You know that your products and services are just what your target audience needs. You’ve shored up operations to reduce costs. You may have even revamped your marketing. Everything about your business should be propelling you to a brighter future. So, why isn’t it? Here are three marketing habits you should break.

Relying Strictly on Unpaid Marketing Strategies

Relying on unpaid marketing strategies could be seen as a way to cut costs for new startups until the business really takes off. Unfortunately, DIY SEO strategies combined with constant social media updates aren’t enough to compete. Facebook continues to throttle organic reach for businesses seemingly more each year, currently allowing less than 5% of your followers see your posts, which speaks to the importance of a paid + organic approach on social. What about search? Making it to the coveted top-fold on Google search results is essentially a thing of the past for most organic results, with paid ads and maps dominating your view until scrolling to the bottom half.

A lack of familiarity with digital marketing could be why a company simply defaults to the unpaid category. You set up a website and have social media profiles that occasionally get updated. Unfortunately, this is just the starting line. Has your business ever considered how people are finding you online? Do you even rank in search results?

What business doesn’t love to cut costs? But those racing towards greater success understand paid advertising isn’t optional – it’s a must.

Spending Marketing Dollars Aimlessly

The opposite problem of relying strictly on unpaid marketing is spending your marketing dollars aimlessly and hoping something sticks. Few things are more dangerous to a business than this.

There are some marketing channels every business must be on to thrive, right? Not exactly. Even if a platform makes complete sense for your business to have a presence on doesn’t mean you should be there. Apple was essentially a ghost on social media until 2016.

Forget if you have the cash flow; do you have the ability to determine what’s working and what isn’t? The right reporting and focus on the right metrics can make all the difference. Are you able to track what marketing is actually driving leads to your business?

Not Refining Your Marketing Plans

Business growth requires strategy. Spending money on all the latest trends or avoiding paid advertising altogether and hoping for the best are both fast-tracks to failure. Take time to regularly review what’s working for your business and what may not be. Think about new strategies you can try and existing strategies you can refine to be successful.

So, what’s the next step you should take? Start with research. See what your competitors are doing and learn what resources are available. Then, pick strategies you know work for your industry. We can help, no matter which step you’re on!

Have you ever wondered about the difference between SEO and PPC and whether or not you actually need them both? Search engine optimization, or SEO, and pay per click, or PPC, are two common digital marketing strategies. While they both help your business show on search engines, there are a number of differences between the two.

Let’s walk through some key differences between SEO and PPC to help you determine which is best for meeting your marketing goals.

What Is SEO?

SEO encompasses a strategy to help your website show in organic search results. SEO is incredibly involved and includes a number of things like updating your website, content, and offsite mentions of your business. But, these updates make your website more appealing to both search engines and searchers so you can show in results when consumers are searching for your products and services.

SEO helps build your web presence and drives local traffic to your business while creating long-term authority in organic search results. This, in turn, continues to positively impact your business over time.

What Is PPC?

PPC can go by a lot of different names, like search advertising, search engine marketing, and SEM. But, all of these names are describing a way for your business to show as a paid result on search engine results pages (SERPs) by creating ads on platforms like Google and Bing and bidding on specific keywords. PPC drives calls and leads from locally-targeted prospects and generates an immediate response from paid search results.

Unlike SEO, you can start seeing immediate results from PPC, but there are no additional impacts to your business after you stop paying for ads.

SEO + PPC: Marketing Magic

When you start running a digital marketing campaign, PPC is a great way to get your business listed on search engines immediately while you’re working on your business’s SEO. And, having your business appear multiple times in search results, through a paid and organic result, can boost brand awareness and the likelihood that a searcher will visit your website. One study found that 82% of ad clicks are incremental when your business appears in both the paid and organic result of a search. This translates to improved clickthrough rates and, often, improved conversions

In summary, SEO and PPC tactics complement each other, and combining them can be a strategy for success.

Do you know what’s scarier than zombies, skeletons, and haunted houses? Not investing your marketing budget in strategies that work to grow your business, or focusing your efforts in the wrong places.

Find out five spooky marketing mistakes you may be making and how you can avoid them.

1. Focusing on Keyword Reports for SEO Success

Too many local businesses focus on keyword reports to measure the success of their SEO strategy. Keyword reports only tell you where your business is ranking for specific keywords, so they don’t take into account the important metrics like how many searchers are visiting your website, how many people are contacting you after finding you on search engines, and more. Ranking number one for a keyword that’s not driving any traffic to your website or calls to your business doesn’t really help you in the long run, and you don’t want to end up in the graveyard of a search result no one’s looking for.

2. Ignoring Local Listings

Did you know that 50% of people who search for a local business intend to visit stores that day? If you’re not managing your local listings, you could be missing out on those searchers. Picture this: You own an auto repair company. A driver is looking for an oil change and finds your business on Google Maps. They drive to your location, but you’ve moved within the last six months and your Google Maps listing wasn’t updated. Do you think they’re going to take the time to find your newest location? No!

They’re going to be upset and visit your competitor instead.

You don’t want to alienate or anger potential customers with a zombie listing. By managing your local listings, you’ll ensure searchers are seeing the most accurate information about your business.

3. Not Optimizing for Mobile

You can’t afford to ignore mobile. Optimizing your digital marketing strategy, including your website, paid ads, and more, for mobile is essential to the success of your strategy. With more consumers now performing searches on their mobile devices than desktop, it’s essential to tailor every aspect of your marketing to presenting the best consumer experience across mobile devices.

4. Stopping Your Spend During the Slow Season

One thing many seasonal businesses do is slow their spend when things slow down. While this makes sense in theory, it’s not great for your overall marketing strategy. Think about it: When you run search advertising campaigns, you (or your digital marketing company) are constantly updating and optimizing your campaigns for success and working to get to the best spot. So, if you stop or slow your spend, you’re missing out on that position you worked so hard for, and your competitors can take over. And, digital marketing is an ongoing strategy, so by taking the focus off of your marketing, you may have to start from scratch when the busy season begins.

5. Not Testing New Solutions

Digital marketing is constantly changing and evolving, with new solutions emerging regularly. While not all trends and strategies are worth trying, you also don’t want your marketing to go stale. Try out a few new strategies each season to revamp your marketing and keep customers and prospects interested. It could be as simple as testing a new trend or adopting a digital marketing tactic you haven’t tried before.

Don’t let these spooky digital marketing mistakes haunt you. Digital marketing is an evolving practice that requires expertise, time, and an investment.

Small Business Saturday, American Express’s program to support local businesses around the holiday season, is November 25 this year. With a little more than a month until the biggest shop small initiative, it’s time to start thinking about how your local business will get involved.

So, you may be wondering, “How do I sign up for Small Business Saturday?”

Well, the short answer is you don’t have to sign up for anything to participate! Getting involved with Small Business Saturday is a simple process. You simply choose to participate and get started with your planning.

However, if you want further resources and information for your business, here are a few things you can do.

1. Get Free Materials from American Express

On the American Express Small Business Saturday website, you can enter your email to get a business packet that contains some great (free) resources to publicize your involvement in Small Business Saturday. This year, you can receive the following items straight to your computer:

– An email header with suggested email copy to send your customer list.
– An event flyer to publicize your event that you can print off and place around your business.
– A Facebook cover photo so you can update your page to let fans and followers know you’re participating in Small Business Saturday this year.
– Suggested social post copy and an image you can share on your various social sites.
– A tip sheet that goes over how you can use these free materials.

You can also create customized resources on the Small Business Saturday website for free!

2. Get Your Business on the Shop Small® Map

If you’re a qualifying American Express Card accepting business, you can be featured on the Shop Small® Map, which shows locals in your area new businesses to explore around Small Business Saturday. This can also help you get featured in a Shop Small® guide, which provides recommendations from local tastemakers.

3. Become a Neighborhood Champion

A Neighborhood Champion is someone who gets small businesses to participate in Small Business Saturday in their area. In order to become a Neighborhood Champion, you can apply on the American Express website. Once accepted, you’ll organize at least one Small Business Saturday event, get at least 10 local businesses to participate in Small Business Saturday this year, and hand out Shop Small® merchandise. Sounds like a fun way to get the community together and encourage others to shop small!

4. Start Planning Your Business’s Involvement

Participating in Small Business Saturday can be as simple as creating a special promotion for your business, or you can take it a step further and plan a full campaign around getting new customers to your business on November 25.

We love local businesses and shopping small in our community, and we look forward to seeing how your business will participate in Small Business Saturday this year!

The phone is one of the most powerful sales tools at your office. When a customer calls, they’re either ready to buy or are close to making a buying decision, so make sure your staff is prepared on every single call so no sales opportunities are slipping through the cracks. Here are some easy tips and tricks to implement at your business today to turn your callers into customers.

Build Rapport

Tone is easily conveyed through the phone, so smile while you dial! It sounds cheesy, but put yourself in the caller’s shoes. Would you prefer to work with someone upbeat and passionate or someone who sounds unenthused while they talk to you? Another easy way to build rapport is to repeat the caller’s name throughout the call. When you answer the phone, make sure to grab the customer’s name, and use it frequently to make the call more personal.

Take the Next Step

If you have a physical location, always, always invite inquiring callers into your business. Just remember, it’s much easier to nail down details and make the sale in person. Don’t let a customer calling with service or pricing inquiries hang up without requesting the appointment. It’s one of the biggest mistakes when it comes to calls. If you don’t have a physical location, it’s still important to ask the caller if they’d like to setup an appointment. Remember, the end goal of every call should be to get them to do business with you!

Work With The Caller’s Schedule

You’ve invited the caller into your business, but now you need to make sure you set a firm appointment, or have a clear path for follow up. Luckily, there are some tricks behind how you ask a question to help lead the customer to setting an appointment. Instead of openly asking “when would you like to come in?” try asking “are you looking to come in this week or this weekend?” “Does morning or afternoon work best for you?” By giving the caller specific options instead of leaving it open-ended, they’re more likely to commit to a set time. Keep in mind that setting a time for follow up that they may cancel is better than ending the call with no appointment scheduled.

Gather Contact Information

Always make sure to gather full contact information from each caller. This additional step will make them feel more connected to your business and more committed to their appointment. Gather their name, phone number, email address, and any other necessary information. If you already have their contact information in your lead management system, confirm that it is still up to date. Key tip to build rapport: Ask their preferred method of contact and notate it in your lead management system.

Set Expectations

Give the caller directions to your business and parking instructions, so they know what to expect when they arrive. This too will build rapport and increase their commitment level. If they’re a returning customer, confirm that they still know what to expect, and update them with any new information, such as construction or new paperwork required. These five tips and tricks may seem simple, but they’re often the first things forgotten when an employee answers the phone.

Advertising on YouTube is a cost-effective way to reach potential customers for nearly any product or business. YouTube users consume more than a billion hours of video content per day on the site. Within that large volume of traffic, advertisers are able to target specific demographics and regions.

For startups and international corporations alike, the video-sharing website has become an increasingly popular place to advertise. In 2017, 20 percent of all video ad revenues in America will go to YouTube, according to eMarketer forecasts. Below, find out why so many businesses are turning to YouTube for online marketing.

1. High rate of consumption

With over a billion users, YouTube hosts nearly one-third of all the people online. And the platform reaches more 18- to 49-year-olds than any cable network in the US, according to YouTube.

With younger generations reluctant to pay for television and cable, YouTube provides a free alternative for all kinds of media content, from music videos and tutorials to vlogs and cat videos. Industry-specific and informational videos are an effective place to reach niche markets, but outreach across YouTube puts your message in front of a much broader audience.

2. Find your business’s target audience

As with other online platforms, advertisers on YouTube have the freedom to target specific regions and demographics for their advertising budget. By sponsoring specific kinds of content, your business can advertise on the types of videos most likely to appeal to your potential customers.

Nationwide and industry-specific targeting is easy with the suite of options available to advertisers. Because many viewers are logged into their personal YouTube accounts, advertisers can target specific populations based on their search history and other key data. Affinity audiences allow your business to target viewers based on categories of interests, like auto enthusiasts or do-it-yourselfers.

3. Follow your audience along the consumer journey

Depending on search terms and video content, you can target customers with different types of videos. Is a viewer already comparison-shopping for your service? Your commercial may need to emphasize reasons to choose your business. On the other hand, the same video may not be effective for your established customers.

4. Part of a diverse advertising strategy

Facebook is likely to remain the biggest player in social media, but YouTube has a solid footing with vloggers and video content. Rather than advertising exclusively on one website, it’s better to plan an inclusive strategy that includes both social media and paid search advertising on Google.

When users move between search engines and different social media platforms, it’s important to have a clear presence across the different arenas for advertising. The mobile viewers on YouTube spend 40 minutes in an average session. Advertising directly on YouTube allows your business to reach your audience when they aren’t actively on Facebook or interacting with search engines.

5. Measurability

Unlike other forms of advertising, online ads provide detailed information about the effectiveness of each listing. Exposures, click-through rates, bounce rates and conversions are just a few of the critical data points that would be nearly impossible to objectively measure with radio, billboards and conventional alternatives.

With data about which ads are most effective, your business is better able to tailor promotional and marketing strategies in the future. The relative success of certain ads can serve as market research into the selling points and products most important to consumers.

6. Audience research

Unlike with conventional television, YouTube advertisers can allow viewers to “skip” after the first few seconds of a commercial. While millennial viewers skip videos nearly 60 percent of the time, according to a survey from LaunchLeap, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing for advertisers. Viewers eager to skip after the first few seconds likely aren’t interested in the product or service, and most platforms allow you to pay only for the content watched to completion.

The major benefits of advertising on YouTube parallel the advantages of other online marketing strategies. Unlike billboards and other tangible forms of product promotion, online advertising is easily scalable to fit any budget. A higher available budget can be used for a higher level of exposure and views. On the other hand, a small budget can be specific for targeting a niche industry or interest group.

YouTube video advertising is just one of many important elements for promoting your company’s presence online. Make the most of this vibrant social network by making sure that your business is a visible participant.

Originally posted by Will Scott on MarketingLand

Have you heard of social media influencers? If you follow any celebrities, bloggers, or former reality show contestants on social media platforms like Instagram, you’ve likely come across a few.

Social media influencers partner with businesses to advertise the business’s products or services to the influencer’s social media fans and followers, which is called influencer marketing.

Essentially, influencers act as brand spokespeople by touting the benefits of a product or service, but they do so in a way that’s non-threatening and often even hard to identify as an ad (which has actually prompted the FTC to begin regulating influencer posts so companies can’t mislead consumers)

And while you probably don’t have the cash to pay a Kardashian a reported six-figure sum to post about your product, there are some great lessons you can learn from social media influencers to better market your local business.

1. Keep Your Branding Consistent

Social media influencers are all about building a brand, and they do this by developing a clear voice and look they carry across their social media platforms and websites. In the same way, your business needs to have consistent branding and messaging no matter where you are online. This includes a consistent look and feel across your social sites that ties into your website. This also means consistent information about your business across the web, including directory listings. Your NAP (Name, Address, and Phone Number) should read the exact same anywhere information about your business is listed. This helps with brand recognition and plays into SEO.

2. Stay On Message

One of the things that makes influencer marketing successful, in my opinion, is the authenticity of the partnership between the influencer and the corporate sponsor. For example, I follow a lot of fashion or lifestyle bloggers who partner with accessory designers or skin care companies, which flawlessly matches up to their projected message. Nothing is more awkward than a partnership that just doesn’t work. It loses its authenticity. In the same way, your business needs to stay on message with the type of information you provide, the content on your website, and even the way you interact with your prospects and customers. This ties into branding – clear and consistent branding includes similar messages across the web, no matter where consumers are searching.

3. Nurture Your Community

Social media influencers are excellent at building a community. They take the time to respond to comments, answer questions, and give audiences a glimpse into their lives that makes them seem human and relatable. Your business needs to nurture your community as well. This includes your fans and followers on social media and your current customers. Make sure you’re engaging with your audience on social media and on review sites. And, be sure to reward your “insiders” with special offers or incentives that keep them coming back.

4. Consistently Put Out Fresh Content

If you follow a social media influencer, you’ve probably noticed how often they’re posting. And, not all of their posts are #sponsored. This gives them an opportunity to further engage with their audiences and stay top of mind in the crowded digital space. Your local business should be consistently putting out fresh content, too. Whether that’s refreshing your paid ads, posting updates on social media, or updating pieces of your website, you shouldn’t remain stagnant or you may fall behind competitors.

5. Play Around with New Ideas

Social media influencers are generally early adopters. You probably noticed they were the first ones to play around with Instagram stories or hold a Facebook Live tutorial. They’re constantly looking for new, fun ways to engage with their fans and get the word out about their latest endeavors. As a business owner, you also have the opportunity to play around with new ideas and strategies. Think about some different ways you can market your business to new audiences, like through geofencing, email marketing, or Facebook advertising. Testing new ways to grow your business can be fun and rewarding. Influencer marketing is an interesting way for companies and brands to reach new audiences, and with these tips, you can steal a few ideas from social media influencers to connect with your audience, improve your web presence, and get new customers online.

In the world of digital marketing, not all metrics used to measure success are created equal. In a constantly evolving age, the necessity to measure data is a key factor in determining success. Now that data is so easily accessible, choosing the right metrics to measure and focus on can become paramount.

Marketers are often influenced by “vanity” metrics and begin to lose sight on metrics that would really matter for their business. It is important for these business owners to learn how to ascertain which metrics are important for revenue generation and business growth.

Here are nine important digital marketing metrics and why they matter for your business.

1. Traffic Source

Knowing where your site traffic is coming from and which keywords brought them there can provide insight as to what you should focus more on for your digital marketing campaign. Search engines still prove to be the primary source of website traffic according to various studies, but you can also leverage other traffic sources that may prove beneficial for your business like social media sites.

2. Device Usage

A responsive website is imperative with the ever-changing marketplace, but knowing the percentage of users that come to your site from different devices, like cell phones, tablets, or desktops, will give you an additional insight. It allows you to optimize for the user, so you can properly track activity and create a unique experience. This metric can assist business owners in knowing how to structure site content for optimum engagement for both mobile and non-mobile site visitors.

3. Site Speed

When it comes to ranking a user’s experience, site speed is an important factor. If a page on your site does not load quickly enough, a user will likely leave and find another, faster-loading page from which to gather information. You want users to spend a long time on your site engaging with your content, not waiting for it to load.

4. Bounce Rate

It is not possible for all website traffic to your site to convert into a lead. A bounce rate is the percentage of single page sessions or “views” on your site. On some visits, users tend to leave or “bounce” as quickly as they arrive. This could be because they find your content irrelevant to their needs, among a number of other factors that are hard to measure. However, if you are noticing a high bounce rate, it may be worth looking at your site’s content and keywords to make sure you’re presenting useful and accurate information to searchers.

5. Clickthrough Rate (CTR)

Pay per click (PPC) campaigns are likely sources for targeted traffic. CTR is measured by calculating the number of clicks your PPC ads receive based on the total number of impressions served. The higher the CTR, the better your Quality Scores will be, allowing you to lower your PPC costs by paying less per click on search engine marketing platforms like Google AdWords.

6. Cost Per Click (CPC)

The Cost Per Click (CPC) defines how much you are going to pay the search engine marketing platform every time an internet user clicks on your PPC ad. This dollar value will be contingent upon your Quality Score and the standard prices search engines initially set how popular your chosen keyword or keyword phrases are (think of it like a silent bidding auction, except for keywords). By monitoring which keywords are working best versus the total cost, you can gauge how your marketing dollars are being spent.

7. Conversion Rate (CVR)

This is the percentage of users who take the desired action after visiting your site. Measuring how many site visitors convert into a lead or sale delineates your digital marketing success. Your goal can be converting site visits into sales or just to attain valuable information about your site visitors and potential customers. By monitoring your CVR you can gain insight as to what aspects of your marketing campaign are delivering the best results.

8. Cost Per Lead (CPL)

The success of a digital marketing campaign is contingent upon how well your website and content converts traffic into leads at a minimal cost. CPL is a metric that defines the lead conversion ratio of a particular campaign and corresponding cost, giving insights to the business owner or marketer on how profitable their campaign is.

9. Return On Investment (ROI)

This metric is measured by website traffic that converts into new paying customers, or leads. This metric will also help you identify which area in your digital marketing campaign is driving sales and revenue, and which areas need attention or improvement. Digital marketing optimization is a data-driven process for sure. This list is just a start, but there are hundreds of other metrics out there. By now, you should have a better sense of the various metrics that are important to your business.

As a business owner, choosing the best marketing strategy to maximize your ROI can be daunting. Thankfully, one of the most effective solutions doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon. Email marketing has been generating the highest ROI for businesses ranging from SMBs to enterprises for over 10 years and counting. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering 85% of people who are connected online participate in email communication on a regular basis.

We all know every consumer has different wants and behaves in different ways. The real challenge is finding the best methods of utilizing email to make customers feel special while also driving awareness for your brand or strengthening customer relationships. Targeted email marketing uses segmented databases to provide an effective solution: an efficient, personalized, and affordable digital postcard reaching your ideal demographic audience through their inbox. Yet, a majority of business owners are still using the old “spray and pray” approach, sending the same message to their entire database. What are these businesses really missing out on?

The answer is a lot! Companies that find the most success with email marketing use industry experts to segment their databases and customize messages. With this help, they are able to bring the desired message to the people who are more likely to open the email, read it, and take action. Implementing targeted email into your marketing strategy can help you to bring special offers to customers’ inboxes, drive your brand, and build lasting customer relationships.

Here are three elements of a successful targeted email marketing campaign:

1. Targeting the Right Audience through List Segmentation

Targeting specific audiences in your email campaigns is a great way to drive more consumers straight to your website. However, understanding the best ways to segment your database can often be tricky. Many companies don’t have complex databases or the in-house skill set needed to manage them. Regardless, the right partner can help you find the best segments to target based on past campaign performance and reach those most likely to convert to new customers. Targeting your customers based on demographics such as location, age, and hobbies takes your email campaigns to the next level but is just the first step in the customization process.

2. Developing the Best Message

Not surprisingly, consumers pay attention to the content in their inbox that is relevant to their wants and needs. A well-targeted email will increase open rates and influence purchase decisions. Last year, 44% of email recipients made at least one purchase based on a promotional email. Although potential customers may not convert right away after reading an email, it’s clear that customized email messages help put your brand in front of relevant consumers.

3. Measuring Campaign Performance

Measuring the success of your email campaign means more than looking at open and clickthrough rates. The most important aspect is knowing how your email campaign impacts revenue for your business. When you purchase a segmented target list for your email campaign, you won’t have access to the database after the campaign ends. A trustworthy and transparent partner will ensure that your messages make it into the inbox of relevant customers and avoid the spam folder. By doing this, your messages not only reach more people but will also help you match your sales during the email campaign and beyond so you can see true ROI.

Targeted Email Marketing

Understanding the benefits of targeted email marketing might be simple, but actually creating successful email marketing campaigns isn’t. ReachLocal understands the importance of considering your customers’ wants and needs when creating unique email campaigns. That’s why we use strategic campaign development and segmentation to match the right audience with the right messages. Email Marketing can send your message straight to the inbox of relevant customers, helping to grow your brand, increase website clicks, and promote events.

Google can be a great tool to help you connect with your customers. Features like their chat option allow you to chat directly with customers who find your business listing on Google Search. Responding to customers can help you answer their questions, tell your business’s story, and attract more people to your location. Not only does Google My Business offer a chat service, there is also an option to post offers. Both of these options are great tools to help grow your business and keep in contact with your customers.

Show you’re open for business by using Google My Business’s “post offer” option

Your listing appears right when people are searching for your business or businesses like yours on Google Search and Maps. Google My Business makes it easy to create and update your listing—so you can stand out, and bring customers in.

Keep them coming back with regular updates

Give people a reason to drop by—share your latest news, specials, and offers so they know what’s happening.

To create an update:

1. Sign in to Google My Business by using the Gmail in which your Google My Business account is associated with
2. Click on the “Create Post” button on the Dashboard
3. Upload a square photo, write your post, then click “Add a button”
4. Click “Get Offer” and then add the URL your wish your users to be directed to

If you are finished with your work but would like to review before publishing, press “Preview”. Once you are satisfied with your post, click “Publish”.

The offer you have created stays active and viewable for one week. After the allotted week, you can then repost the same offer or post another one. Continuously posting here shows constant offers to your potential customers. This lets Google see you are active as well which then helps with your SEO.

When it comes to Google My Business Chat…

Be responsive

Customers rely on your prompt replies—people don’t want to wait a long time for a response to their questions. During your listed business hours, respond as quickly as possible to messages from customers. When customers message you, they’ll see your average response time. (You can see this time on the “Chat” card in the Home menu.)

Avoid sensitive content

Make sure that you don’t provide or request sensitive information during a chat with customers. Sensitive information includes, but is not limited to:

– Credit card numbers
– Social Security or other government identification numbers
– Login credentials, like passwords

Avoiding sensitive content during chats keeps your and your customers’ information safe.

Edit your phone number

To edit the phone number you use for chatting with customers:

1. Sign in to Google My Business.
2. Find the “Chat” card in the Home menu.
3. On the right side of the “Chat” card, click Edit number.
4. Enter your new phone number.
5. Click Submit.

Use Allo

You can also use Google Allo, rather than SMS, to respond to messages. To start using Allo:

1. Download Google Allo from the Android Play Store or iOS App Store.
2. Register Allo with the same number you used to sign up for messaging on Google My Business.
3. Messages will start to appear on Google Allo instead of SMS.

Turn off messaging

To opt out of the messaging feature

1. Sign in to Google My Business.
2. Find the “Chat” card in the Home menu.
3. Click Opt out.
4. Click Turn off.

You can turn on messaging again at any time.