Since announcing our Favorite Places on Google program in December, we've seen a lot of of excitement from the 190,000 businesses selected. That also led to questions from other business owners wondering how their business can become part of the next wave. Well, we're now getting ready to unveil the next batch of Favorite Places, so I wanted to make sure we gave some tips to all those (in the US) who are interested in being eligible before the March 1st deadline:
- Log in to Local Business Center with your Google account (or create a new one) at google.com/lbc
- Enter information for your business listings and verify that you are the business owner or authorized business listing manager by 12am PST on March 1. This means that you need to enter the PIN number that you receive by mail or by phone call by this deadline. You should allow 5-10 business days for your pin to arrive by mail - so get going now! If you are given the option to verify your listing by phone, the PIN will be delivered to you by an automated phone call within seconds. (Be sure to be ready to write it down).
- If you're identified as a Favorite Place, expect your decal with custom QR code to arrive within a few weeks. We'll let everyone know when the mailings have started to go out. You can learn more about the selection process here.
If you verified your listing between the middle of October 2009 and now, you can relax: your listing is already eligible to be recognized as a Favorite Place. Of course, registering with the Local Business Center won't guarantee you'll get one of the coveted stickers, but it is necessary for you to be considered! Retail chains are now eligible to participate - just make sure to request verification after you've uploaded your bulk feed. If you haven't requested verification for a feed that you've already provided, do it here.
In case you're wondering how you could possibly become a Favorite Place on Google with only a couple weeks of having your listing verified: in most cases your business has already been listed on Google for some time through various other data sources, and we have data on how that listing has performed. But when you claim the listing for your own business, it's the best indication to us that your business information is correct.
Businesses which verified their listing prior to October 2009 were already considered for the first wave of Favorite Places on Google, and won't be eligible for another decal at this time. However, if you were already recognized as a Favorite Place and your sticker has since been lost, damaged, or otherwise misplaced, you can request a replacement with this form.
Posted by Ryan Hayward, Product Marketing Manager
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