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Tips and tricks for managing your business with Google’s solutions
America's businesses are using the web to grow
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Cross-posted with the
Official Google Blog
.
Over the past few months, we’ve had the chance to talk to businesses all over the country and hear stories of how they’ve become successful. For many, it’s pretty simple: the Internet. The web is helping businesses and communities across the U.S. to grow and succeed. In fact, last year Google’s search and advertising tools helped provide $111 billion of economic activity for more than 1.5 million businesses—advertisers, publishers and nonprofits—across the U.S.
Take
Go2marine
, a boat supply company located on Bainbridge Island, off the coast of Washington State. Because of their remote location, bringing traffic to their website using
Google AdWords
plays an important role in their ability to sell their 250,000+ boat supplies to customers in 176 countries. When it’s winter in the U.S., they rely on customers located in other parts of the world where it’s boating season, with the web bringing them business from any place, in any season.
Or meet Don Morton, who taught reading, writing and language in lower-income neighborhoods in my home town of Chicago for nine years. In 2005, he began creating his own materials to supplement what the school system provided. Realizing that his worksheets could be useful for students and teachers everywhere, he created
ereadingworksheets.com
to provide his worksheets for free. Don started using
Google AdSense
to offset his costs by placing ads next to his content, and today he’s able to work full-time on his website and make an impact on students around the world.
These are just two examples of enterprising people making the most of Google tools to find new customers, connect with existing ones and grow their businesses; you can find plenty more of them in our
Economic Impact Report
. Our tools help connect business owners to their customers, whether they’re around the corner or across the world from each other. And when businesses flourish, it’s good news for the rest of us. Recent data shows that businesses that are online are expected to grow 40 percent faster and hire twice as many workers as businesses that aren’t. Every year, it gets clearer that the web helps lead to more successful businesses, stronger economies, more vibrant towns, and more prosperous communities.
Learn more
about our economic impact in all 50 U.S. states, and how businesses are finding success through the web. Whether it’s a part for a boat or a grammar worksheet, we’re proud to play a role in giving businesses the tools they need to do more--to grow and thrive and connect with customers and communities all over the world.
Posted by Jim Lecinski, Vice President, Customer Solutions
Advertising on your schedule with AdWords Express
Wednesday, July 16, 2014
Cross-posted with the
Inside AdWords blog
.
Small businesses know the importance of being online, but running that first ad can be overwhelming. Google
introduced AdWords Express
to help small businesses start advertising online easily, without the need for daily management. Fast-forward nearly three years to today, and businesses around the world are seeing success with AdWords Express.
Nick Valle, owner of
Nick’s Towing and Roadside Assistance
, uses AdWords Express to run his business from the road. After a decade of driving an 18-wheeler and working part-time for a towing company, Nick decided to start his own small business. He started using AdWords Express six months ago, and his business is doing better than ever. He gets enough calls to keep himself and a driver busy throughout the day, and can easily track calls back to his ad with the
call reporting
feature.
Get results on the go with the AdWords Express app
Nearly 74% of small business owners like Nick use mobile devices to help manage their business*, and earlier this year, we announced
improvements to AdWords Express
across all screen sizes. To make starting a new ad and managing an existing one even easier on mobile, we’ve now introduced a free app for
Android
and
iOS
users in the U.S. The app gives you access to all the features of AdWords Express while on the go:
Reach the right customers with new targeting options
AdWords Express has added more control where it counts for defining your target audience. Now advertisers can
choose
exactly where to promote their business -- in their zip code, city, state or others around the country (currently in English-speaking countries). When customers search from their phone, they can get driving directions, call your business, or visit your website in one tap.
Let AdWords Express do the rest
When you select your business category, AdWords Express makes sure that customers searching for related topics see your ad. To improve the targeting of your ad, products and services that are mentioned on your website can now be added by AdWords Express as keywords if they are related to your ad. We’ve also added more negative keywords to exclude unwanted searches, which improves the click-through rates of ads and means a lower cost for advertisers.
Let us know
how AdWords Express is working for your business, and stay tuned for additional improvements in the coming months.
Posted by Xuefu Wang, Engineering Director
*
NSBA, page 4
Help your business shine with Google My Business
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Updated on June 24 to include link to
iOS app
.
There’s one thing that lies at the heart of every business: customers. Customers are the reason why businesses flourish, and their shared passion for your craft is what makes running a business so rewarding. For many business owners, customers are more than just patrons - they’re your regulars, your advocates and your friends. In other words, they’re your people.
The Internet is connecting more businesses with their people every day. However, our users tell us that finding these loyal customers can be complex and time-consuming. We believe it shouldn’t be. That’s why we are happy to introduce
Google My Business
- a free and easy way to find and connect with your people, wherever you are.
Google My Business
brings together all the ways Google can help your business shine in one place:
Update your business info
on Search, Maps and Google+ from one place to make it easy for customers to get in touch
Add beautiful photos
of your business and a virtual tour of your business interior to help customers see what makes your business unique
Connect directly with your fans and customers
by sharing news, events and other important updates from your Google+ page
Stay on top of reviews
from across the web, and respond to Google reviews
Understand how people find and interact with your business
using custom insights and integration with AdWords Express
Manage your information on-the-go
with the Google My Business
Android app
and the
iOS app
In addition to new businesses getting started with Google My Business, we’re also upgrading current users of Places for Business and the Google+ Dashboard to this new experience.
Businesses with a passion for everything from
beautiful hand-made hats
and
fresh crab cakes
, to the
best local pale ale
, are finding their people with Google.
To learn more about how you can find your people, visit
google.com/mybusiness
.
Posted by Dan Pritchett & Dennis Troper
Happy Small Business Week!
Monday, May 12, 2014
Small business owners are some of our favorite dreamers and doers. More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and two out of three new jobs in the U.S. each year are created by small businesses. It’s clear that you make a big impact with your creativity, hard work and passion.
As you grow, we know that you may have lots of questions on how to make the most of the web. National Small Business Week is a chance to say thanks for all you do for us and our communities and to share a few helpful resources.
Today we’re launching the
Google Small Business Community
, a place for you to share what makes your business special, connect with other businesses, and get a direct line to help from online experts. Join the community from May 12 - 16 for special content like a message from President Obama and tips from business leaders and the Small Business Administration.
After this week, the Google Small Business Community will continue providing information and inspiration. Daily posts, weekly trainings and regular Hangout series will be based directly on what you want to learn. And a team of trusted Advisors and Googlers with digital expertise will always be around to answer your questions.
We’ve also created a new
Helpouts page for small businesses
to get one-on-one advice with experts over video on topics like online marketing, branding and web design. And if you join the Google Business Community between May 12 - 16, you’ll get access to a Helpout of your choice.
We’re excited to meet you.
Drop in
and tell us a little bit about your business. Happy Small Business Week!
Posted by the Google Small Business Community team
Announcing Reviews in Google Places for Business
Monday, November 25, 2013
People come to Google to search for information about local shops and restaurants so they can make the best plans and purchases. That’s why as a business owner, you want to make sure you put your best foot forward online. With a quick search, locals -- or even people new in town -- can read reviews from your regulars to find the right place for a romantic dinner, a prize-winning turkey, or the perfect (last-minute) present for Mom.
Today, we’re introducing
Reviews
in Google Places for Business. Now you can learn what your customers are saying about your business on Google and across the web,
in one place
. If you have a verified business listing, you will now see your customer ratings and reviews in the easy-to-use
review inbox
.
Read and respond to customer reviews in the reviews inbox
Easily respond to customer reviews
Reviews
also allows you to start a conversation with your customers by directly responding to comments left by users on Google. Are your customers happy with your service? Thank them for the kind words so they recommend you to their friends. Do they mention some areas for improvement? Ask them for suggestions so they visit you again.
And if you feel your business deserves more good reviews, or if you are missing feedback on your work, all you need to do now is to encourage your customers to
post reviews on your Google+ page
.
Business owners using the
new Places for Business interface
can now find the Reviews tab when they log into their dashboard as usual.
Not verified yet? Seize the moment and get started now at
www.google.com/places
.
Posted by Qasar Younis, Senior Product Manager
Create offers in minutes and reach customers on Google Maps with Google Offers
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Back in July we announced new ways for consumers to
discover offers with Google
. Today we’re introducing an updated self-service tool for all businesses in the U.S. to easily create offers and attract customers to their stores. Using the simple offer creation tool, businesses can create their offer in minutes and showcase it to local customers across Google, including Google Maps.
Create your offer in minutes and see it go live in just a few hours
With the updated creation tool, which is rolling out within the next week, you can create your offer in minutes. Simply choose the type of offer you’d like to create and assign a budget.
Unlike traditional promotions or coupons, Google Offers will show your offer to customers based on their location, what they like, and what they're looking for. You'll only pay when a customer saves your offer, and you keep the full value of the sales you make.
Reach the right customers, at the right time, now through Google Maps
With this launch, your offer can reach customers on
Google Maps
when they are searching for places nearby or looking for local businesses like yours. Your business will be prominently displayed with a blue tag icon next to it, alerting customers to your offer.
Once a customer saves your offer, we’ll bring them to your door by sharing an offer reminder when they are near your store. We can help remind them when your offer is expiring too, through email and mobile alerts. Just create the offer; we’ll take care of the rest. To get started and drive more traffic to your store, visit
Google Offers
.
Posted by Gayathri Rajan, Director of Product Management, Google Offers
Saying thank you to our Google Top Contributors
Monday, October 21, 2013
Cross-posted with the
Official Google Blog
.
Every day, Google
Top Contributors
from around the world share their product expertise with people in
Google’s official forums
, from sharing helpful tips to answering burning user questions. Top Contributors not only help users directly, they champion user feedback, which gives our teams valuable insight on opportunities for improvement across various products. They contribute to 250 product communities in 26 different languages, and their expertise touches hundreds of millions of users each year. These Top Contributors are a critical part of the Google family and we brought many of them together at this year's
Top Contributor Summit
to say thank you.
Building on our
first
summit in 2011, we kicked off the second Top Contributor Summit last week near Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. Over three days, Top Contributors came together to discuss their favorite Google products, meet with our engineers and product managers, see demos of new products and collaborate with fellow Top Contributors.
Sebastian Miśniakiewicz, Top Contributor in the Webmasters Polish forum, talks with Program Manager Oahn Nguyen and Map Maker Program Manager Nicole Drobeck
Top Contributors met with product managers and community managers to learn the latest about some of Google’s products, and had the unique opportunity to give their feedback directly to the product team. They also sat down with designers and support team members to discuss the long and short-term vision for various products. Multi-product Top Contributor Manny Barwin (known as “The C Man” in our forums) said, “what impressed me most was the interest taken in our feedback.”
Yogi Anand, Docs Top Contributor from Michigan, tries Google Glass
Top Contributors also got a sneak peek at recently released Google products. After hearing a presentation directly from the Google Glass team, each Top Contributor was given the opportunity to try Glass for themselves. AdWords Top Contributor Adam Briggs said, “I found the best part was being able to try out Glass; it's such an awesome product and I'm really looking forward to it becoming public."
We also put on several social events where the group was able to meet Googlers, chat with their fellow Top Contributors, and have a little fun!
Top Contributors play air hockey during a social event at the San Jose Convention Center
Photograph by Paciano Triunfo
We had a great time at the summit saying thanks to our Top Contributors for all they do for our users. If you’re interested in becoming a Top Contributor, get started by becoming active in your favorite Google product’s
forum
or
learn more
about the Top Contributor Program.
Top Contributors and Googlers show their excitement on campus
Photograph by Paciano Triunfo
Posted by Sarah Claxton Deming, Top Contributor Summit Organizer
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