At the beginning of June 2012, Google Maps changed all their Google Place pages into Google Plus Local profiles. This is an overview of the changes and what they mean for local businesses and retail networks.

1. Google+ Local
What’s changed?

2. Google announces Google+
Local
• Google has announced that Google Business Places would cease to exist in its
current form. Up until now, claiming and managing a Google Place page has been
an imperative for successfully marketing a local business online.
• As of 1 June 2012, Google Places has been replaced by Google+ Local, an
extension of Google’s social networking site.
What is Google Plus?
• Google+ was launched in September 2011, and mimics some of Facebook’s
features while helping users communicate specifically with different audience
through the use of ‘Circles’. User engagement figures were watched with interest
from marketers and brands alike, but take-up to date has been slow and focussed
mainly around tech-savvy early adopters.

3. EMO’s view on Google Plus
and Google Plus Local
• Up until now, our position for local businesses has been that generally, Google+
hasn’t achieved critical mass yet and so isn’t a marketing priority. EMO has
recommended that local businesses don’t invest in active engagement on Google+,
but in some cases we have recommended the creation of basic user profiles to
positively affect natural search and help users to find a business.
• We’re still not recommending that all local businesses jump straight into Google+
• But, now the same attention required for Google Places needs to be applied to
Google+ Local (claim and manage your reputation). You only need a Google
account to do this, not a Google+ profile.
• Currently Google+ Local pages don’t give business owners the ability to publish
content or be followed. But these features are coming and we do expect that in the
future Google will move towards incentivising businesses to engage in relationship
building through Google+. We’ll be keeping a close eye on what happens.

4. There are 3 key changes
1. People using Google Maps to search will see a different page
The data (contact details, locations and the like) is still exactly the same, but it’s
simply displayed in a different format.
2. Users can look for local businesses in a different way through the Google+
Local tab
If Google+ users choose to, they can search for local businesses through Google+.
The main benefit for users here is the new hierarchy of search results – which
promotes businesses with reviews from people you know over businesses without

5. There are 3 key changes
3. Reviews are changing dramatically
Before, reviews could be left by anyone (even anonymously) and required a rating on
a 5 star scale, ensuring that businesses with lots of reviews usually had an average of
3.5 stars and some businesses suffered from review spam and no way to contact
people who had left poor reviews.
Now a logged in Google account is needed before a review can be left. The format of
reviews is also different – no more 5 stars, now it’s anything up to a 30 point spread
based on Zagat’s comprehensive restaurant rating scale.
Different categories of businesses are associated with ‘labels’ eg Attraction, and this
allows Google to show the most relevant questions to the business (in this case
Appeal, Facilities, and Service).

6. What’s not changing: Yet
1. Rankings appear to be mainly the same
Initially many pundits suspected that this change would also mean a change in the
algorithm that dictates which entry appears in a search. While some extremely
marginal changes were reported, the research has now shown that the local search
rankings remain the same.
We expect that both number of reviews and rating averages will affect rankings in the
future.
2. Old reviews remain the same on Google+ Local
Importantly, there is some talk that old reviews won’t migrate to the new Google+
pages, but our research shows that no reviews have been removed yet.

7. The Good news for local
businesses
• Businesses can review other businesses as a business, so your B2B networking
could get a lot more meaningful.
• People who leave reviews are encouraged to share their comments with their
Circles, so expect more people to see your reviews (both good and bad of course!)
• Google+ Local pages are still only editable through the Google Business Centre,
but we expect that (like with Google+) soon more than one person will be able to
administer a Google+ Local page.

8. Google+ Local
How your business needs
to respond

9. Scenario 1
What you had What you should do
I had a Google Plus profile Currently, you can’t merge the two.
I had a claimed Google Places Step1: Review your Google+
page Local page and make sure all
What you have now the information and images have
transferred across correctly.
You have two Google+ presences
– one with Google+ features and Step 2: Fill your email address in
one that just looks like a here to be notified of feature
Google+ page changes.
Optional: Ask for early access to

10. Scenario 2
What you had What you should do
I didn’t have a Google Places page Make sure your Google+ profile is
set up as a ‘Local Business or
I did have a Google+ profile Place’ if relevant
What you have now This will ensure that your business
is shown in Google+ Local
You still only have a Google+ search results.
profile

11. Scenario 3
What you had What you should do
I only had a Google Places page, Step 1: Set up a personal Google+
but it wasn’t claimed profile to administer the page
once it’s claimed
What you have now Step 2: Claim your Google+ Local
profile (it works the same as
Still nothing except an unmanaged before)
page that probably doesn’t
benefit your business.

12. Scenario 4
What you had What you should do
I only had a Google Places page Step1: Review your Google+
that was claimed Local page and make sure all
the information and images have
transferred across correctly.
What you have now
Step 2: Fill your email address in
Your Google Places page has here to be notified of feature
been converted into a Google+ changes.
Local page

13. Google+ Local
FAQs

14. FAQ
• When’s it happening in the UK?
Unlike past changes, there is no inter-continental delay so the change has already
taken effect.
• How is the claiming process different?
It hasn’t changed – yet.
• Will I have to revalidate my claim?
If you want to make significant changes to your Google+ Local page, yes. For basic
edits, no.
• But my business isn’t a restaurant, why is the Zagat scoring being used?
Other business verticals (eg retail stores) will have different ‘labels’ and have less
comprehensive scoring.

15. FAQ
• Am I going to start being notified about people interacting with my page?
No – if you’ve claimed your page you’ll be notified when people leave reviews, but
currently there are no other ways that people can communicate with your business
unless you have a full G+ Local page.
• Am I going to be forced to manage a new Social profile?
We’re not sure. Currently, no, but Google have indicated that ‘hosting hangouts,
sharing photos ... We’ll soon extend these social experiences to more local Google+
pages in the weeks and months ahead’ so this may happen.

16. For questions or
help contact EMO
@emolocal
social@emo.uk.com