Latest / The Local Marketing Podcast with Fexingo: Small Business, Google Maps, and Local SEO / How a Used Bookstore Uses Google Maps for Discovery
Transcript
- Lucas: Alright Luna, I want to talk about a type of business that feels almost deliberately anti-marketing: the used bookstore. You know, the dusty, cramped, wonderful kind, where the owner barely looks up from their book when you walk in. Luna: I love those places. But you're right — they don't exactly scream 'digital marketing.' What's the angle here? Lucas: The angle is a used bookstore in Portland, Oregon called 'The Cat's Meow Books.' It's been around for twenty years, but until last year, its Google Maps presence was basically a name and an address. No photos, no attributes, no posts. Luna: So they were invisible online. I've seen that a lot with older small businesses. Lucas: Exactly. And the owner, a woman named Julie, told me she thought it didn't matter — her regulars knew where she was. But then a new Barnes & Noble opened about a mile away, and her foot traffic dropped twenty percent over three months. Luna: Ouch. That's a wake-up call. Lucas: Huge wake-up call. So she finally sat down and looked at her Google Business Profile. And she realized that Google Maps allows businesses to select attributes — like 'Used Books,' 'Rare Books,' 'Vintage,' 'Family-owned.' She hadn't selected any of them. She was just categorized as 'Bookstore.' Luna: And 'Bookstore' is a super broad category. You're competing with everyone from Barnes & Noble to airport newsstands. Lucas: Right. So she added three specific attributes: 'Used Books,' 'Rare Books,' and 'Family-owned.' Within two weeks, she told me her profile impressions from search went up forty percent. Not because she changed anything else, just because she told Google what she actually was. Luna: That's wild. So the algorithm was serving her to people searching for 'used bookstore Portland' or 'rare books Portland' — queries where she should have been the first result, but wasn't. Lucas: Exactly. And it gets better. She started adding photo updates — once a week, she'd post a photo of a new arrival, like a first edition of a John le Carré novel or a vintage cookbook. And she'd write a short caption: 'Just in, 1970s Joy of Cooking, $12.' Nothing fancy. Luna: But those photos show up in the local pack, right? And they give people a reason to click through. Lucas: They do. And she told me that within a month, she had customers walking in and saying, 'I saw that cookbook on Google Maps — I came to buy it.' That's direct attribution. She could trace a sale to a specific photo. Luna: I love that. It's such a low-effort tactic. A photo, a caption, done. No ad spend. Lucas: No ad spend at all. And she also started using the Q&A feature. She noticed that people were asking, 'Do you buy used books?' and 'What are your hours?' — she hadn't answered any of them. Once she answered those questions, they became visible to everyone who viewed her profile. Luna: So she's basically creating an FAQ that preempts the most common questions. That's smart. Lucas: And she told me the hours question was the biggest one — she's only open Friday through Monday, and people were driving by on a Tuesday and leaving bad reviews because she was closed. Once she put her hours in the Q&A, those complaints dropped off. Luna: That's a great example of how the details matter. It's not just about being found — it's about setting expectations so you don't annoy potential customers. Lucas: Right. And here's another detail: she added a 'Google Maps post' every Saturday morning. Just a simple update: 'This week's new arrivals include three first-edition Agatha Christies and a signed copy of 'Moby Dick.' All priced under $20.' She said that post alone brings in about ten extra visitors each Saturday. Luna: Ten people on a weekend — for a used bookstore, that's probably a significant bump. Lucas: She said it's about fifteen percent of her Saturday foot traffic. And she didn't have to do anything complicated. She just took a picture, wrote two sentences, and hit publish. Luna: So what's the takeaway for other small businesses listening? I think it's that you don't need a big budget. You just need to accurately describe what you are and show what you have. Lucas: Exactly. And don't underestimate the power of specificity. 'Bookstore' is generic. 'Used Books' and 'Rare Books' are specific. That's what makes you show up for the right searches. And honestly, if today's episode was worth a coffee to you, that's the link — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Keeps us ad-free and on topic. Luna: Yeah, it's a small way to support the show if you found this useful. We really appreciate it. Lucas: So back to Julie's story. One more thing she did: she added the attribute 'Vintage' — and suddenly her shop started appearing in searches for 'vintage Portland.' That brought in tourists who weren't even looking for books, but they came in, browsed, and often bought something. Luna: So she accidentally broadened her appeal just by using the right label. That's a great lesson — the attributes are like keywords for your business. Lucas: They really are. And Google is constantly updating the list of available attributes. So it's worth checking your dashboard every few months to see if there's something new you can add. Luna: Great advice. So to summarize: choose specific attributes, post regular photos, answer Q&A, and do a weekly post. That's a low-effort, high-impact checklist. Lucas: And it works for any small business, not just bookstores. A coffee shop could use 'Artisanal' or 'Local Roaster.' A salon could use 'Eco-friendly' or 'Organic Products.' The key is to be honest and specific. Luna: Thanks, Julie, for sharing your story. And thanks to you all for listening. We'll be back next week with another local marketing deep dive. Lucas: Until then, keep your Google profile fresh.