• This thread is just the tip of the iceberg.The people ahead of the curve aren't Googling for answers — they're already in here, having the conversations you haven't found yet. DealerRefresh is free.Get the full picture →
Morning Refreshers~! & George!

When discussing our Google My Business Listings with our agency this morning, they were not in favor of us having multiple listings for all the departments within the dealership. This has been a "Best Practice" for what seems like the last year, when did it change? I created ours last year during the Automotive Analytics and Attribution conference....do I delete the additional department listings now?

This was the response I received from our agency:

"We cannot control which GMB listing will fire with which query, reviews are split, potentially harming reputation and SEO, for Paid Search, only 3 location extensions are allowed per account; not a strategy we can leverage via paid, and logistically difficult to manage; there is no central GMB portal allowing for more potential for inconsistent/incorrect GMB listings.

You are better off with one GMB for the dealership and we can include whatever you would like within the one GMB listing. There is the offerings and categories section which will tell Google that if some one searches for used cars, to show your listing. "
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dan Sayer
Morning Refreshers~! & George!

When discussing our Google My Business Listings with our agency this morning, they were not in favor of us having multiple listings for all the departments within the dealership. This has been a "Best Practice" for what seems like the last year, when did it change? I created ours last year during the Automotive Analytics and Attribution conference....do I delete the additional department listings now?

This was the response I received from our agency:

"We cannot control which GMB listing will fire with which query, reviews are split, potentially harming reputation and SEO, for Paid Search, only 3 location extensions are allowed per account; not a strategy we can leverage via paid, and logistically difficult to manage; there is no central GMB portal allowing for more potential for inconsistent/incorrect GMB listings.

You are better off with one GMB for the dealership and we can include whatever you would like within the one GMB listing. There is the offerings and categories section which will tell Google that if some one searches for used cars, to show your listing. "
Hey @Jenna Popp I would run in the opposite direction as your agency doesn't seem up for the task, and will likely not execute around a plan they don't support. They are not performing searches, looking at how local SEO is evolving, and then giving you the best advice (which may not be their easiest path). I'm glad to recommend some alternative vendors that will execute with this new approach, email me ([email protected]). Here's some data behind my recommendations. Try some local Google searches and see who is appearing in your market "Car repair near me", "Body shop near me", "Brake repair near me". Most likely you will find dealership Service GMBs, or Body Shop GMBs. If you take this agency's advice, your single listing will not appear, and your competitors who built out there department pages will show up. We are doing this and seeing the results for dealers every day. Local SEO is all about departmental GMBs. Here's another test you can do, try these queries "Bakery near me", "Deli near me", "Pharmacy near me", you will see Walmart's department pages appearing in map pack and maps search results. If Walmart took your agency's advice, they would be limited to 10 GMB categories, and would have to choose what they want to show up for. Likely only "Grocery near me" or "Department store near me".
 

✨ AI Highlights

A RefreshFriday thread centered on George Nenni's GMB best practices and GMBSpy Chrome plugin veers into humorous territory as members share examples of inappropriate dealer Google Business Profile reviews and vandalized GMB listings. A key practical takeaway surfaces amid the laughs: Google can automatically apply public user-suggested edits to a dealership's GBP listing, making active monitoring essential to prevent embarrassing or damaging changes.

Replies Views 33 10,564 Started Last Reply