In this article, learn why Google Business View is the easiest, fastest, and most cost-effective marketing tool your
funeral home should use today.

You are probably familiar with and have even used Google Maps, a web mapping service application, and technology provided by Google, which offers satellite imagery, street maps, and Street View perspectives.  But did you know that Google Maps was expanded in 2012 to include Business View?  Business View allows businesses to showcase their interiors, enhance their Google presence, and influence potential customer decision making with a 360-degree, interactive virtual tour.  With the power of Business View, families can remotely walkthrough, explore, and interact with your funeral home from their desktop and/or mobile device.  And the best part about Business View is that it requires almost nothing to you and is extremely cost-effective. Let’s take a closer look at how Business View works.

To unleash the power of Google Business View, there are just two simple steps you must take. First, find a trusted photographer and, second, schedule a photoshoot of your funeral home.

Step 1: Find a trusted photographer

The first step is to find a Google certified or trusted photographer or agency. Google certified or trusted photographers are independent contractors/businesses who have been trained by Google to capture Business View tours for customers. These photographers meet Google’s quality standards for taking the feature and panoramic pictures and then uploading, editing, and eventually publishing them on Google properties. Finding a Google certified or trusted photographer is easy because Google maintains a list of these photographers that is searchable by state/region and even by city. This list may be accessed here.

Step 2: Schedule a photo shoot of your funeral home

After you find a Google certified or trusted photographer, the second step is to schedule a photoshoot with him or her at your funeral home. The average time on location for a photoshoot is one to two hours, but the length of time may vary depending on the size of your funeral home. During the photo shoot, the photographer will take the photos necessary to create your funeral home’s virtual tour. Then you can relax and let the photographer take care of the rest.

Using the Google-provided online software, the photographer will upload, edit, and publish your Business View tour across Google properties within just a few weeks.  Thus, when families search for your funeral home by name on Google, they will see the panoramic images displayed directly on the search page results. This will give families the opportunity to explore the layout, decor, and beauty of your funeral home.  The Business View tour will also be published on Google+ Local Business Page, Google My Business Page, Google Maps, and Google Search.

Cost-effective marketing

Not only is Google Business View easy and fast to implement, but it is arguably one of the most cost-effective marketing tools for your funeral home. For just the cost of the photographer’s time to shoot and publish your tour, you get a powerful marketing tool, hosted for free on Google properties. Because Google-certified or trusted photographers/agencies are not employees of or affiliated with Google, they set their own pricing.

They are expected, however, to offer their services at a fair market value.  The fair market value may vary based on your location and you may negotiate with photographers to agree on an acceptable price for the service.  You can expect to spend between $500-700 for a photo shoot of an average size funeral home, but costs could be as low as $300.  This is a one-time setup cost with no additional monthly or annual hosting/maintenance fees or mandatory re-shoots.  Finally, if you make any changes to your funeral home after the initial photo shoot, re-shoots can be requested as and when necessary.

An additional benefit of Google Business View is that the photos taken by the Google-certified or trusted photographer are the property of the business.  In other words, the photographer relinquishes all copyrights to you so that you are free to use the photos in any way you choose.  Business View can be embedded into your funeral home Facebook page, website, or any domain that supports HTML iframes.  Embedding Business View in these other places will help to increase your funeral home’s online presence, giving your funeral home website more impact in search engines. (See seven more free SEO training resources to check out now).

It’s time to let the power of Google Business View assist you in generating increased interest in and business for your funeral home.  Contact a Google certified or trusted photographer today to begin benefiting from Google Business View, the easiest, fastest, and most cost-effective marketing tool for your funeral home.