How to Create a Google My Business Profile For Your Membership Association

You can easily connect prospects to your membership association by having an up-to-date and engaging Business profile to appear in Google Search and Maps. Your listing is your organization’s virtual storefront property on Google. You can share updates, add/edit important business details, post offers, upload photos, respond to reviews and interact with people through Google My Business. Do you have a member who absolutely sings your praises? Ask them to share that love in a Google Review for others to read about. 

With this free tool from Google, you can help drive more members to your membership association just by simply having a presence in Google Search and Maps. Ready to create your Business Profile? Here’s how to get started.

1. Visit google.com/business. You’ll also use this link to sign in to your account so bookmark it for future references.
2. Click sign in. If you don’t have a Google account, you can easily create one at google.com/accounts.
3. Add your association’s name. Make sure spelling and the correct use of capitalization is used here as this is how you will appear in Search.
4. Add the address of where you are located. Also, Google will send you a postcard with a verification code to ensure your business is really yours. After you receive the postcard and verify, your address will be listed on Google. This same process will also happen if you’re to move locations, as well. 
5. Choose between a service provider and a storefront. Membership Associations will be a storefront, so people know where your office is located (even if business is currently being hosted virtually or from home).
6. Choose your primary business category. This is important because it is essentially the subhead listed next to your rating. The right category dictates result in Google Search. 
7. Add your website and phone number.
8. Add photos—it’s important to have an exterior image that is up to date. You can also add photos of the interior, your team, at work images, and even videos. The cover photo in your business profile should showcase the personality of your business. This will be shown on your listing in Search and Maps. 
9. Add posts. You can publish offers, COVID-19 updates, add events and share blog articles. To add blogs, click Add Update. You can add a cover image, and in Write Your Post you can share the headline and some text from your post. Add a button allows you to drop the link in, which is how people can be redirected back to your site.
10. View Insights. After about 30 days of creating and verifying your Google My Business listing, you will be able to see data about the most popular queries used to find your business and how customers search for your business. 

Don’t forget to check your listing often specially to manage the reviews. Always respond to reviews (good and bad) to show that your organization truly listens and cares. 

Have any questions about technology and your membership association? Reach out to us and someone from our team will be in contact with you.

Readers who found this article helpful also enjoyed:

Why Your Membership Association Website Needs a Search Function

SEO Best Practices for Redesigning Your Website

How To Write an Engaging "About Us" Page For Your Membership Association