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Richard Waine is a Lancaster-based headshot photographer in the USA who worked most of his career in finance before becoming a very successful photography business owner and operator.

He first appeared on the podcast in episode 372, where we explored the numbers behind building a successful business.

None of that, though, has anything to do with why I've asked him back.

If you've been following the recent chatter on social media, you may have heard about a UK-based photographer and SEO teacher who was advocating the reporting of other photographers who were breaching Google's terms with their Google Business Profile.

These reports see the nominated photographer having their profile removed by Google without warning and a lengthy process to get it back — if they actually can at all.

By having other photographers removed by Google, the remaining photographers move up the search rankings.

Needless to say, the photographer in question has received a lot of flack! His actions have affected photographers I know personally and who are PhotoBizX Premium Members.

If you think you're breaching Google's guidelines, go into your Google profile first and foremost, and understand if you are a physical address type of business with a brick and mortar, then select it. If you service businesses or individuals outside of that particular business address, and you go on location, change it to a hybrid business. If you are in fact the service area, and you cannot host a physical address, then select that. I think that's very important to get the things correct because these are verifiable. – Richard Waine

Anyway, I was on the hunt for a suitable guest to discuss SEO, Google, and what makes a good Google Business Profile listing when today's guest came highly recommended to me by other photographers I know and trust.

In this eye-opening interview where you may learn some difficult lessons, Richard shares how to master your Google Business Profile as a working photographer and avoid having your profile removed by Google for doing the wrong thing.

Here's some more of what we covered in the interview:

• Business Journey: Richard shares his journey, emphasising the importance of family and diversifying income streams.
• Dual Roles: Balancing roles as a web developer and SEO expert to enhance photographers' online presence.
• SEO Trends: Observing the trend of photographers hiring SEO experts to boost search engine rankings.
• Google Profile Maintenance: Emphasising regular maintenance and proper optimisation of Google profiles.
• Local Search Benefits: Discussing the advantages of having a fixed location for local search visibility.
• Financial Education: Highlighting the importance of understanding business expenses and financials for growth.
• Google Business Profile: Explaining the significance of Google Business Profile and Google Maps for photographers.
• Online Presence: Warning against neglecting online presence and unethical practices in SEO.
• Ethical SEO Practices: Discussing the importance of adhering to ethical SEO practices, such as avoiding keyword stuffing in business names.
• Google Guidelines: Emphasising the need to follow Google's guidelines for service area and hybrid businesses.
• Self-Improvement Focus: Encouraging a focus on personal business improvement over competitor concerns.
• Handling Plagiarism: Addressing plagiarism and unethical practices diplomatically.
• Google Business Listings: Discussing issues with Google's handling of business listings and lack of communication.
• Business Verification: Outlining steps to verify a business, including correct categorisation and signage requirements.
• Verification Complexity: Addressing the increased complexity in the verification process, including video calls.
• Review Management: Explaining Google's process for removing unhelpful reviews and potential reinstatement.
• Business Owner Education: Emphasising the importance of educating business owners to avoid mistakes and improve profiles.
• Self-Grace: Encouraging giving oneself grace for learning and making changes.
• Industry News: Highlighting the importance of staying informed on industry news and Google updates.
• Resource Recommendations: Recommending resources like the SEO FOMO newsletter.
• Leveraging Reviews: Using reviews to boost Google visibility and repurpose client feedback into marketing.
• 5-Star Reviews: Strategies for obtaining 5-star reviews, including QR codes and automated reminders.
• Review Comparison: Comparing business reviews to Amazon product reviews for reputation management.
• Profile Optimisation: Avoiding blank profile sections and duplicate content to maintain ranking signals and personalised recommendations.
• Adaptation Encouragement: Encouraging adaptation to algorithm changes rather than blaming Google.

There are actually two ranking signals, let's call them, that are inherent in the reviews. The quantity of your reviews is in fact the signal and the star rating is a signal as well. So I have made it my life's mission to get as many of those as I can. And the reason why, in addition to those particular signals is the words that people use, because now I've got content to repurpose, not just taking that and putting it out to the masses, but also working in those sentiments into my own copy. Because now I'm made aware of how my clients felt working with me. And I assure you where there's one there's more, so there are a lot of avenues to look at those reviews through. – Richard Waine

What’s on Offer for Premium Members

If you’re on the fence about becoming a premium member, join with the $1 trial today and get access to the FULL interviews each week, a fantastic back catalogue of interviews, and have ALL future interviews delivered automatically to your phone or tablet.

Plus, special member-only interviews.

The first and foremost thing that I think all of us should do, if you own a business is to scrub your profiles, not just scrub it but make sure it's optimized well and it's properly maintained regularly. – Richard Waine

You'll also receive access to the members-only Secret Facebook Group, where you can connect with other Premium Members and interview guests to help, support and motivate you to take ideas you hear in each episode and put them into action. The group also has FB live video tutorials, role-play, and special live interviews. You will not find more friendly, motivated, caring and sharing photographers online.

Seriously, that's not all.

In addition to everything above, you'll get access to instructions on forming or joining a MasterMind Group with other premium members. These groups are super motivating, make you accountable, and build friendships with other pro photographers with motives similar to yours – to build a more successful photography business.

We have to educate ourselves. I think that if we're not doing those things, we're dropping the ball in one of many areas. Because not only is Google Business Profile, a form of local advertising, right, but it is also directly feeding into Google Maps. And remember, Google loves when you when you work with their properties. So we've got Google Business Profile, we got Google Maps, we've got Google search. All of their properties kind of come into play. And what happens when we're utilizing all of those platforms is that we make ourselves more searchable, easier to find. And believe me, people looking for business providers don't want to go to page 10 looking for somebody to help them. We want convenient. We want ease. We want the best for the job quality. – Richard Waine

What is your big takeaway?

Following this interview, I’d love to know if you're taking anything from what Richard shared. Is there something you heard that excited or motivated you to the point where you thought, yeah, I'm going to do that! If so, leave your thoughts in the comments below; let me know your takeaways and what you plan to implement in your business based on what you heard in today's episode.

As we go through the profiles, there may be a propensity to leave things blank. Don't leave anything unchecked or incomplete. Because the completeness of your profile is a ranking signal as well. So don't leave any stone unturned.- Richard Waine

If you have any questions I missed or a specific question you’d like to ask Richard, or if you want to say thanks for coming on the show, feel free to add them in the comments area below.

iTunes Reviews and Shout-outs

I check for any new iTunes or Google reviews each week, and it's always a buzz to receive these… for several reasons.

Firstly, it's confirmation that I'm on the right track with the interviews and that they are helping you improve your photography business. That's awesome!

Secondly, iTunes and Google are the most significant podcast search engines, and your reviews and ratings help other photographers find PhotoBizX. More listeners mean more interviews and, ultimately, a better show.

A review can make or break a business. You monitor them like their gold because my reputation is gold. At least to me it is, and hopefully my clients feel the same way. – Richard Waine

If you have left a review in the past, thank you! If you haven't and you'd like to, head to https://photobizx.com/itunes or https://photobizx.com/google. You can leave some honest feedback and a rating, which will help both me and the show. I'll be sure to thank you on the show and add a link to your website or blog if you let me know the URL of your website and your name.

Alternatively, if you've left a review for PhotoBizX and are looking for more backlinks to help your SEO, leave a review for the new Photography Xperiment Podcast. Email me your keywords or phrases and where you'd like me to link them.

Google makes up its own mind. Remember that while Google is a very useful tool for us as business owners, it's still Google's gain. They are not our friends. They're not even our enemy. They're just a tool in the toolbox. So we shouldn't look at them like a like a friend. They're not an ally. Google is a revenue generating behemoth. That's about it. The only thing on Google's mind is serving up better content so that they can get ad revenue, and they can make money in other ways. So for them, this is all a means to an end. And for us, we're looking at it like it's their fault. No, they're in it for themselves. Why aren’t we? – Richard Waine

Another great way to get a backlink to your site is to send a video testimonial. It doesn't need to be fancy, and your phone will be perfect. Click record and tell me how PhotoBizX has impacted you and your photography business.​

The post 576: Richard Waine – Master Your Google Business Profile… Top Tips for Photographers appeared first on Photography Business Xposed - Photography Podcast - how to build and market your portrait and wedding photography business.