Customer Acquisition with Google Business Profile Optimization (Local SEO)

• Client: Sports Apparel Brand
• Skills Utilized: Local SEO, Provide Training, Advertising

Overview

In 2021, we took on the task of optimizing the Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) for a struggling sports apparel brand. The business profile was not optimized, leaving a space for improvement in the user experience for new customers.

Challenges

• Each store was struggling with customer acquisition during the off-season.
• The stores were not ranking high in searches for product category keywords.
• The brand was facing challenges in attracting new customers.
• There was a disparity in the Google Business Profile management skills and motivation among store managers.
• There were some sections of the Google Business Profile which were incomplete or outdated:
  • Current hours of operation were not reflected, and temporary closures were not updated.
  • Discrepancies existed between the website's store information and the Google Business Profile, and the formatting was inconsistent across stores.

Objectives

1. Enhance the user experience for new customers (make the store more appealing when searched on Google Maps).
2. Improve the online presence of each store (increase impressions and engagement).
3. Elevate the skill level of Google Business Profile managers at each store.

Strategy & Implementation

1. Training Provision:
   • Conducted training sessions for store managers to share best practices for managing Google Business Profile.
   • Encouraged skilled managers to optimize their profiles independently, while assisting those less comfortable with PC operations by performing the optimizations for them.
2. Account Optimization:
   • Updated each account with essential details including store name, category, description, photo uploads, hours of operation, and closure days.
3. KPI Monitoring and Reporting:
   • Created a KPI dashboard to visualize results over time and shared monthly summary reports to track progress and improvements.

Results

• In one year, impressions from Google Maps/Google Search increased by 60% year-over-year.
• Total engagement doubled.
• Engagement rate improved from 1% to 1.5%.

Summary

Through these targeted efforts, we achieved a significant improvement in the online presence and customer acquisition for the apparel brand, driving increased engagement and impressions across all stores.