Matt Smith, Senior Director of SEO at Edmunds

During these uncertain times, keeping customers up-to-date on the status of your business has become more difficult — but arguably more important than ever. To help businesses, Google launched a new "Announcements" feature, which you can access through your Google My Business listing. Use "Announcements" to notify customers of changes to your business, including:

• Temporary closures and changes to operating hours
• Safety precautions being taken by your dealership
• In-stock, low-stock, or out-of-stock announcements for high demand vehicles, with the opportunity to mentioning specific make and models
• Highlighting any special incentives being offered for a limited time

When you post an "Announcement," it will be featured at the top of your Google My Business listing. This feature is an excellent way to help visitors understand whether you are open, have modified your hours, or anything else. Here’s how you add Announcements to your My Google Business profile:

Here at Edmunds, we have added our coronavirus-related announcements to our pages as seen below. These are good examples of the types of announcements you could share on your Google My Business page. Always remember that with any Google My Business changes you should try to track everything! Use UTM tracking to measure a link's clicks and see if it converts to leads. We're here to help you succeed: please reach out to your rep or dealersupport@edmunds.com if you would like to learn more.