You may have noticed that your Google Business Profile (GBP), formerly known as Google My Business (GMB), numbers have changed recently — more specifically, they’ve dropped. You may be wondering why your profile is suddenly so unpopular.
First, we have great news for you: you're probably just as popular as always.
The drop in numbers is from a recent change Google made to how it calculates total views, and that change is actually good. Why? Because now, Google is counting the number of people who see your site instead of the number of times they see it. In the past, if one person saw your site five times in one day, Google counted that as five visits. Now, it counts it as one. Your new numbers are more in tune with the real traffic your profile is getting from potential clients and customers.
ClearPG monitors the changes Google makes to its analytics because we want to be sure your advertising and SEO investment works and that you remain highly visible to your target audience. At ClearPG, we aren't satisfied with understanding these analytics ourselves — we want you to understand them too! Technology and algorithms can be confusing, but you deserve to understand every element of your business, including the success of its digital presence.
As you probably know, your business has a profile on Google. When you do a search of your business or industry through a search engine or map, for example, you’ll see a panel pop up. It will have everything your potential client needs to know about your business — address, phone number, hours, website, reviews, photos, etc.
In the past, Google counted a “view” to your profile every time it popped up in a search block or as a point on a map search. This made for a large number of views.
The problem is not all of these views were true views. A "true view" happens when someone looking for your business or for the type of service your business provides sees your Google Business Profile. Google's old system counted all kinds of things as views that weren't necessarily helping your business be seen by the people you're trying to reach. For example, it counted a "view" every time your business popped up as a result of a search, even if the consumer didn't click on your profile, ask for directions to your business, or check your hours or reviews.
It also added to your view count when one person looked at your business multiple times. If someone visited your site, came back to your site two hours later to make an appointment, and then visited again four hours later to get directions, Google counted that as three views. This method inflated your view numbers.
Watching your numbers drop, you may think the changes Google has made aren’t good for your business. We see this a little differently. To us, these analytics are better for your business because they’re actually for YOUR business. Let us explain.
With this Business Performance API update, Google changed several things:
How does this benefit you? We're closer than ever to seeing the number of people who are interested in your business! These are the people you're most interested in reaching. More accurate information helps you and ClearPG get better and better at connecting with the right people.
Here’s an example: I search in Google Maps for “dentists near me,” but your orthodontist office shows up at the bottom of the list of eight other dentists and three orthodontists, or it may appear in a Google 3-Pack result. As I continue my research by refining my search five times, your business may show up again all five times, even though I’m not looking for an orthodontist. In the past, Google would count that as five additional views.
Now, Google counts it only if I click on your business name in the Maps list and pull up your business profile. As a result, you know that the number of people in your analytics are those who actually were looking for an orthodontist and chose to look at your profile. And that's the information you and ClearPG actually want to know!
Let’s define it further.
Previously, a “view” for your Google Business Profile just meant your business popped up on the screen while the client was browsing in Google Search or Google Maps. Your business was just part of the result returns and may not have been what the client was interested in seeing.
Google’s new API eliminates the clutter and counts the unique user views as the number of times your profile (not just your search result return) was seen by a unique user in 24 hours. Whether they saw your profile once or eight times, Google counts the user seeing it only once. So, instead of seeing the number of times your results popped up without anyone actually seeing your business profile, Google now tracks the number of people who have seen your profile that day.
Google has made other changes to the Business Performance API that allow you to track call-to-action statistics or CTAs better. You’ll now be able to see these specifics:
Business bookings and food orders are new and will be tracked each time someone books an appointment from your business profile or orders food if that applies to you. Google will also now track the number of times someone messages you through your business profile.
Google’s new Business Performance API now includes location search keywords that allow businesses to see what local keywords were used to find them. This data was severely limited on the old Google Analytics.
The new location search keyword tracking allows businesses to track the SEO keywords that bring clients to their business profiles. This is extra helpful if your business has multiple locations! You’ll be able to see if one keyword is tracking more to one location than the other. It allows you to narrow the keywords to what’s most relevant to your business.
ClearPG always monitors the changes to Google Business Performance API and its other features. Understanding this data is essential to us as we build and update your website, support your business through our SEO service, and advise you on Google advertising.
We're also always here to answer your questions about your digital presence and its impact on the growth and success of your business. Walking through your data is a key part of our quarterly meetings with you, and we're genuinely happy to answer your questions any time! Owning a business is a huge investment and a lot of work, and we're here to support you daily.
