previous icon Back to blog
Jun 19, 2022
4 minutes read

What Is Google Business Messages, Google Mobile Conversational Channel?

Google Business Messages launched in 2017 and has been gaining traction over the past couple of years. With desktop emerging in 2021, it's a great solution for businesses and customers to interact directly from their Google My Business listing. We’ve broken down everything you need to know about Google Business Messages to prepare you for this new addition to your omnichannel toolkit.

Google’ 92% market share accounts for billions of searches per day, with 56% searching on mobile devices. With consumers expecting instant responses from brands, Google Business Messages is becoming increasingly popular, both for businesses and customers looking for rapid information exchange to drive conversion.

Your Direct Connection to Customers' Searches

Google’s Business Messages is the conversational channel that forms part of Google My Business offering, which marries business information, detailed mapping via Google Maps, one-click eCommerce, and a social media element under one roof.

Business Messages allows instant messaging with potential customers and integrates with Google Gmail inbox to make conversations easily searchable from within Gmail’s interface.

What are the Benefits of Google Business Messages? >

How Does Google Business Messages Work?

Business Messages works by allowing people who find your business via Google search to use the ‘chat’ function to send you an instant message. You can set up notifications to allow you to instantly see new messages as they appear and you can chat directly with potential customers via the Google My Business platform, or using a third-party platform via the Business Messaging API.

How to Message a Business on Google?

Once you’ve discovered a business via Google, provided they’ve opted to turn Business Messaging on, you’ll see a chat button on their Google Business listing within your search results. Click the chat button to interact directly with the brand. Depending on how the business has set up Business Messaging, you may see a list of predefined questions, or you can opt to ask your own specific question.

googles-business-messages-chat

How Do I check Google Business Messages?

If you have notifications enabled, any device that’s logged into the corresponding Google device can receive a push notification whenever a message arrives in your inbox. That way you can respond instantly should you wish to. In addition, since Business Messages can be integrated with your Google inbox, you’ll also receive an email showing the message and allowing you to respond directly with a click from your inbox, giving you multiple options to get a response to your customers quickly. That’s just as well since Google reserves the right to turn off the chat button if you take over 24 hours to respond to messages to preserve the customer’s experience.

How to Respond to Google Business Messages?

Once you’ve been notified you have a message, you have a few routes to respond. You can respond directly from your mobile device or desktop via Google messaging interface, or you can integrate Google Business Messages into an omnichannel inbox to make it part of your social media management process.

googles-business-messages chat

However, if you want to manage your Google Business profile, giving customers as much access to your team as possible can only be a good thing.

channel-advisor-images-blog-en

Manage All Your Messaging Channels with CM.com

As an official partner of Google Business Messages, we would be happy to discuss how you can integrate Google’s Business Messages into your existing marketing channels, get in touch today and we can tailor a unique solution for your business

Connect Google Business Messages With CM.com Today

Was this article interesting?
Share it!
Christel Brouwers
Copywriter at CM.com. Passionate about language and getting CM.com’s message out there. Shares content about CPaaS, Payments and more.

Latest Articles

sms-vs-mms-vs-rcs
Feb 08, 2024 • SMS

SMS vs MMS - What is the Difference?

There are many different ways to send text messages, and the various names and acronyms may start to feel daunting. In this blog, we'll tell you everything about SMS and MMS.

sms-in-ecommerce
Feb 07, 2024 • SMS

SMS for eCommerce - Create a Successful eCommerce Strategy With SMS

Want to grow your business? Then customer contact is key. Now that everybody and everything is connected to each other via those powerful little computers in our hands, the way you communicate with customers is becoming increasingly important for your succes. Read all about how you can use SMS to elevate your customer contact, drive sales and create that loyal customer base.

how-popular-is-sms
Feb 07, 2024 • SMS

How Popular Is SMS in 2024 and What Is Its Added Value for Business?

SMS is one of the oldest text messaging services, and the rise of instant messaging apps definitely made a dent in SMS traffic. Contrary to the newer apps with their rich features, SMS is quite basic in its features- plain text messages, not fluff, and a character limit of 160. Regardless, SMS is still one of the most impactful communication channels today. Read all about SMS statistics and its continued value to modern business communication.

drive-engagement-and-convert-your-conversations-with-whatsapp-carousel
Feb 01, 2024 • WhatsApp

Drive Engagement and Convert Your Conversations With WhatsApp Carousel

Are you already talking to your customers on WhatsApp? You really should! WhatsApp Business Platform, the business communication platform of one of the most popular messaging channels in the world today, has a wide selection of powerful engagement tools to enhance customer communication and boost sales. And they've added another innovative feature under their belt: WhatsApp Carousel.

WhatsApp vs Facebook Messenger
Jan 17, 2024 • Instant Messaging

WhatsApp vs Facebook Messenger: Which Messaging Channel is Best for What?

WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger are both established messaging channels for customer engagement. But what are the differences? Which advantages does each channel have for what business use case? Let's dive into the details

live-meta
Oct 31, 2023 • SMS

Why SMS Remains as Essential as Ever for Black Friday

One might assume that SMS has lost relevance in an era dominated by popular messaging channels such as WhatsApp and Instagram. However, when it comes to Black Friday, one of the most anticipated shopping events of the year, SMS remains as important as ever. While consumers are bombarded with emails, push notifications, and social media advertisements, the humble SMS message, with its 98% open rate, often cuts through the noise and connects businesses with eager shoppers.

black-friday-channels
Oct 31, 2023 • Messaging

Boost Black Friday Sales with WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook

Black Friday stands out as one of the most anticipated shopping events of the year, with online sales growing 3.5% to $65.3 billion globally in 2022. With this, big and small businesses will strive for maximum exposure. Yet, this task is far from straightforward. Retailers must compete to be visible, overcome high advertising costs, and meet escalating customer expectations to cut through the noise and drive conversion. Moreover, every touchpoint in the customer journey represents a make-or-break opportunity to form relationships and drive transactions, or risk losing a consumer’s interest and trust.

messaging-fraud-and-prevention-for-businesses
Sep 25, 2023 • Security

Combat SMS Pumping (AIT) Fraud Effectively With CM.com

In this digital era, providing the optimal customer experience means connecting and engaging with your customers online on their favorite platforms and channels. Online (automated) customer engagement and A2P (application-to-person) messaging is bigger than ever, which unfortunately also means that messaging fraud is on the rise. Artificially Inflated Traffic (AIT) fraud has become an alarming issue in the telecommunications industry, but worry not! CM.com has built the perfect safeguard feature to protect your business endeavors from AIT fraud.

facebook-chatbot-1
Sep 22, 2023 • Chatbots

Chatbots in Action: Facebook Chatbots

In the real world, people use different environments to achieve different goals. They’ll go to brick-and-mortar shops to compare prices and competitors. Visit a showroom to experience products up close. Or schedule a meeting to see a live demo. But is that how it works in the digital world? Yes, it is. The digital world has various environments, too, from websites to messaging channels, social platforms and more.

Is this region a better fit for you?
Go
close icon