Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small

Business

Part I | Google Maps, Maps, Yelp, & Google Alerts

by Omar Masry

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small

Business

Three Primary Questions to continually ask yourself:

Does the information already online about your business accurately represent you; or is it out of date and causing you to miss out on potential customers?

Does your online presence tell your story; as in what makes you unique?

Are you taking advantage of social media sites that can easily allow customers to find you and help people share information for your business?

introduction

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small

BusinessPrimary Social Media Platforms  (you do NOT have to be on all of them to thrive) & Other Tools

Google Maps, Yahoo Maps, Bing Yelp Google Alerts! Facebook Linkedin Twitter Instagram Pinterest Foursquare/Swarm

introduction

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

What do maps have to do with Social Media?

Maps

Mapping websites feature reviews of your business and serve as the basis for many new social media

tools to find information about a business

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Maps

What else do mapping websites say about my business?

They show your location, your hours of operation, your website link, storefront photo(s),

phone number and business category.

Why does “business category” matter?See the next page…

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

Why does “business category” matter?Because it’s the basis for folks to find your business

based on your type of business (products or services you offer)

This local business doesn’t show up when a customer searches for “shoe repair” on their iPhone, even when standing in front of the store

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

Why does “business category” matter?Because it’s the basis for folks to find your business

based on your type of business (products or services you offer)

This local business doesn’t show up when a customer searches for “shoe repair” on their iPhone, even when standing in front of the store

Only a competitor,New Marina Shoe Repair shows up…

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

Three simple pro tips for GoogleMaps:

1. Make sure your listing shows the correct hours of operation, phone number, address, whether you have off street parking, whether you accept credit cards, and the type(s) of business.

2. Make sure the photos or your business are great representations. Replace photos a customer may have uploaded that may be out of date or show your storefront on a gloomy/foggy day. Consider “staging” your business storefront photo with flowers, or you and your business partner wearing traditional clothing if your business is an ethnic restaurant, and standing outside your business.   Remember to not just take photos showing your products/offerings, but also photos of actual people enjoying your products/meals/services. Customers aren’t just coming for a service or product; they want an experience! 

3. You can provide multiple categories for your business. So, for instance a cafe may want to also be listed as a restaurant, wine bar, and coffee shop. An appliance repair place may also need to be listed as a plumber. A boutique clothing store may also be need to be listed as a jewelry or gift store.

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

• Look up business

• Is information missing/accurate

• Notice how the photois taken from Google StreetView?

• Choose “Are you the business owner”

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

Google will call you, orsend a postcard so you can update your listings

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

If your business is not listed already then search: Google Local Add Business to add a business not already listed

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

• You can even add a range (miles) for deliveries

• Remember to add photos of products/items AND people enjoying those products/items

• Also add a photo of storefront. Come back later and add more photos though!

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google Maps

Common Mapping Mistakes to Avoid:

1. A category listing that is incorrect. For instance, if your business offers both yoga and massage, but your online listings only mention “yoga” then you may miss out on people searching for a business that offers massage services. Remember that folks are going to search for your business not based on your name as often as they would search based on the categories of business (e.g. gift shop, art studio, wine bar, coffee shop, Peruvian Restaurant).

2. Varying ways to list your location. For instance, if your business listed on one website or social media tool is shown as “12345 Union Street, Suite 405” and on other sites as “12345 Union St #405” then it makes it less likely that your online presence will be as easily found, given the unique algorithms (rules) computer programmers use for different websites. In other words, consistency matters!

3. The marker location is in the wrong location. Showing your business at a different building on the map.

Once your Google Maps listing is up to date, check if your Yahoo Maps, Bing Maps,and Mapquest listings are also correct.

If you work from home, consider using a personal mailbox location instead.

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Yelp

Why Yelp? Because it’s a widely used platform for rating everything from dry cleaners to dog sitters to prisons (not that you’ll need it). Yelp reviews are also a great way to get feedback on your employees or product/service offerings. Oh, and remember, many other websites will “pull” (display) reviews from Yelp onto their own website listings of your business

Six pro tips for Yelp

1. Make sure your listing is up to date. This includes address, phone number, hours of operation, whether you take credit card, and business category offerings.

2. Make sure to respond to good and bad reviews. Periodically re-invite customers who left you a review to try a new product/service offer. Just remember, everyone can see your response, so take the time to respond with a clear, concise (short), and dignified response. 

3. Make sure the photos that customers may have already placed online about your business are relevant. For instance, if you have a cafe, post photos of people enjoying your cuisine, not just plates of food. Also include your storefront. 

Continued…

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Yelp

Six pro tips for Yelp (continued)

4. You should have your menu uploaded to Yelp or listed on a separate website, and provide a link on Yelp. If you don’t have time to get that done, you can post photos of your menu pages temporarily instead.

5. Don’t reveal personal (especially medical) information if you respond to a negative review. Ask the reviewer to contact you directly. If you made any changes related to their concerns let them know what changes you made and invite them to come back again. Remember…other people will respect you if you respond in a mature manner to a mean/bullying review. Social media is visible media, which means others will see your response too.

6. Take a moment to write about your business in the about me section. Say when you started, what you take pride in, and any notable accomplishments (including charity work). If you started the business for a unique reason, like a great grandmother that inspired a food recipe, then mention that too!Always have someone else read what you wrote to let you know if they think it’s both informative,but short and sweet.

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Yelp

Common Yelp Mistakes to Avoid:

1. A category listing that is incorrect. For instance, if your business offers both yoga and massage, but your online listings only mention “yoga” then you may miss out on people searching for a business that offers massage services. Remember that folks are going to search for your business not based on your name as often as they would based on the categories of business (e.g. gift shop, art studio, wine bar, coffee shop, Peruvian Restaurant).

2. Varying ways to list your location. For instance, if your business on one website or social media tool is listed as “12345 Union Street, Suite 405” and on other sites as “12345 Union St #405” then it makes it less likely that your online presence will be as easily found, given the unique algorithms (rules) computer programmers use for different websites. In other words, consistency matters!

3. The marker location is in the wrong location. Showing your business at a different building on the map.

4. Don’t complain to Yelp about a negative/mean review. Yelp will remove the review based on specific standards, including if the review is fake. For instance, if the review mentions a menu item you never offered, or time they came when your business clearly is not open, then let Yelp know that by flagging the review and simply explaining why the review is fake. 

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Yelp

If your business is already listed on Yelp, look for the claim your business

link.

If it’s not head over to biz.yelp.com

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google alerts

Set up Google Alerts so that you receive an email automatically anytime your business name or business address is mentioned on a website

Basic Social Media for San Francisco Small Business

Google alerts

Pro-tip: Place quotes around a multi-part word in the search box if you are looking for more specific results and/or have a business name that has multiple words:

“The Enchanted Crystal” and possibly another separate alert based just on your street address: “1895 Union Street”