Latest / The Local Marketing Podcast with Fexingo: Small Business, Google Maps, and Local SEO / How a Local Yoga Studio Uses Google Maps to Fill Classes
Transcript
- Lucas: So, Luna, we talk a lot on this show about local service businesses — plumbers, dentists, roofers — but one category we haven't really touched is wellness and fitness, specifically yoga studios. Luna: Right, and I think that's a missed opportunity because yoga studios live and die by local visibility. You're not shipping a product — people have to walk through your door. Lucas: Exactly. And the data backs that up. BrightLocal did a survey a couple years back — 76 percent of people who search for a local business on their phone visit within 24 hours. For a yoga studio, that's potentially a same-day class booking. Luna: So what's the playbook? I imagine it's different from a plumber who just needs you to call when your pipe bursts. Lucas: It is. I talked to the owner of a studio in Portland called 'Flex and Flow' — it's a small operation, maybe 15 classes a week, two instructors including herself. She told me that for months her Google Business Profile was basically just a digital business card. Address, phone number, hours. That was it. Luna: And she was wondering why her classes weren't filling? Lucas: Right. She was relying on Instagram and email. But when she actually looked at her Google Maps insights, she found that people were finding her listing, clicking through to her website, but not booking. So the visibility was there, but the conversion wasn't. Luna: What was the bottleneck? Lucas: She didn't have Google Posts active. And she wasn't using Attributes. Those two things alone, once she set them up, drove a 40 percent increase in class bookings over three months. Luna: That's a huge lift. Let's break that down — what exactly did she change? Lucas: First, Google Posts. She started publishing a new post every Monday morning — the class schedule for the week, with a title like 'Flow into the Week' or 'Midweek Reset', a photo of the studio, and a 'Book now' button that linked directly to her booking page. Luna: So it's not just a static listing anymore — it's updated content every week. Lucas: Exactly. Google shows that post in the local search results and in Maps. And she told me that within two weeks, she had five new students who said they found her through that specific post. Luna: That's immediate ROI. What about the Attributes? Lucas: Attributes are those little checkboxes on your Google profile — things like 'Has mats available', 'Has parking', 'Accepts credit cards'. She had ignored them. Once she went in and checked 'Has mats', 'Has changing rooms', 'Wheelchair accessible', 'Street parking', she noticed her profile started showing up for more specific searches — like 'yoga with mats provided' or 'accessible yoga studio'. Luna: Because people actually search for those specifics. Lucas: Right. And the Q&A section was another piece. She hadn't answered any questions. There were three unanswered questions on her profile — things like 'Do you have beginner classes?' and 'What's the parking situation?' — that had been sitting there for months. Luna: That's a terrible look. Someone asks a question and it's just… dead air. Lucas: Yeah. She answered all of them within a day. And she proactively added a FAQ post — 'Everything you need to know before your first class' — as a Google Post. That alone got over 200 views in the first month. Luna: So what's the one thing a yoga studio owner should do this week if they're listening? Lucas: I'd say start with Photos. Google Business Profiles with more than 100 photos get 520 percent more calls and 2,700 percent more direction requests than those with fewer than 10. That's from Google's own data. She uploaded 30 photos — shots of the studio space, instructors in poses, even a short video walkthrough. Luna: And that's free. It just takes an afternoon to snap some decent phone photos. Lucas: Yeah, exactly. And she said the video especially helped — people commented on how welcoming the space looked. That's the kind of social proof that a review can't always convey. Luna: I love that. Before we go deeper, I want to mention something — and this ties right into the idea of investing time in your profile. A handful of listeners help keep this show ad-free and sustainable through buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. That small group is literally the reason we can do deep dives like this without sponsors. Lucas: Yeah, and it means we can focus entirely on what actually works for local businesses. So if these conversations have sparked something you've actually used, that's the place. But back to the yoga studio — she also started responding to every review. Luna: Every single one? How many was that? Lucas: She had about 40 reviews at the time. She responded to all of them within a week. Thanking people by name, mentioning specific things they said. Google's algorithm rewards profiles with active engagement — and more importantly, potential students read those responses. Luna: It signals that the business cares. I know I check reviews and responses before I book a class. Lucas: Absolutely. And she told me that after she started responding, she saw a noticeable uptick in new reviews. People felt acknowledged. One review said 'The owner took the time to write a personal note — that's rare.' And that review itself drives more trust. Luna: So the whole thing is a virtuous cycle. Better profile leads to more bookings, more reviews, more visibility. Lucas: Exactly. And the numbers bear it out. Over three months, her Google profile views went from about 300 per month to over 1,200. Direction requests doubled. And she booked 40 percent more classes. Luna: What about the competition? Portland has a lot of yoga studios. Lucas: It does. But she said most of her competitors still have bare-bones profiles. No posts, no attributes, no photos. So just doing the basics put her ahead of the pack. Luna: That's encouraging for any small business owner — you don't need a massive budget. You just need to show up on the platform. Lucas: Right. And be consistent. She committed to one post per week, one new photo per week, and responding to every review within 48 hours. That's maybe 30 minutes a week total. Luna: That's less than a single class. What about Google Ads? Did she try those? Lucas: She did a small test — $200 over two weeks on Local Services Ads. But she said the organic improvements from the profile optimization actually outperformed the ads for her. The ads got clicks but not as many bookings. So she paused them and focused on the free stuff. Luna: That's a good lesson — optimize your free tools before you start spending money. Lucas: Absolutely. And she also started using Google's 'What's new' posts to promote special events — a new moon flow, a beginner workshop. Those posts got featured in the local search results prominently. Luna: So the playbook is: Photos, Posts, Attributes, Reviews. In that order? Lucas: I'd say start with Photos because it's the quickest win. Then Attributes, because it helps with specific search queries. Then start a weekly post schedule. And respond to every review as they come in. If you do those four things, you're already ahead of maybe 80 percent of local businesses. Luna: And for a yoga studio specifically, what's the one thing that's unique? Lucas: I think it's the Q&A. Yoga attracts a lot of first-timers who are nervous. They want to know if they need to bring a mat, what to wear, if it's okay to be a beginner. Answering those questions publicly on your profile removes the friction. Luna: That makes total sense. So you're not just a listing — you're a resource. Lucas: Exactly. And the studio owner said that after she answered those questions, she got three messages from people who said they had been hesitant to book, but the answers gave them confidence. Luna: That's the kind of story that makes the effort worth it. Lucas: Yeah. So if you're running a yoga studio — or any local service where trust and convenience matter — start treating your Google profile like a landing page, not a directory listing. Luna: Great advice. And for our listeners, we'll put links to the specific tools mentioned in the show notes. Thanks, Lucas. Lucas: Thanks, Luna. Next week, we'll look at how a local laundromat used Google Maps to double its foot traffic.