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Will Google Help Local Businesses to trade Internationally?
Is this really possible? Can Google help? Can my local business trade worldwide and internationally? If so what do I have to do to take advantage of it?
To answer this and other questions that you may have, it would be a good idea to read this article all the way through.
The good news is that Google are already starting to help local businesses all over the world, mainly in the English speaking parts at that moment, but when this work is complete then the other countries will benefit as well.
Of course a lot would depend on what type of business your local business is in, if you are the local plumber or electrician then this would depend on how far you are prepared to travel for your work, but if you are a local real estate agent then it is highly possible to take advantage of Google Places and their local business listings to trade all over the world.
How Is Google Helping Local Businesses?
Around about October 2010, Google and the other main search engines started to change the way that they present search results, and have decided that they should present the local search results first.
They found that over 70% of all the searches that they receive are from people who are looking for a local business to provide for their needs, plumbers, electricians, window companies, or even a hair dresser, and none of these people are looking in the local newspaper or Yellow Pages, they are going on the Internet to find whatever it is that they are looking for.
You have probably seen these results yourself if you have been on the internet, looking for a local Chinese takeaway, or if your car broke down 100 miles away from home, and you made a search on your smart phone for a repair shop, you would have been presented with a Google map showing you the nearest garage, and giving you the phone number of it.
You may wonder how Google knows where you are, to be able to present you with these local search results. Well if you are searching on a home computer it knows your I.P. address, or if you are using a smart phone, Google uses a system similar to Satellite Navigation.
If you are a local business owner can you imagine what this could do for your local business, if you could get onto these local results? There are only 7 of these results displayed, and if you want one of them you will need to act fast.
Not only do these businesses show up on the first page locally, but if someone is looking for something in your area, and they type into the search bar the name of your local town within their search, these results will show up in exactly the same way, even if they search from another country.
Let's say that you are a florist and someone want's to send some flowers to a relative or a loved one in your area, and your shop came up on the first page search results, you would sell more flowers than your competitors wouldn't you?
If you are a real estate agent and someone who is in another country, is looking to move into your area, and your business shows up first, do you think that this will give you an advantage over your local competitors? I don't think that I need it to answer this question.
If you are a real estate agent and someone is looking to move into your area, and your business shows up first, do you think that this will give you an advantage over your local competitors? I don't think that I need to answer this question, do I?
The good news is that you can get one of these listings, and for free too, you may already even have one without knowing about it, as Google have been working with the local business directories, to get information about local businesses in your area, so all you would have to do is claim your listing with them.
To get the listing onto the first local page of Google you will probably need some help, as the listing will have to be properly optimized to come up for several different search terms, and also it will need to be linked to your local business website for the best results.
I do hope that by now you can see that Google can help your local business trade internationally with Google Places.
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Wolfgang Bloomfield
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