Google hopes to simplify how local businesses manage their information on its sites and apps with the new My Business online service
Google hopes to simplify how local businesses manage their information on its sites and apps by consolidating a variety of scattered tasks under a new online service.
Google My Business brings together features from the Google+ Pages dashboard and from Google Places for Business, grouping a variety of tasks in one place.
These include keeping a business' information current and consistent on the company's search index, Maps and Google+, monitoring customer reviews and checking user engagement on Google+ Pages and on AdWords campaigns.
With My Business, Google is tackling a chronic problem that has proven curiously tough for the company to crack -- making it easy for local small businesses to manage their Google presence.
Over the years, Google has sometimes vexed local businesses by launching, modifying and retiring sites, apps, services and features dealing with their information, such as maps, reviews, search results, ads and analytics. It remains to be seen if My Business will prove to be the central command center for Google information that local businesses have been waiting for.
Google also released an Android app for My Business, and plans to offer one for iOS soon, the company said on Wednesday.
Separately, the company also announced it will now provide more detailed usage data for Google+ Pages, including an overview of follower demographics, page impression trends and information about popular posts.
Juan Carlos Perez covers enterprise communication/collaboration suites, operating systems, browsers and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Juan on Twitter at @JuanCPerezIDG.