How do you complete Google My Business Questions & Answers when a customer hasn’t submitted a question?

You write the questions yourself and answer them.

Wait, that’s deceptive, Mark.

Well, first of all, you’re not claiming that a specific client, like Terrance, asked you a specific question.

And if you’re approaching Google My Business (GMB) Q&A with your customer in mind, then you’re doing all your potential customers a favor by answering the common questions that many will have.

By the way, when you answer common customer-questions you’re doing yourself a favor too because it’s also good marketing.

How so?

For one, answering questions shows that you’re going above-and-beyond with your customer care.

In addition, you can also address common “barrier-to-entry” themes in a way that will give your potential client/customer peace of mind.

And icing on the cake is that Google likes it when you check all the GMB boxes.

So, in order to squeeze every drop of marketing juice from your GMB Q&A I’ve categorized the most important questions that customers have asked me during my 25+ years as a business owner.

Here are my categories:

1. COVID-19 questions
2. 1^st-time client questions
3. Barrier-to-entry questions
4. Set-yourself-apart questions.

Before we jump into the questions I need to show you how to add questions to your GMB page.

You are not going to do this in your account.

You are actually going to do a Google search for your business. When you do, your GMB page will come up on the side. Scroll down your page until you see Questions and Answers and click on Ask a Question.

You can check out our GMB page by Googling PressurePerfect Massage.

Okay, now to the questions.

COVID-19 Questions

Letting potential customers know the COVID-19 safety measures you have implemented is a must. And a Q&A format is a great way to get that information out.

Here’s an example of how you could do Q&A around COVID-19:

Q: Does the massage therapist wear a mask during the massage?

Yes. The massage therapist will wear a N95, double-layer cotton mask or a 3-ply surgical mask during the massage.

In addition, we limit the number of people in our office at a time to two, each room has a HEPA air filter unit and each room is thoroughly disinfected after each massage.

Q: Do I need to wear a mask during the massage?

No. Therapists are trained to dodge droplets.

Haha. Okay, here’s my real answer:

Yes. To help protect all clients we require everyone in the office to wear a mask at all times. We offer disposable medical masks for anyone who wants one. Some clients prefer the disposable medical mask while on the table because there’s flex to the material.

Q: What do I do when I arrive?

In order to assure that you’re not in the office when another client is in the office, please stay in your car and the massage therapist will come out to get you or will text you when it’s okay to come in.

Safety questions like these are the number one thing that I’d want answered if I were looking for a massage right now, especially if I were a first-time client.

Speaking of first-time clients, here are some Q&A that we have on our GMB page.

First-Time Client Questions

Q: Do I need to fill out an intake?

Yes. Please go to our website www.pressureperfectmassage.com. Scroll down and towards the bottom of the page you’ll find an intake-form link. Click on the link and you can either print out the form, fill it out and bring it in with you when you come for your appointment or you can complete the form as a Word doc and email it to  mark@pressureperfectmassage.com.

Q: How should I pay?

We take cash, check, credit card, Paypal or Venmo.

Also, in case you didn’t know, we have a no tipping policy. It keeps the math easy and you don’t need to worry about running to the ATM before your massage.

Q: Do I keep my clothes on during the massage?

Disrobe to your comfort level. During the massage, you’ll be covered by a blanket and sheet. When the massage therapist is working a particular area, she/he will expose only the area she/he is working while keeping everything else covered.

For example, if the massage therapist is working your back, the sheet and blanket will be covering your entire lower-body.

At this point, you may be noticing that some first-time Q&A sound a lot like barrier-to-entry questions.

For example, a 1^st-time massage customer may want to know how much he needs to disrobe for the massage, and at the same time disrobing could be considered a barrier-to-entry because of the general uncertainty around disrobing.

So, now I want to focus on barrier-to-entry questions that are not necessarily 1^st-time client questions.

Barrier-To-Entry Questions

Q: Do you do charge extra for deep pressure massage?

No. We charge the same price for relaxation, deep pressure and sports massage.

Q: Do you accept insurance?

We accept Workers’ Compensation. We would like to accept auto or health insurance, but they are not reimbursed in PA.

 Q: Is massage helpful when I’m going to PT?

You’ll need to ask your PT that question as it relates to your case. That said, when we’re working with a client who is in PT, we encourage the client to allow us to coordinate care with the physical therapist.

For example, say you strained your back and are going to PT and are now coming to see us. With your consent we would reach out to your PT so that we could all be on the same page to getting you healthy.

The last category of questions is set-yourself-apart questions. And like 1^st-time-client and barrier-to-entry, there’s cross-over. That’s okay. The point is not have sharply defined categories. The point is to make sure that your Q&A section is helpful to potential customers and puts your best foot forward.

Set-Yourself-Apart Questions

When you’re thinking of set-yourself-apart questions, think of your massage and massage business strong points. Here’s one we use:

Q: Do you work with runners?

Yes. Runners come to see us for help with plantar fasciitis, tibialis posterior tendinopathy, hamstring strains, IT band syndrome and other running issues.

We also help runners who are training for events by being part of their recovery and monitoring process.

In addition, we collaborate with running coaches and personal trainers to help their clients reach their running goals.

Q: Do you work with chiropractors?

Yes. We coordinate care with chiropractors, physical therapists, personal trainers, exercise physiologists and other medical/health professionals because being on the same page is the key to achieving health/wellness goals.

As you work on your Q&A information you may start to notice that a narrative is emerging. In other words, each answer to a question is defining who you are as a business, and themes and sub-themes are starting to emerge.

Your Business Narrative

Take a look at our boiled-down version of our GMB Q&A page:

Does the massage therapist wear a mask? Yes.

Do I need to wear a mask? Yes

What do I do when I arrive? Stay in your car.

Do I fill out an intake? Yes—email it or bring it in.

Do I take my clothes off for the massage? Disrobe to comfort level.

How do I pay? Cash, check, credit card, Paypal, Venmo. No tipping.

Do you charge extra for deep pressure? No.

Do you accept insurance? Only Workers’ Compensation

Is massage helpful when going to PT? We defer to your PT and we’ll co-ordinate care with your PT.

Do you work with runners? Yes—and we coordinate care with running coaches and personal trainers.

Do you work with chiropractors? Yes—and we coordinate care with chiropractors and any health/wellness professional you would like us to contact.

Here’s the narrative that emerges in my brain from reading our short-version Q&A:

PressurePerfect takes Covid-19 safety very seriously. They go out of their way to ensure that you are as safe as possible when getting a massage. They are health and wellness oriented and routinely coordinate care with other health professionals to help your reach your health and wellness goals.

Guess what? That narrative is not new. It’s the same narrative that’s on our website and on our Yelp page.

I need to mention that I chose the word “narrative” to describe what you offer to your clients over other words like “messaging” or “branding”.

I did that for a reason. To me, “branding” and “messaging” feel more market-y, and “narrative” makes me think harder about who I am and what I have to offer.

But don’t get hung up on the words. Whether you call it a “narrative”, “messaging” or “branding”, you’re relaying specific information—who you are and what you offer—to the customer.

The good thing here is that once you figure out what your narrative is, you can plug it into all of your social media and free, online advertising platforms, like GMB and Yelp.

GMB Q&A Recap

Here’s my GMB Q&A recap:

Create the questions for these 4 categories:

1. COVID-19 questions
2. 1^st-time client questions
3. Barrier-to-entry questions
4. Set-yourself-apart questions.

Answer how you’re keeping clients safe as possible.

Address the fears of 1^st-timers.

Remove common barrier-to-entry concerns.

Show how your business is different from the businesses around you.

And as you’re creating the Q&A section on your GMB page, pay attention to the business narrative that’s emerging.

Are you creating questions that emphasize your relaxation massage?

Are you creating questions that sell rehab massage?

What are the questions that your ideal customer is asking?

That narrative should be consistent in all of your advertising.

If you already know your narrative, plug it into your GMB Q&A.

Need Help?

If you want to work with me to get your business off the ground, the easiest and cheapest way is to sign up for the Accelerator Program.

It has the GMB plan that I used to build and grow my business. It also has my referral building (word of mouth) plan as well as all of my free (or very low cost) tactics for building a business using strategic effort rather than paid-for advertising.

Lastly it has me in it–3 months of email support. Email me with any questions have you and we’ll get it done together.

Accelerator