seriously

A common trend in real estate is getting attention: Google My Business. Sadly, not enough agents have realized the value of it and many use it incorrectly. However, if you are a real estate agent, Google My Business should be your best friend. Almost everybody uses the internet to do business and they almost all start on Google. Without further ado, let’s see what Google My Business is and why real estate agents should embrace it.

What is Google My Business?

In a nutshell, Google My Business is a powerful tool from Google, that allows you to be found on Google maps. When you verify your real estate business on Google My Business your name will appear on the top right-hand corner for relevant local searches. It is a free tool available to all businesses. 

In recent years Google My Business has added numerous new features to make your business card more interactive and call-to-action friendly.

Google some businesses and you will see a profile appearing on the right rail of your search results with information about it including: 

• Address
• Working hours
• Phone number
• Location
• Reviews
• And most importantly, a link to the website

Why Should Real Estate Agents Use Google My Business?

Every real estate agent wants to send more visitors to their website. Google My Business is a quick win you can use to help you drive traffic to your website. Those who have a well-optimized profile will show up.

It is an Uncharted Territory

Setting up a Google My Business account gives you two major advantages over real estate agents who don’t. Luckily for you, many are not taking advantage of its existence.

It Enhances Your Online Presence

You can tell the story of your business in Google My Business. The majority of traffic for your business comes from Google, Google Maps, Your website, and a few major online real estate portals and property websites. Google My Business can be a source of leads using its various features including reviews, click-to-calls, and websites, and it can also be used in Google Ads. 

Google My Business allows businesses to gather several aspects of their online presence in one convenient platform. Customer reviews, location, contact information, etc. are all brought together; visitors can see this all-in-one information card in Google search results and over other different Google properties.

It Helps People Find You

By creating a Google My Business profile, you’ll be able to present brief and accurate information about your business and catch the attention of your prospective clients. Google will fill the right section of search results pages with information about your company, such as work hours, reviews, addresses, and images. The system is quite smart. It will pull your social media profile in the GMB section too. 

It Ties in With Local Search

People are searching for services online. They look at what is showing up first in their search inquiry. Just type in “real estate agents near me,” and the well-optimized profiles of the real estate agents near you will appear. Real estate is a local business and you as an agent want to be found in local searches. 

It Costs $0 and Delivers an Astonishingly High ROI

The best thing about Google My Business is that it is free. While paid advertising and SEO are the best ways to increase visits, they will take a long time to work and need a lot of money. Google My Business is free and delivers an outstanding ROI. 

According to the Bright local study, the average conversion rate for Google My Business at the end of 2018 was 4.83%. In fact, close to 5% of the Google My Business listing results in a website click, call, or direct request. 

It Takes a Few Minutes to Set up

Setting up Google My Business is easy and can be done in a few minutes. Read our extensive article on how to set up and optimize Google My Business for real estate to learn more. 

It Helps with Your Website’s SEO

Google likes companies that have claimed their business profile in its directory. In fact, a verified and optimized Google My Business profile indirectly helps your website rank.