Ninety-five percent of consumers search for local businesses online; for example, they want to know where to eat, where to find an honest mechanic and where to find a good massage therapist. Make sure your massage practice is visible when potential clients are looking by listing yourself with Google Places. Bonus: It’s free.
Step 1. Create a Google account for your practice
Step 2. Login to Google Places
Step 3. Enter your country and phone number
At this point, Google will use your phone number to see if Google Maps already has information about your business. If they do, you can then edit existing information and add new details if you wish.
Step 4. Enter your practice information
On this page, you are asked to fill in information like your practice name, location, e-mail address, website, description, office hours and photos. For practices that book appointments online, you’ll want to mention that in your description to encourage the person searching to make an appointment with you.
Step 5. Verify your listing
Google will then send a postcard to the mailing address you’ve provided to verify that the information you’ve entered is correct. This process can take two to three weeks.
Daniel Ruscigno is co-founder of PatientCal, business management software for the health care industry that includes online scheduling, e-mail reminders and automated client retention. For more information, visit www.PatientCal.com.