A common question that we get from Plumbers & Plumbing Contractors is “How do we get our plumbing company to show up on that Google Map?” Yes, this is undoubtedly a very common question for all small businesses because as each year goes by more and more people are abandoning their big yellow pages book to find their plumbers and are now heading straight to the internet and on to Google. They then simply type in something like "City"+ Plumbers and just pick out one of the few from the top of the list. Of course, as the use of Mobile devices continues its rapid increase this will get even more common.

Here you will find our general Google Places Listing plan which is part of our overall strategy for internet marketing for small business that has helped get our plumbing businesses to the first page of Google for their services in their local area:

Claim your Google Places Page. To claim your local listing on Google you need to visit www.google.com/places and set up your listing.

Fully complete your Google Places Page.

• Add your Website Address – This will create an important inbound link.
• Upload PHOTOS of your business or services – AS MANY AS POSSIBLE Use personal Photos – Pictures of yourself (the owner), Pictures of Your Staff, Pictures of the Office, Pictures of Your Trucks, Your Logo, Coupons, Pictures of your work.
• People Connect & Relate With Other People. Leverage that in your Google Places Listing.
• Upload a Video if you have one (If you don’t – Get a video made with our video marketing service!).
• List your hours of operation & services offered.
• ADD a Coupon.
• Make sure the content is good quality.  Trust us on this one, spend a little time on this now and it will mean a long list of leads in the future.
• Select the Right Categories – You have the option to choose up to 5 categories. It is very important to select the appropriate categories and/or add new custom categories as needed.
• Update your website from an SEO perspective. By completing the necessary on page SEO updates you can significantly increase your placement in the map listings.
• Increase your Citations – Citations are a key factor of positioning. Just like in SEO where in-bound links determine placement with Local Listings citations determine placement. He or she who has the most quality citations wins.
• Get Reviews! A major component of placement in the Google Map listings is the number of reviews for your company. Put a process in place to consistently ask for reviews from your happy customers. We help our clients train their employees to keep their eyes and ears open for Happy Customers and then provide those happy customer with a convenient way to easily submit a review. They will go to a Google Places page where they can quickly log-in and write a positive review for the business.  This is imperative in an online world where everyone is looking for an opinion on some product or service!

If you are looking to obtain page ONE placement on Google, Yahoo and Bing for the Plumbing Related Keywords in your City – we can help with all types of internet marketing for small business including Google Places Listings.

Watch the video below. It will be well worth your time.

As an internet marketing solutions specialists we help all small businesses with internet marketing in their local areas or national. Contact us now for us to evaluate your small business marketing strategy as a whole and implement online marketing initiatives that drive increased sales activity and revenue.