I have had this question come up a couple of times this week now that people are paying closer attention to their Google My Business listing, with its growing importance. Google provides an option on the back end of your GMB that says “Website”. A few business owners have asked if they need to create a website there. If you already have a website, the answer is a simple no. Google provided this as a tool for businesses that exist out there and have a listing to provide a website if they don’t have one. Now, if you think you can make a website with their tool that is better than your current one, it may be an option.
It is important for businesses to have a website and Google has stepped into the hosting world so it may be at least a first step for a new business to have a decent website up there representing their business, but if you have already invested in a quality website, you are probably better off than what the tool provides. It won’t have any history and though it is free, it costs money to actually put it on a real domain that you would own, rather than a generic and long domain that most would not remember. In short, it is an entryway for a new or small business without a website, and knowing Google, the functionality will get better over time. For those that use some of the other “free” website tools, it may be worth looking at this one as an alternative. I should warn you that if you have built up a history with a website and have links coming in, it is usually not a great idea to shift domains without going through some SEO processes to avoid throwing away your site’s ranking strength.
If you are looking for a quick and easy website to get yourself started though, it is worth checking into. You need to have a verified Google My Business listing to do it, but that isn’t too hard. You can claim your GMB pretty easily.
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