Companies know about the (increasing) relevance of Google's local results, especially in relation to up-to-date information and customer reviews. Users have been able to rate companies for a long time . This function is actively used, both by submitting your own ratings and by viewing existing ratings from other users.

The new function, as a user being able to ask questions and answer the questions of other users, can and should be used sensibly by companies. Because if a user has a question, there are bound to be others who would like to know the answer.

What is Google Questions and Answers?

The feature was first introduced in August 2017 and is a kind of FAQ (frequently asked questions) section in the Google My Business listing. The function allows users to ask questions about the company publicly. These are displayed directly in the local Google search results, more precisely in the Google My Business entry of the respective company (see screenshot below). Google wants to use this to provide potential customers with more details about the company and thus further influence the intention to call or visit the company.

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Ther following clip shows you how it works

Users can respond to questions

Since not only companies but also users can answer questions, entry owners should react as quickly as possible. On the one hand, they can ensure that the answer is correct. On the other hand, a quick response from the owner makes a positive impression on potential customers.

To show that the reply came from the owner of an entry, it is marked "Response from the owner". To do this, however, it is necessary for the owner to be logged in to his account when answering the question . This is the only way Google can assign ownership.

Questions and answers can be marked as helpful

Users can mark answers as particularly helpful with a "thumbs up", regardless of whether they come from the owner or another user. This increases the relevance of questions and answers, which in turn affects the order in which they are displayed. The more positive feedback, the higher up the question or answer is displayed. Therefore, you should react quickly to new questions and give answers that are as accurate as possible.

Account holders are notified in real-time via email

Because Google notifies the account owner of new questions and answers via email in real time, editing is quick and easy.

Another way to be notified is via push notification on the smartphone. To do this, however, the person who manages the Google My Business entry must have the Google Maps app installed on their smartphone and always be logged into the corresponding company account. If this is the case, the notifications can be switched on in the Google Maps app as follows:

Settings -> Notifications -> My Posts -> Community Questions and Answers

You can easily answer questions or ask your own questions in the respective Google My Business entry in Google Search or on Google Maps. However, an answer from the Google My Business dashboard is currently not possible.

our recommendation

As with reviews, respond to each question as quickly as possible. If a question is too extensive or specific, please refer to your customer service in your answer.

If you have an FAQ section on your website, you can simply ask this question yourself and answer it at the same time. To do this, simply log into your account and ask the question as a user would otherwise. Then answer them and refer to your FAQ area.