Google My Business (GMB) is a free tool offered by Google that allows businesses to manage their online presence across Google, especially Google Search and Maps. GMB provides a way for businesses to share basic information about their business, such as their address, phone number, website, opening hours, photos and more.

Keeping your GMB listing up-to-date is crucial for local SEO, as this information may directly impact your visibility and rankings in local search results.

When a potential customer searches for a business like yours on Google, they will often see the GMB listing prominently displayed on the right-hand side or at the top of search results. If your listing contains inaccurate, outdated or incomplete information, you may be losing out on valuable leads and customers.

There are several key reasons to monitor and update your GMB listing regularly:

Fresh and accurate information – Details like your business hours, contact information and descriptions need to be kept current. If anything is out-of-date, it will negatively impact the user experience.

New photos and videos – Adding new, high-quality photos and videos helps your listing stand out and builds trust. Rotate these periodically.

Respond to reviews and questions – Be prompt in replying to customer reviews and questions posed on your GMB listing. This helps build your reputation.

Track insights – Use the GMB dashboard to monitor valuable metrics like how many people viewed your listing, website clicks and calls made to your business.

Update products/services – Expand on the products, services and other offerings you provide. The more comprehensive your listing, the better.

Fix errors – Correct any inaccuracies in your business info like location, categories and attributes that you notice or are reported to you.

Improve local ranking factors – GMB data may help improve your local SEO ranking factors like proximity, prominence and relevance. Enhance visibility – Keeping all listing content fresh and robust enhances your visibility in local pack search results.

So routinely checking and updating your Google My Business listing with accurate, engaging information that reflects your current business offerings is essential to maintaining and improving your local search presence. Aim to make updates and improvements to your GMB listing on a regular basis as part of your overall local SEO strategy.