If you run a local business then chances are very good you have a web page courtesy of Google.

Hopefully you already knew that!

It is fantastic that Google has created these pages–they can really help your business get found, but really only if you set them up correctly. And maintain them.

If you haven’t already claimed your page, or if you don’t know what I’m talking about, then you can start at the very beginning. Which as Sister Maria would tell you is “a very good place to start”. Amen to that!

However if you have already claimed your page some time ago then you may be confused about “Google My Business” and what that means. Google, in their infinite wisdom, after creating these pages has insisted on changing the names of these pages numerous times.  Google My Business is the latest incarnation.

There are some advantages to the GMB structure in that you can now have a brand page become a local page.  Click here to read more about that.

This is the link to the Google support center for more information on Google My Business, Google Places and Google+ for businesses.

So no matter what these pages are called, Google Places, Google Local, Google+, or even Google My Business, they are only a good business tool if you know HOW to use them–and then take the steps to get them working for you.