#SmallThanks with Google

Google My Business’ free digital tool can help integrate your online and offline marketing efforts

A large portion of what we do at search/local is helping small-to-midsize businesses optimize and leverage organic & free tools — Google’s #SmallThanks can create both printable & digitally-sharable content that highlights your local business in the best possible light. Click the image to jump to search/local’s home page.

One of the unique joys of SEO and local search optimization, especially in working with small-to-very-small-business clients, is that there are tons of ways to improve and optimize for free.

Paid digital ads are a viable tool, of course, but no matter what client or business we’re dealing with, there are usually dozens of action items we can undertake on their behalf to improve their ranking and visibility without spending a dime.

If you’re wondering where to start, or how much SEO work should cost, check out the hyperlinked articles; if you’re up to speed, read on!

#SmallThanks draws from your extant Google Reviews and verified Google My Business listing information to create striking content that can either be shared digitally or posted in a physical space, helping to tie your online and offline marketing efforts together.

Small Thanks with Google

If your business is verified on Google My Business, click the link above or click here to visit Google’s #SmallThanks portal. From there, you need only enter your business’ name into the text field, then click the arrow.

Just type your business’ name into the text field and Google will automatically populate a variety of marketing items, using your existing Reviews and Google My Business listing information. Click the image above to jump to the Small Thanks portal.

You can customize the aesthetics, to an extent. I’ve selected a few varieties of backgrounds and formats for this article, and they’re fairly representative. Because these tools are meant to be not only posted on social media, websites, etc. but also printed out and posted in your physical storefront, there aren’t too many options for customization. Just enough, I say.

Also: not only does the Small Thanks tool offer you the ability to print out posters and table-tents, but will also send you a free package of already-printed items entirely for free. They ask that you allow 4–6 weeks for delivery, but do not charge anything for the privilege.

Small Thanks from Google will draw on existing information in your listing — including your NAP (Name, Address & Phone Number) and any Attributes — to create striking, valuable marketing content like posters and flyers. All in all, it takes no more than 4–6 minutes, and you will immediately have a variety of content to post on social media, and within 4–6 weeks, a spread of printed items, as well.

A common question we get at search/local is: how do we unite our online and offline marketing efforts? Or, at a minimum, how do we get them to work more in sync?

I’m always leery of leaning too hard into a vertical or channel with difficult-to-measure-or-quantify results, but when the ‘investment’ is zero dollars and fewer than 10 minutes of someone’s time, it’s certainly worth a shot. Posting the Google-branded Small Thanks posters and flyers could (and likely will) encourage clients, customers and passers-by to use Google to check out your business listing. Obviously, that’s why Google is willing to print up the materials for free — it’s a strong incentive to use Google’s products (Search, Maps, My Business, etc.) that extends into the analog (i.e. IRL) world, strengthening their already-dominant stranglehold on search traffic.

Our recommendation would be: try it out! This tool falls under the ‘what do you have to lose’ category, and the answer is, ‘nothing but four minutes, with potentially much to gain.’

Have you created your own #SmallThanks with Google suite of marketing content? How has it translated, in terms of measurable or quantifiable success (foot traffic, comments, new Reviews, etc.)? We’d love to hear about it! If you have some experience or insight to share about your utilization of Small Thanks, post a response!

Click the image above to jump to search/local’s home page, where you can access all of our media for small-business marketers or message us with questions about how to optimize your local business and leverage free & organic tools to grow and thrive!