Creating a Google Places listing is just the beginning for local marketing. In this tutorial, you will learn how to add photos, offers and reviews to a Google Places page. (If you haven’t created a listing yet, then check this guide first – How to Claim Your Business on Google Places).

Step 1: Log into Google Places

Use your login to access the Google Places dashboard.

Step 2: Edit your page

When you signed up for Google Places, you had the opportunity to add photos to your page, if you didn’t include them at that point, you may add images by clicking on the edit button, above your business information, on the right.

Step 3: Collect photos for your page

If you have a brick and mortar business, you may want to add photos of your shop. Helpful photos may include the front of your shop, the parking area, specialty products, etc. Remember when adding photos, keep safety in mind. There are photos which you wouldn’t want to include such as the registers and security system components.

Step 4: Add photos to your page

Once you’ve collected or selected your photos, scroll down the page to the photo section. You may choose to upload photos from your computer or add a photo that is already online. Here we are uploading a photo from the computer.

Select add a photo from your computer. Click the browse button and then the add photo button to upload it to your page. Click the submit button at the bottom of the page when finished. You may upload up to 10 images.

Step 5: Create an offer

You can let your Google Places audience know when you are running a special or have a coupon. From your dashboard page, you should click on the “offers” tab.

You will be taken to the offers page that will give you a brief overview of offers. To begin creating your offer, click the “add an offer now” button at the bottom of the offers page.

Step 6: Add offer details

You will be taken to a page where you can add information about your offer or coupon. You can add headlines, offer details, coupon codes, expire dates, photos and more.

Begin by adding a headline, sub-heading, details, and an image. When you add an image, you will see a popup which allows you to choose and edit the image. This image is placed in the top left corner of your printable coupon.

Next you will insert or select the expiration date, offer code, distribution type, and redemption location.

As you add details, you can preview the offer at the right. There are two types of previews. You can see the printable view or the offer view as it will show on Google maps.

The printable preview looks like this:

Note: When adding a photo/image, it’s best to use a square image. Although the image looks skewed on the preview, it looks fine on the actual coupon. Be sure to check it when you’re finished.

The Google map preview looks like this:

Your actual map listing may look something like this:

Note: Here you see a link to the offer and a review. To see the offer, click on the link and you will see the previous image. Click the new link and you will see the printable coupon.

Step 7: Respond to reviews

Now that you’re curious about the review, let’s talk about replying to reviews when a customer adds a review to your page.

There are two ways you can get to the appropriate screen where you will add your reply. You may either click on the “view” link in the top of the sidebar or you may click on the “review” link, found in the section below.

You will be taken to a new page. On this page, scroll down to the review section. Click on the “Respond publicly as the owner” link to open the reply box.

Add your reply and click on the “publish” button.

This is how the review and reply will look from your “owner” screen after you publish.

Note: If you have and want to respond to “Reviews from around the web,” you must visit the respective website to do so.

Now that you know how to add photos, offers, and reviews , you can make your Google Places page more interactive and profitable.

So, you’re ready to publish a book on the Nook. Not so fast! Have you covered all your bases? Miss one crucial step and you could botch your whole launch.

Before you upload your book, look through this checklist to make sure you’ve taken every necessary step.

Have You … Said Something Truly Unique?

For your book to really take off, it has to have something really different about it. People can’t pick up the book and think it seems like every other book they’ve ever read.

Becoming a bestseller on the Nook is only slightly easier than becoming a bestseller in paperback. Your book must stand out.

Give your book to a few people in your target market before launching. When they give you feedback, are they excited? Or do they simply say it’s good? Keep working on your book until people you show it to absolutely love it.

Have You … Formatted Your Document?

Formatting for the Nook is different than formatting for the Kindle or for the iBookstore.

One of the biggest differences is that you can’t use page breaks; but have to use section breaks instead.

Most of Word’s basic features, such as underlining, bolding and bulleting will work on the Nook. However, other features, like symbols or image wrapping won’t come out properly.

Make sure you’ve formatted your document properly before uploading. You can upload in HTML, DOC or TXT files.

Have You … Tested Your Cover Image?

Your cover will have a bigger impact on your sales than just about anything else in your description. Have you tested it to make sure it’s the best cover you can possibly have?

The best way to test your cover is to have 5-6 different covers done, then have your friends look over them. Get different opinions from 10 to 20 people and choose the one that people consistently say is the best.

Have You … Got an ISBN Number?

An ISBN number isn’t required to publish on the Nook. However, having one can add a lot of credibility for your book. If you’re serious about making your book a success, the $25 ISBN fee is a small price to pay.

Have You … Honed Your Pitch?

Why should someone buy your book? Barnes & Nobles advocates this approach to writing your description: Imagine someone asked you what your book is about at a dinner party. You have to “sell” your book in 30 seconds. What would you say?

Now take that pitch and turn it into your book’s description. It should catch attention, tell people what the book is about, hook their curiosity and get them to buy.

Have You … Got an Inspiring and Credible Bio?

Before someone buys your book, one of the first things they’re going to look at is who you are. Do you seem like a credible person? Do you have the credentials to write the book you wrote? Why should they trust you?

When you’re writing your bio, focus on the credibility building aspects. For example, if you’re writing a business book, people will care a lot less about where you grew up or what you’re passionate about than what your business track record is. Even if you’re writing a fiction book, you should still focus on your track record as an author.

Make your bio “snap” and fun to read, but make sure it also adds credibility.

Have You … Collected Blurbs and Testimonials?

Blurbs and testimonials should go in the beginning of your book, as well as at the bottom of your description. They can help convey other people’s excitement and get your readers excited as well.

Getting testimonials is easy. Just send the book to a few of your friends, have them email you their thoughts and put those thoughts in your book.

Have You … Got Editorial Reviews?

In the Nook, editorial reviews get a section of their own.

That means there’s a huge opportunity to build credibility by adding a few editorial reviews.

An editorial review is a review by someone who’s respected in your industry. For example, a journalist, a well known author, an editor of a well known publication or a CEO of a prominent company.

Have You … Leveraged Bloggers, Reviewers and Reading Groups?

One of the best ways to sell a Nook book is to get a ton of reviews, both on the web and in the Nook store.

To get reviews on the web, contact bloggers and review sites that write about your industry. Offer to send them a free copy of your book to review.

To get a lot of reviews in the Nook store, look for reading groups. These are groups of people who read Nook books. They often focus around specific categories of books. Find one of these groups and offer your book for free to the entire group, in exchange for reviews.

7 Steps to Use Google Places to its Full Potential