Google My Business Launch and Facebook Plans to Sell Web Browsing Data

Google

Based on brands’ feedback that it’s tough to find their loyal customers, Google is making it easier for businesses to connect with the latter.

Here comes ‘Google My Business’…a free and easy way for brands to connect with customers wherever they are.

With Google My Business, you can:

• Update business information on Google Search, Maps and Google+ from one place making it easy for customers to connect with you. This also helps in making sure you provide consistent information to customers across platforms.
• Add pictures of your business and provide customers with a virtual tour of your business, giving them a glimpse of your company
• Connect with your customers on Google+ by sharing updates about events and important news
• Monitor and respond to Google reviews
• Gain insights and integration with AdWords Express and understand how people find and interact with you
• Manage your brand’s information even when you are on the move with the Google My Business Android app and the soon-to-be launched iOS app

Google will be moving brands using Places for Business and the Google+ Dashboard onto Google My Business along with adding new businesses.

Facebook

User browsing data and information about the apps they have downloaded will now be provided to advertisers by Facebook.

Announcing this through a blog post, Facebook said this move was to help users see more personalized ads. The rollout will be limited to US based users initially.

However, users can opt out of this feature by clicking on this link and selecting the companies they want to opt out from. Users can also opt out from Facebook’s iOS and Android apps.

Implications

With Google’s update, brands can now:

• Connect with customers better and also when they are on the move
• Manage consistent brand messaging
• Keep an eye on customer reviews more easily and respond

Until now, Facebook could target users with ads based on their behavior on the social network only. You can now target users based on their extended web activities. For example, if a user wants to buy a subscription for a PPC service and is searching for it, you can show him/her ads about PPC services using this data. With users choosing to research online increasingly before making purchases, brands can benefit immensely from this data.