Slippery Rock Gazette

Stephen Alberts

Countertop Marketing

Google Maps (also known as Google Business Profile) can be a useful tool for a countertop shop in several ways. You should be thinking about branding, reputation and increasing exposure so you land more leads and jobs. In this article I’ll go over what Google Maps can do for your shop and some ways to optimize your profile. 

Let’s dig into how it can help your shop.

Increased visibility:By having a presence on Google Maps, your countertop shop can increase its visibility and reach a wider audience. Homeowners searching for “countertops near me” in the area can easily find you and where your showroom is.

Accurate directions: Google Maps provides accurate directions to your countertop shop, making it easier for customers to find the location. This is particularly useful for customers who are not familiar with the area and want to stop down to your showroom. 

Reviews and ratings:Google Maps allows customers to leave reviews and ratings of your shop, which can be helpful in building your shop’s reputation and credibility. Positive reviews can also attract more customers and leads. Think of it as the “word of mouth” of the internet. 

Business information:A homeowner can find all the necessary business information, such as contact details, hours of operation, and website, on your profile. This makes it easier for customers to get in touch with your shop or visit you.

Photos:You can upload photos of completed projects and material you have in stock. This can help potential customers get a better idea of what your shop has to offer and can help you stand out from your competitors.

Let’s Break Down Some Numbers!

Diagram 1 is a Google Maps screenshot from a shop we work with. The numbers are amazing! 

These stats cover a 30-day period. They are getting over 200 clicks to their website, 84 phone calls and 151 people asking for directions. Plus, they pulled in a few reviews! We have analyzed a profile before to see how much of this traffic is from new versus existing customers. When we analyzed the data, we found that about 40 to 50% will be existing customers. So I don’t want to mislead you thinking all of this traffic and phone calls are leads. But even if 30 to 50% are new customers looking for a quote, that’s a good amount of leads! If you follow my tips in this article, you can achieve this for your shop. 

Diagram 1: Google Maps – showing actual results for a shop, over a 30-day period.

WARNING: This will not happen overnight. Could take 6 months to see solid progress or even 12 months. There is no shortcut in Google (accept Google ads) to getting quick results. 

How To Optimize Your Profile

Let’s go over the steps to take to optimize your Google Maps profile. Diagram 2 is a screenshot of some of the options I describe about in the following section. 

Diagram 2: Update this important info.

1. Claim your profile: Claim your business on Google Maps to ensure that your profile is verified and accurate. To do this, log into Google, and then search for your business name. You should make sure that your profile is owned or managed by yourself.

2. Provide complete and accurate information: Ensure that all the details about your shop are accurate, such as the business name, address, phone number, website, and hours of operation. When you are logged into your profile, you will click on the Edit profile link and edit these details. 

3. Use high-quality images:Use high-quality images that showcase your projects, showroom, team, trucks, and your shop. Give a homeowner an inside look! Adding photos is easy, just click on the Add photo link.

4. Encourage customer reviews:

Encourage your customers to leave reviews on your Google Maps profile, which can boost your visibility and credibility. Ask them after an install or give them a call. Yes, I said call them after a job! This strategy works great. Wait 1 week and then give them a call, and if they are still happy with your work on that call, ask for a review and send them the link. A shop we work with does this and gets a lot of reviews!

5. Respond to customer reviews:

Respond to both positive and negative reviews promptly and professionally to show that you value your customers’ feedback. Remember to not just respond to the negative reviews, respond to the positive ones!

6. Add relevant categories: Choose relevant categories for your business to help Google understand what your business is about and improve your chances of showing up in relevant search results. Your main category should be Countertop store. Then look for others and add as many as you can.

7. Use keywords in your business description:Use relevant keywords in your business description to help Google and users understand what your business does and improve your chances of showing up in relevant search results. Granite countertops, quartz countertops, kitchen countertops, and bathroom countertops are just a few! The max word count for this is 750 so make sure to fill it up completely. 

8. Monitor and update your listing regularly:Monitor your Google Maps profile regularly to ensure that all the information is up-to-date, and update it whenever there are any changes to your business. If something changes, make sure to update your profile.

9. Stay consistent: Ensure that your business information is consistent across all online platforms, including your website, social media profiles, and directories, to avoid confusion and improve your online visibility. This is called your NAP (business name, address and phone number). 

Google Maps can bring your shop new business so make sure to follow the tips in this article. Keep at it (and get those reviews), and you’ll see growth over time.

Stephen Alberts is the owner of the Countertop Marketing Co. and STONE ENGAGE. They specialize in helping countertop companies grow the retail side of their business outside of word-of-mouth and referrals. They also offer software to help you engage more with customers and close more countertop projects. To learn more, visit https://countertopmarketingco.com/ or https://stonengage.com . You can also email Stephen at steve@countertopmarketingco.com.