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Google: Marking a Business ‘Temporarily Closed’ Doesn’t Impact Rankings via @MattGSouthern

Google’s Danny Sullivan confirms that marking a Google My Business listing as temporarily closed will not harm rankings or visibility.

As businesses shut their doors to mitigate the spread of coronavirus, Google introduced a “temporarily closed” indicator in Google My Business.

Initially there was concern about this indicator negatively impacting search rankings.

A concerned business owner reached out to Sullivan suggesting Google should introduce a solution that wouldn’t lead to reduced visibility in search.

That’s important as some businesses are still operating online even though their physical location in closed.

Here is Sullivan’s response:

Temporarily closed doesn’t impact ranking or visibility.

— Danny Sullivan (@dannysullivan) March 30, 2020

Previously, Google’s guidance explicitly stated that closed businesses will appear on Google with reduced visibility.

As captured in this screenshot from Tharindu G, a warning would appear before marking a business as temporarily closed.

As of March 30, Google has officially updated its guidance regarding temporary closures of businesses affected by COVID-19.

A temporarily closed business will now be treated the same as an open business:

“If your business is affected by COVID-19, update your Google My Business profile to provide the most accurate information to your customers…

Marking your business temporarily closed will not affect search ranking and it will be treated similar to open businesses.”

This is a brand new change that Google just rolled out. Sullivan says the company plans to have better messaging about it soon.

For now, the most important thing to note is you can mark a business as temporarily closed without consequence.

After doing so, Google will display the following message on the business’s profile in search results.

Now that you know there’s no impact to search rankings, here’s how to mark a business as temporarily closed.

Google My Business: Temporarily Closed

To make a business profile appear as temporarily closed on Google Maps and Search, follow the steps below:

Sign in to Google My Business on desktop.
In the menu on the left, click Info.
To the right, point to the section “Close this business on Google.”
Expand this section and click click “Mark as temporarily closed.”

Source: Google My Business Help

FAQ

What should I do if my business is temporarily closed due to COVID-19?

Update your Google My Business listing to keep customers informed as to the actions you’re taking in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/google-marking-a-business-temporarily-closed-doesnt-impact-rankings-via-mattgsouthern/

COVID-Consumers: Pessimistic, but spending more online

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By Greg Sterling

Consumer sentiment has turned sharply negative as the virus has disrupted every aspect of daily American life. According to a consumer survey from Engine, 88% of consumers in the U.S. are now concerned about the pandemic. And according to another survey of roughly 2,600 U.S. adults from L.E.K. Consulting and Civis (.pdf), between 80% and 90% of adults expect a recession next year.

Buying patterns shifting quickly. In addition to measuring consumer sentiment, the survey explored how the coronavirus has shifted buying patterns across industries. Generally, the survey finds “significant increases in at-home activities, particularly cooking at home, watching television, browsing social media and exercising at home.” Conversely, people are “limiting activities with high exposure risk,” which include going to bars/restaurants, gyms and public events (if those venues aren’t already closed). In addition, the survey found that “online spend is also on the rise, growing 10%-30% across grocery and non-grocery purchases.”

Change in time spent on various activities due to coronavirus as of March 18

covid-consumers-pessimistic-but-spending-more-online.png

Source: LEK Consulting, Civis consumer survey (2020).

Even though consumers are spending considerably more online than before the outbreak, that spending has shifted. According to the Civis survey there are very clear winners and losers. In the former category are at-home entertainment services, at-home fitness, grocery and pet supplies. Losers include dining out (as expected), major household purchases (e.g., furniture) but also restaurant takeout, electronics and clothes.

The data suggest that the money being spent online is a redistribution of aspects of traditional offline spending. Other purchases are being deferred or cancelled entirely.

Changes in monthly consumer spending as of March 18

covid-consumers-pessimistic-but-spending-more-online-1.png

Source: LEK Consulting, Civis consumer survey (2020)

More online shopping, some experimentation. A separate survey of 1,000 U.S. adults in mid-March, conducted by Valassis echoed many of the findings and trends in the Civis survey. It discovered that 42% of consumers were shopping more online with only 8% saying they were engaged in less e-commerce.

The virus also appears to be motivating many consumers to try on new shopping behaviors such as restaurant and grocery delivery and, in some cases, buy-online-pick-up-in-store. In addition, Valassis found that at least under the circumstances, brand loyalty was being impacted:

48% are remaining loyal to their usual/familiar brands.
21% are purchasing a mix of usual and new brands.
13% are “taking the opportunity to discover new brands.”
19% are feeling less brand loyal, buying what’s available.

These experiences may result in some longer-term changes in consumer shopping patterns. However, about half survey respondents (48%) said they didn’t expect to adopt new behaviors in the aftermath of the outbreak.

Social media usage way up. Finally, as multiple surveys have confirmed, social media usage is up. Valassis found that 39% of respondents have increased social media usage, while 7% have decreased it. The remainder are consistent in their social media behavior.

Facebook itself said that usage was “skyrocketing,” as much as 50% in some hard-hit countries. However, the company also said that the usage increase wasn’t translating into a corresponding increase in ad spending and revenues.

Why we care. While there’s no crystal ball, it’s clear that the virus is a major event for retail and e-commerce, and that some consumer behaviors will change (perhaps significantly) over the long term. E-commerce giants such as Amazon are set to benefit, as will the online channels of many established retailers such as Costco, Target and Walmart. However, many traditional retailers will struggle and perhaps fail in a post-COVID environment.

But more concerning is the consumer expectation of a recession, which may be a sober and realistic assessment of current circumstances. Roughly 70% of U.S. GDP is made up of consumer spending. But expectations can translate into reality with consequences for the entire economy and digital marketing industry.

More about marketing in the time of the coronavirus

About The Author

Greg Sterling is a Contributing Editor to Search Engine Land, a member of the programming team for SMX events and the VP, Market Insights at Uberall.

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/covid-consumers-pessimistic-but-spending-more-online/

Coronavirus And The Impact On Businesses So Far – Who’s Up & Who’s Down? via @MattGSouthern

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A brand new report reveals the business impact of Coronavirus so far in the US, including which categories are up and which are down.

The report was published by Yelp this week and reflects data gathered from March 1 through March 22.

Yelp’s report looks at which types of businesses have risen or fallen in interest relative to others in the same general line of business.

Data is focused strictly on consumer interest, measured in terms of daily activity from US users.

Since the coronavirus outbreak was declared a pandemic, consumer behavior has drastically shifted.

“Consumers are responding to fears of infection, social distancing recommendations, stay-at-home orders and mandated business closures by changing their behavior around eating, shopping, planning their finances, and taking care of their health and beauty.”

Here are some of the key highlights from the report.

Coronavirus and Consumer Behavior

Food & Drink

A big part of the shift in consumer behavior is what and where US citizens are eating.

This past week has seen a major uptick in consumers sourcing food from farms.

The category Community-Supported Agriculture is up 157% from last week, and the category Imported Food Stores is up 172%.

When consumers order food from restaurants for takeout or delivery, there’s been a growing interest in these categories:

Thai (up 55%)
Pizza (up 53%)
Fast Food (up 53%)

On the opposite end of the spectrum, dining options that bring many people together in close proximity are down.

The categories of food courts and buffets are both down 32%.

Other similar categories that are down include:

Breweries (down 57%)
French restaurants (down 45%)
Coffee Roasteries (down 43%)

Recreation

When people look for things to do outside of their home, they’re now looking for exercise more often than before.

Activities that keep people far apart from each other are on the rise, such as:

Fitness & Exercise Equipment (up 162%)
Hiking (up 135%)
Mountain biking (up 119%)
Lakes (up 86%)
Parks (up 62%)
Videos & Video Game Rental (up 41%)

On the contrary, interest in activities that keep people close together are down.

Interest in bowling and personal trainers is down by 67% and 51% respectively.

Other similar categories that are down include:

Yoga (down 51%)
Amusement Parks (down 44%)
Flea Markets (down 35%)

Finance

Seemingly no industry is immune to the impact of coronavirus, including the finance industry.

The extension of the federal tax-filing deadline sent the category of tax services down 26%. Interest in mortgage lenders is also down by 22%

The urgent need for cash-in-hand has boosted the category of check cashing & pay-day loan stores up by 37%.

For a complete look at business categories that are up and down, see the charts below:

Source: Yelp

FAQ

Which business categories are up after the coronavirus outbreak?

Categories such as farms, food delivery, personal fitness, and outdoor recreation are all up.

Which business categories are down after the coronavirus outbreak?

Categories such as buffets, personal trainers, and tax services are all down.

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/coronavirus-and-the-impact-on-businesses-so-far-whos-up-whos-down-via-mattgsouthern/

Google Launches COVID-19 Info Site & New Search Experience for Coronavirus Queries via @MattGSouthern

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Google has launched its anticipated COVID-19 information website as well as a new search experience for coronavirus queries.

Announced a week ago, Google has officially launched a dedicated website for coronavirus information and resources which is available at google.com/covid19.

The website is primarily dedicated to education, prevention, and local resources. With this site, people will have easy access to state-based information, safety tips, and search trends related to COVID-19.

The website contains the following sections:

Health information
Safety & prevention tips
Data & insights (incl. top searches & search interest over time)
Resources to help
Links to donate to relief efforts
Latest news from Google’s blog

Google’s coronavirus website is launching today in the US with expanded availability in more languages and countries in the coming days. The website will be continuously updated as new information becomes available.

New Search Experience

Along with the launch of a dedicated website, Google has a whole new COVID-19 search experience. It contains authoritative information from health authorities, along with new data and visualizations.

The new search experience organizes results in a way that helps people navigate to important information and resources. This includes links to pages from health authorities and a carousel of health authorities’ Twitter accounts and the accounts of local civic organizations.

Searchers will also see a feature dedicated to surfacing common questions about COVID-19, with snippets sources from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Google is helping people track the latest information about the spread of COVID-19 with statistics and a map similar to the one Bing launched days ago.

The new search experience will fully roll out in the coming days in English in the US, with plans to expand to other countries and languages soon.

Source: Google

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/google-launches-covid-19-info-site-new-search-experience-for-coronavirus-queries-via-mattgsouthern/

Twitter to Prioritize COVID-19 Tweets From Verified Accounts via @MattGSouthern

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Twitter published a PSA notifying users that tweets from verified accounts will be prioritized over regular accounts for COVID-19 updates.

That doesn’t apply to just any account with a blue checkmark, however. Twitter is doing what’s necessary to find the right experts to highlight.

“PSA about what we’re doing to Verify Twitter accounts that are providing credible updates around #COVID19: we are working with global public health authorities to identify experts and have already Verified hundreds of accounts, but there’s more to do and we could use your help.”

To further enhance these efforts, Twitter is prioritizing new verifications for certain types of accounts. Specifically, the verification process will be sped up for accounts that have an email address associated with an authoritative organization or institution

For COVID-19 experts that aren’t currently verified, in addition to updating the email address on the account, it’s also necessary for their Twitter bio to reference the institution they’re associated with.

The user will have to link to an official web page in their Twitter bio, which also includes a reference back to the expert’s Twitter account.

To be sure, there are strict requirements that need to be met before Twitter prioritizes a blue-check account tweeting about coronavirus.

The company says it is also considering a way to take public suggestions for additional experts to highlight. Though, for now, Twitter is only taking suggestions from global public health authorities and partners.

Source: @TwitterSupport on Twitter

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/twitter-to-prioritize-covid-19-tweets-from-verified-accounts-via-mattgsouthern/

Google’s right-sidebar featured snippets are no more

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By George Nguyen

The right-sidebar featured snippet variant of Google search results has been migrated into the main results column, a Google spokesperson has confirmed. This change is the part of Google’s featured snippet deduplication, which began on January 22.

Mordy Oberstein, CMO of RankRanger, spotted the update had rolled out Thursday.
Google formerly showed featured snippets in the right sidebar on desktop.
The screenshot above, taken before deduplication by SEO consultant at G-Squared Interactive Glenn Gabe, shows a right-sidebar featured snippet for the query “pulp fiction brett.”

googles-right-sidebar-featured-snippets-are-no-more.png

The featured snippet is now shown in the mainline search results.

This screenshot, taken after deduplication, shows the same featured snippet in the main results column.

Why we care

For those who used to own right-sidebar featured snippets, your URL now only appears once on the first results page instead of twice. Now that the feature is part of the main results column, other organic listings appear further down on the page.

Whether you own the featured snippet or another result on a page that has a deduplicated featured snippet, you should monitor your Google Search Console and Analytics reports to see how much of an impact this has on your traffic and click-through rates.

Yelp Launches Efforts to Help Local Businesses Impacted By COVID-19 via @MattGSouthern

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Yelp launched a number of efforts aimed at helping local businesses that have been affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

According to Yelp’s data, US consumer interest for restaurants has dropped by 54% over the past week. Nightlife businesses have been hit even harder with drop in consumer interest of 69%.

This is, of course, a result of the forced closure of non-essential businesses and the social distancing measures encouraged by the World Health Organization.

In an announcement, Yelp says it’s committed to helping businesses during these uncertain times.

$25 in Million Relief for Affected Businesses

Yelp is offering $25 million in relief in the form of waived adverting fees, free advertising, and free use of products and services.

This effort is primarily focused on helping independent local restaurants and nightlife businesses. Those that are still open will receive free access to Yelp page upgrades, including business highlights and calls to action.

Local restaurants will receive three months of free access to Yelp Reservations and Waitlist. Those that offer delivery and/or takeout will get $100 in free search advertising credit.

Yelp is also offering free use of its Connect service, which helps businesses communicate timely information to customers.

Who is Eligible?

Yelp’s relief efforts are available immediately to small, independently owned restaurant and nightlife businesses and franchisees in the US and Canada.

Eligible businesses with active Yelp Ads campaigns will automatically have their fees waved from now until the end of March. Any scheduled campaigns for the month of April will be paused until May 1.

For eligible businesses that offer delivery or takeout, Yelp will set up a $100 ad campaign free of charge during the month of April.

All eligible businesses will have free access to Yelp’s paid features from now until the end of April. No credit card is required to use them, either.

All eligible businesses will have free access to Yelp Reservations and Yelp Waitlist for three months.

For more information, see Yelp’s announcement here.

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/yelp-launches-efforts-to-help-local-businesses-impacted-by-covid-19-via-mattgsouthern/

Google My Business Temporarily Removes Features Due to COVID-19 via @MattGSouthern

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Google is temporarily removing some features from Google My Business as a result of limitations caused by the COVID-19 situation.

“During the unprecedented COVID-19 situation, we are taking steps to protect the health of our team members and reduce the need for people to come into our offices. As a result, there may be some temporary limitations and delays in support as we prioritize critical services.”

For the time being, these features will be temporarily limited or removed.

Reviews & Q&A

Google My Business will not be publishing any new reviews, review replies, or new Q&A until further notice. Existing reviews, review replies, and Q&A will still be visible.

Presumably, any newly submitted reviews, replies, and questions will eventually be published when Google has the resources to do so.

In a statement to Search Engine Journal, local marketing expert Bill Hartzer gave his thoughts on the decision to restrict these features:

“Most likely, Google is doing this because they want to make sure that the information provided is valid and from trusted sources. I can only imagine how quickly the Q&A could potentially get out of hand if they allowed anyone to answer questions.”

New Listings, Claims, and Verifications

During this time, the Google My Business support team will prioritize reviewing new listings, claims, and verifications for critical health-related businesses.

That means, with Google prioritizing critical services, other types of businesses can expect a delay for publication of new listings, claims, and verifications.

Business Information Edits

Google’s prioritization of critical services will also extend to reviewing business information edits.

This includes reviews for:

Changes to open and closed states
Special hours
Temporary closures
Business descriptions
Business attributes

If your business does not provide a critical, health-related service then it may be some time before you see any edits go live on your GMB listing.

Google Posts Not Affected

As far as I can tell, Google is not restricting Google Posts functionality. That means, if you have new updates to share with your customers, you can still use your GMB listing to publish posts.

That may change as time goes on, however, as these are unpredictable times we’re living through. Take advantage of Google Posts while it’s still available.

See: How to Surge Ahead with Google Posts: A Complete Checklist

Source: Google My Business Help Center

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/google-my-business-temporarily-removes-features-due-to-covid-19-via-mattgsouthern/

Google temporarily disables local reviews

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By Greg Sterling

Google has apparently disabled local reviews functionality — both for consumers and business owners.

SterlingSky’s Jason Brown first flagged this issue on Friday. Joy Hawkins, also of SterlingSky, added, “Any review responses posted right now aren’t publishing live. Same thing with leaving new reviews. None of the reviews I left 5 min ago are publishing.”

Google has remove the ability to reply to reviews bc Covid-19. #localseo @rustybrick pic.twitter.com/Jv6DawOzDB

— Jason Brown (@keyserholiday) March 20, 2020

Appears to follow Yelp’s move. We’ve asked Google for clarification or an official comment and will update this post if one is provided or we learn more.

Earlier today, Yelp announced a change in review guidelines. The company said it would not allow claims in reviews of contracting coronavirus from a business or its employees or “negative reviews about a business being closed during what would be their regular open hours in normal circumstances.”

Why we care. Local businesses are especially vulnerable right now, given the confusion and turmoil created by the pandemic and business closures. Yelp, and it would now appear, Google are trying to prevent a flood of reviews that may be ill-informed or malicious.