Every business owner knows that managing multiple Google Business Profiles can feel overwhelming, especially for enterprises with various brands and/or locations.
Thankfully, Google has revamped its interface for Google Business Profiles, now dubbed the New Merchant Experience dashboard (NMX), to help you with that.
However, while the NMX is a more streamlined and user-centered dashboard, it still does not allow you to easily swap between different Google locations.
That said, you can always enhance your experience via third-party GBP management services, and I’ll tell you all about the option and the native Google dashboard.
Keep on reading to learn about the new GBP dashboard!
What is the Google Business Profile dashboard in Google Search?
The Google Business Profile dashboard is a convenient, in-SERP interface that appears when you search for your business name on Google. This dashboard lets you manage your profile directly from the search results, offering tools to update business information, respond to reviews, and monitor performance insights—all in one place.
Referred to as the “New Merchant Experience” (NMX), this redesigned dashboard simplifies how businesses manage their online reputation, and unlike the older Google My Business interface, this interface provides quick access to everything you need.
When it comes to multi-location businesses, the dashboard becomes even more essential, as it offers centralized controls to make bulk GBP edits, post updates, and access insights across multiple locations, streamlining profile management.
To access it, type your company name into Google Search while being logged in with the email you used to create your Google Business Profile. Then, you can edit information, monitor performance, and engage with customers.
You will not longer have to go through a separate Google Business Profile Manager—which still exists by the way—to make quick changes to your Google locations.
Key features of the in-SERP Google Business Profile dashboard
The revamped NMX Google My Business dashboard provides a quick and user-friendly way to manage your business directly from the search results:
Whether you’re updating business details, responding to reviews, or analyzing performance, this dashboard is designed to simplify management for your locations.
Now, let’s explore each feature and section in detail. However, before doing so, note that the available sections may vary slightly depending on your type of business.
That said, here are the sections for an online SaaS business:
1. Edit profile
This section allows you to update your basic business information, including your name, category, and contact details, and even change your business hours. It ensures your profile stays accurate for customers searching for your business.
2. Read reviews
Here, you can view and respond to customer feedback effortlessly. Engaging with online reviews helps improve your online reputation and builds brand trust.
3. Photos
The ‘Photos’ section lets you add photos and manage these images. Showcasing visual content enhances your profile’s appeal and draws more customers.
4. Performance
Get insights into how customers are finding and interacting with your profile. You can track searches, views, clicks, and other SEO metrics to optimize your presence.
5. Advertise
The ‘Advertise’ button links directly to Google Ads, enabling you to create campaigns that drive more traffic to your profile and business.
6. Edit products
For product-based businesses, this feature allows you to add or update your product catalog, making it easier for customers to browse your offerings.
7. Edit services
This section is perfect for service-based businesses to list and manage their services, and keeping it updated ensures customers know what you provide.
8. Bookings
The ‘Bookings’ button integrates with scheduling tools to allow customers to book appointments or reservations directly from your profile.
9. Q&A
This section enables you to respond to customer queries, providing clarity and building trust. Keeping the Q&A section updated also improves customer satisfaction.
10. Add update
The ‘Add Update’ button lets you add Google posts like news, offers, or events directly to your profile, keeping customers informed and engaged.
11. Ask for reviews
Finally, you get a tool that generates a link for customers to leave Google reviews, helping you grow your online reputation and attract more business.
Variations for other types of businesses
Your Google Business Profile dashboard may have a few different sections based on your business category to better serve your specific industry, such as:
- Restaurants & cafés—these businesses have access to sections like ‘Edit Menu’, allowing them to upload and manage their menu items directly on their profile, and ‘Food Ordering’, facilitating online orders through their profile.
- Hotels & lodging—these establishments can utilize the ‘Hotel Attributes’ feature to specify amenities such as free Wi-Fi, pool availability, and check-in/check-out times. They can also manage room availability and pricing through the dashboard.
- Healthcare providers—medical professionals can use the ‘Services’ section to list treatments and specialties. Additionally, they may have options to add health-related GBP attributes, such as telehealth services or wheelchair accessibility.
- Retail stores—retailers often have the ‘Products’ feature, enabling them to showcase inventory, highlight special offers, and provide product descriptions.
- Service-based businesses—companies offering services like plumbing or consulting can use the ‘Services’ section to detail their offerings.
- Attractions & entertainment venues—these businesses can list upcoming events, ticketing options, and special promotions directly on their profiles.
As you can see, Google ensures that every business has features to provide relevant information to potential customers, enhancing user experience and engagement.
Note: You can still make changes to your Google Business Profile via Google Maps and the old dashboard in the Google Business Profile Manager app.
How to use the new Google Business Profile dashboard?
Getting to the My Business Dashboard on Google is very easy:
- Sign in to the Google account associated with your business;
- Enter your exact business name into Google Search;
- You can also type in ‘my business’ at this point
- Find all your business locations at the top of the Search results;
- Tap ‘View profile’ next to the business location you want to edit.
To get the most out of your GBP, ensure your business information is up-to-date at all times, such as operating hours, contact information, and services offered.
That said, you can also hire a Google Business Profile agency that will help you optimize your Google Business Profile and manage all your locations for you.
Benefits of using the Google Business Profile dashboard for multi-location businesses
The Google Business Profile dashboard offers multi-location businesses a streamlined way to manage their online presence across locations and many benefits:
- Centralized management of multiple profiles—enables businesses to update details for all their locations in one place, reducing time spent on repetitive tasks;
- Quick updates directly from Google Search—allows you to edit information, publish Google posts, and respond to reviews while on the Search results page;
- Access to real-time performance metrics—provides valuable GBP insights into customer interactions, including views, clicks, and engagement;
- Streamlined customer engagement tools—facilitates responding to reviews and messages, helping build stronger relationships with your audience;
- Improved visibility for location-specific details—ensures all locations have accurate and updated information, boosting local SEO.
Ultimately, these benefits make the Google Business Profile dashboard an essential tool for businesses looking to optimize their multi-location management.
Try the EmbedSocial custom dashboard!
Instead of relying on Google’s basic dashboard solution, you should also try out some third-party offers, such as EmbedSocial’s comprehensive GBP dashboard:
You get everything you need to monitor and manage your Google locations in one dashboard. Plus, you just tap a single button to switch between locations.
With a single glimpse, you can find everything from GBP insights to your latest Google reviews and a custom-made ‘Location health’ section that calculates the optimization rate of your Google locations.
Plus, it shows you areas that require further optimizations. Additionally, EmbedSocial provides the following GBP tools for users:
- Streamlined Google multi-location review management—you can find and reply to all your Google reviews, both positive and negative;
- Variety of customizable Google review widgets—utilize your hard-earned customer feedback by embedding it onto your websites;
- AI-powered review management tools—manage your feedback with AI-powered tools, such as an AI responder, AI summarizer, and an AI reviews generator;
- Bulk update of Google business information—quickly and efficiently update your Google Business Profile information for every location you own;
- Advanced Google post scheduler—plan and execute a Google posting strategy in advance, and add visual media to your scheduled posts;
- Easily add and remove users from your GBP—manage control of your GBP locations and delegate access to involved team members;
- Detailed Google Business Profile insights—learn from your GBP performance to inform your future actions related to your businesses;
- Business listing edit tracker—immediately correct any unauthorized changes to your GBP locations from third-party malicious actors;
- Aggregated Google star snippets in Search—boost your SEO game by generating aggregated star snippets for your business in Google Search.
At the end of the day, if you want your new listing to succeed, you should get all the help you need, be it from Google or third-party providers like EmbedSocial.
Google Business Profile dashboard vs. EmbedSocial’s custom dashboard
So how does the native GBP dashboard stack up to our custom-made solution? Here’s a simple table comparing both products:
| Feature | Google Business Profile Dashboard | EmbedSocial Dashboard |
|---|
| Centralized Management | Basic: Requires switching between profiles for each location, leading to fragmented management. | Advanced: Provides a unified interface to manage all locations seamlessly from a single platform. |
| Bulk Editing | Basic: Offers limited bulk editing capabilities, necessitating individual updates per location. | Advanced: Allows simultaneous updates across multiple locations, streamlining the process. |
| Review Management | Basic: Involves manual addition or removal of reviews for each location, which can be time-consuming. | Advanced: Features streamlined bulk user management with customizable permissions for efficient oversight. |
| Performance Analytics | Basic: Provides individual insights per location, lacking a comprehensive overview. | Advanced: Delivers aggregated analytics across all locations, accompanied by detailed reports. |
| Post Scheduling | Basic: Requires individual responses to reviews per location, lacking automation. | Advanced: Enables scheduling of posts across multiple locations, including multimedia support for consistent engagement. |
| User Access Control | Basic: Allows embedding customer feedback on websites with limited design options. | Advanced: Offers an enhanced unified inbox for all reviews, supplemented by AI-powered response suggestions. |
| AI-Powered Tools | Basic: Does not include AI-driven functionalities. | Advanced: Incorporates AI features such as responders, summarizers, and review generators to enhance efficiency. |
| Customizable Widgets | Basic: Lacks the capability to create customizable widgets for displaying information. | Advanced: Provides alerts for unauthorized changes to business information, ensuring data integrity. |
| Edits Tracker | Basic: Does not offer tracking of edits, making it difficult to monitor changes. | Advanced: Requires manual posting for each location, which can be labor-intensive. |
| Aggregated Star Snippets | Basic: Does not support aggregated star ratings in search results, potentially affecting SEO performance. | Advanced: Enhances SEO by displaying aggregated star ratings, improving visibility and credibility. |
Best practices for leveraging the Google Business Profile dashboard
Here are some best practices to help you effectively utilize the Google Business Profile dashboard to significantly enhance your online presence:
- Regularly update business information—ensure that your business name, address, phone number, and operating hours are accurate and current. This builds trust with customers and helps you get into the Google Local Pack.
- Engage with customer reviews promptly—monitor and respond to reviews regularly, as addressing feedback, both positive and negative, demonstrates your commitment to customer satisfaction and can influence potential clients.
- Utilize the Q&A section effectively—proactively answer common questions and monitor this section for new inquiries. After all, providing clear and helpful responses can guide customer decisions and reduce barriers to engagement.
- Post regular updates and offers—share news, promotions, or events to keep your audience informed and engaged. Adding a new post encourages customer interaction, and you can easily embed Google Posts on your website.
- Analyze performance insights—review the analytics provided in the dashboard to understand customer behavior and perform regular SEO audits. Use these insights to refine your strategies and improve your online presence.
By implementing these practices, you can maximize the benefits of the Google Business Profile dashboard, leading to improved customer relationships.
Conclusion: Enhance your business management with a custom-made solution!
After adding multiple locations to your Google Business Profile, you have to stay on top of them and ensure they are up to date at all times.
To successfully do that, you can always rely on tools like the in-SERP GBP dashboard or even more specialized solutions like EmbedSocial, which makes it extremely easy to streamline updates, engage with customers, and track performance.
This is a comprehensive tool designed to elevate your multi-location management with features like bulk updates, AI-powered review management, and more.
So, perhaps the best solution is to combine the capabilities of the in-SERP Google dashboard with the robust features of EmbedSocial’s solution to achieve seamless, efficient management while strengthening your online presence across all locations.
FAQs about the Google Business Profile dashboard in search
How do I access the Google Business Profile dashboard?
To access your Google Business Profile dashboard, sign in to the Google account associated with your business. Then, enter your business name into Google Search. Your dashboard will appear at the top of the search results, allowing you to manage your profile directly.
What features are available in the in-SERP dashboard?
The in-SERP Google Business Profile dashboard offers several features, including editing your business information, reading and responding to reviews, uploading photos, viewing performance insights, creating advertisements, managing products or services, and more.
Can I manage multiple locations from the dashboard?
Yes, you can manage multiple business locations from the Google Business Profile dashboard. However, after adding each location to your account, you will have to swap between locations to update information, respond to reviews, and monitor performance metrics.
What makes EmbedSocial’s dashboard unique for multi-location businesses?
EmbedSocial’s dashboard offers a centralized platform specifically designed for multi-location businesses. It allows you to collect and display reviews, manage customer feedback, and analyze performance across all your locations from a single interface. This unified approach simplifies operations and ensures a consistent online presence.