So what happened? Why would my Google Places/Maps not be showing up? What exactly is going on here?
Well Google has gone and done it again. They have started the process of migrating the Google Maps/Places over to Google + Local profile pages. This is a really exciting change and something that has been speculated within the Local SEO industry for the past year or so since Google + was first introduced. It to me is really interesting and at first I was a little scared to see this happen, but it is exciting to see that this is going to start getting more people to use Google +, and be more engaged in local businesses that they associate with. In a small way it is Google’s attempt to force you to use their social network, but in all reality though, it is a great platform where your property can be discussed and will increase your reach within Google’s network. Here is the official post that is from the Google Blog: 
“Finding the best places to go is an essential part of our lives, as are the people and resources that help us make those decisions. In fact, the opinions of friends, family or other trusted sources are often the first we seek when looking for the perfect restaurant for date night or the cafe that makes the best latte ever. Today, we’re rolling out Google+ Local, a simple way to discover and share local information featuring Zagat scores and recommendations from people you trust in Google+. Google+ Local helps people like my husband turn a craving—“Wow, I need brunchâ€â€”into an afternoon outing: “Perfect, there’s a dim sum place with great reviews just two blocks from here. Let’s go.†It’s integrated into Search, Maps and mobile and available as a new tab in Google+—creating one simple experience across Google.
Local information integrated across Google From the new “Local†tab on the left-hand side of Google+, you can search for specific places or browse for ones that fit your mood. If you click on a restaurant, or a museum (or whatever), you’ll be taken to a local Google+ page that includes photos, Zagat scores and summaries, reviews from people you know, and other useful information like address and opening hours. Google+ Local is also integrated across other products you already use every day. If you’re looking for a place on Search or Maps, you get the same great local information there too. You can also take it on the go with Google Maps for mobile on your Android device, and soon on iOS devices……..”
The blog post continues by describing how Zagat’s (which was purchased by Google last fall) rating system will be implemented for all properties. This is the breakdown of the rating scale:
Each individual user rating will be a 0 to 3 scale
3 Excellent
2 Very Good
1 Good
0 Poor to Fair
Google will then take these ratings and times them by 10 to get an average score
26-30 Extraordinary to Perfection
21-25 Very Good to Excellent
16-20 Good to Very Good
10-15 Fair to Good
0-9 Poor to Fair.
Then you and you’re friends reviews will actually be implemented into your search results, as you can see here in this video:
So this is what business owners should expect as far as ratings go when they are looking at their Google + Local pages. Â Also customers can post their reviews on these pages to go along with their rating. Once that has been in place, Â you as the owner can post your thoughts and respond to those reviews; if they are negative or feel that there is a need to have them addressed. In the end Google expects things to end up like this:
It is a very exciting change and something that businesses needs to get on top of. Take a look at your local listing and make sure you have it connected to your Google + page. If you don’t have one, please build one! I would be happy to get this taken care of for you. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns about this new update in the comments below.
PS, this is a little more in-depth compared to the post I originally wrote on Property Solution’s Blog which can be found here
