Think about how your guests decide where to go to eat; sure, some might have some place specific in mind, but most guests turn to Google to find dining inspiration, searching things like “best Mexican Atlanta.” If you’ve ever typed a similar search, you know that the results pages are lined with different restaurant options—so, how do you ensure your restaurant stands out? 

Taking ownership of your restaurant’s Google listing is easier than you think! Google remains the tried-and-true way to find a local business with a quick search, but there are many ways owners can influence where and how customers see their restaurant in the results. 

Be where guests are looking

91 percent of people within your community and around the world start their search directly on Google. In fact, restaurant-related searches have doubled in the past two years! Now, more than ever, guests are searching for specifics, whether it’s looking up a restaurant directly, finding a restaurant that is close by, searching for a certain cuisine type or even nightly specials. For example, “Sushi near me” or, “Live music and dinner tonight.” Google determines local search rankings by relevance, distance, and prominence. The good news? With a few best practices, you can influence how you show up in those specific results. 

Three tips to maximize your Google listing

The digital world can feel daunting, so we’ve identified three best practices to keeping your brand at the top of Google searches.

Build your Google Business Profile

It all starts with your Google Business Profile—the Google “listing” for your restaurant. Your Google Business Profile can influence how your customers view your restaurant on pages. In your profile you can list specific menu items, update service offerings, respond to reviews, post photos, and more. If your restaurant offers online ordering, you can link to it directly on your profile. Including all this information in your listing helps your restaurant rank higher in customer searches, and higher rankings mean more potential eyes to your website.

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Keep key info updated

Updating text, photos, and adding new functionality such as a blog or events section to your website create more opportunities for your restaurant to show up in searches. Google rewards websites that consistently update their webpages by bolstering their SEO.

Having the correct hours—even for holidays—helps a lot. Whether it’s updating your hours to reflect summer hours versus winter or making sure your guests know that you are closed for Christmas and/or any other holiday, these updates will be seen by Google and identified directly on your restaurant’s search result.  

The same goes for restaurant location. Google understands that addresses change; restaurants in small locations move to bigger ones, some downsize, and others go from ghost kitchen concept to a brick & mortar store. While moving can be a bit labor-intensive, updating your location in your business profile is easy! These changes will carry over all the key info like photos and reviews, so customers will still know where/how to find you and you don’t have to start from scratch!

Respond to reviews

Engaging with your customers online is an essential way to show you care about them and the experience they have at your restaurant—92% of consumers consult reviews before making a purchase. Responding to reviews is also a way to support your restaurant’s in search ranking. When customers leave a review and you respond to it, that small action counts as updated information and can improve rankings, Google even says so!

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Bonus tip! Set up Google Ordering 

What better way to utilize your Google business profile than to generate revenue? Your restaurant's online orders can be linked directly to your Google business account. All your online ordering channels (direct and third-party) are aggregated and listed on your profile so it’s easy for a customer to place an order. This simple-to-use “Order Online” button can be enabled within your Google business profile with a few simple clicks.

Adding this functionality to your business profile can help increase your websites searchability up to 66 percent. Who wouldn’t want more potential revenue streams and traffic?

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Google + Popmenu = one powerful partnership

Having your Google profile set up is essential, but it can feel like a lot to manage. Popmenu knows the importance of Google, that’s why we made it possible to manage your restaurant’s profile on the same platform where you manage all your other restaurant operations and marketing. You can link your Google business account, update your location, hours, and other attributes of your business. 

Learn more about how Popmenu works with Google and helps boost your web presence–Schedule a free demo today!