Google Things to Do helps customers discover new and unique things to do. It also makes it easier for you to promote your tours, attractions, and activities and connect with interested consumers. With Things to Do, you can easily integrate your Xola products within your settings.
This will help get your products in front of the hundreds of millions of people who come to Google daily for travel needs. Google is there to help you get discovered, with the choice to list for free or advertise on Google.
To learn more, click here.
What's covered in this article:
How to Get Started
Install the Google Things to Do App
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Log in to your Xola Account
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Go to the App Store.
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Locate the Google Things to Do app and click the green Install button.
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Configure Your Business Settings
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Go to Settings > Apps.
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Find Google Things to Do > Configure.
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Business Settings
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Google Place: Connect your business address so your experiences can appear on Google Maps and Search.
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Google Business Profile Name: Enter the exact name of your Google Business Profile to link your products accurately.
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Notifications
- Toggle on "Send me a monthly report detailing issues with my products" to receive regular updates on any product-related problems.
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Configure which Products to Distribute in Google Things to Do
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Under the Distribute Products section:
- Select the experiences you want to link to Google Things to Do.
- Associate each with a relevant Point of Interest (POI) by searching well-known landmarks (e.g., Empire State Building or your business address).
- You may assign multiple POIs.
- Toggle on the Official ticket for this Point of Interest if your business is the official ticket provider for that POI. (e.g., museum or park).
- Toggle on the Includes Admission if the experience includes access to the POI.
- You can leave these off if neither of these applies to your experience.
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Verify Website Configuration
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Navigate to Settings > Company Profile and ensure your website URL is correct.
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Ensure the Xola JavaScript snippet is present on your homepage. This snippet, found under Settings > Button Code, is essential for proper referral tracking.
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Note: Updates to preferences may take up to 24 hours to process. Ensure experiences are properly configured and have availability to be reserved.
How It Works
Google Things To Do will primarily focus on Points of Interest (POIs) such as the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, and Central Park. Whether your experience revolves around a POI or involves visiting POIs, you can showcase your experiences when people search on Google. You can also use advertising opportunities through Google Ads to feature your products on the Ads Carousel at the top of Google Search results.
Google offers two booking modules (Operator and POI) through Google Things to Do. These provide different options for getting a guest to your checkout link. The Operator Booking Module means you are the operator/owner of the POI that is entered, and the POI Booking Module means your experiences go by or start at that POI. Most of Xola's customers will fall into the POI Booking Module.
Note: Google does not accept per-event pricing experiences to be listed through this integration.
Operator Booking Module (OBM):
- Go to your Google Business Profile and configure this under Prices
- The Google Business Profile must be claimed and open for this module to show
- When guests click See Tickets, Google will show all the options for buying tickets, including your official site and OTAs.
Point of Interest (POI) Module:
The POI Module also uses Google search to direct customers to checkout links associated with specific Points of Interest (POIs). Below are explanations and examples of the three different variations of the POI module.
Note: The Official Site icon represents your website and will direct people to buy tickets directly from you.
Admissions:
- When searched, an Eligible Point of Interest (POI) will show General Admission tickets on your Google Business Profile Page.
- This may not show if you have multiple POIs listed for an experience or are not the official ticket provider for that POI.
Booking Options/Experiences:
- This will show only for experiences associated with a POI or multiple POIs on your Google Business Profile Page when searched.
Ads
- This will show when guests search on the Google Search bar for things to do in an area (e.g., Things to do in New York)
- Xola does not manage this for you. Please manage Google Ads in your Google Ads account.
- To learn more, click here.
Reservation through Google Things to Do:
- Regardless of how a customer finds your checkout link in Google Things to Do, once they click on it, they will be taken directly to your website and the Xola checkout for that experience.
- The customer will make a reservation as usual. All settings, including conversion tracking, Abandon Reservation Recovery, and more, will apply as usual here.
- Reservations made via the Google Things to Do link will be tagged "Google Things to Do" in Xola.
To learn more about Google Things to-do policies, please click here.
Tips for Success
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Associate with Popular POIs: Link your experiences to well-known landmarks to increase visibility in relevant searches.
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Ensure Accurate Website Information: Double-check that your website URL is correct in Xola settings and that the necessary JavaScript snippet is installed for tracking referrals.
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Regularly Update Availability: Keep your experience availability up-to-date to ensure customers can book without issues.
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Monitor Performance: Use analytics to track the performance of your products and make informed decisions about adjustments or promotions.
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Consider Advertising: Explore advertising opportunities through Google Ads to feature your products prominently in search results.
Things to keep in mind:
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Products with Tiered Pricing or Group Discount configurations may not apply in Google Things to Do. Google will use the base price for the ticket price shown on the Google Things to Do page.
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Google does not accept per-event pricing experiences to be sold through this integration.
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Google Things to Do does not support virtual experiences and will not display them on the page.
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Any updates to preferences can take up to 24 hours to process.
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Your customers cannot book experiences that are not configured, have no availability, etc.
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To learn more about Google Things to-do policies, please click here.
FAQ
Q: How do people find my offerings on Google?
Google Things to Do focuses on Points of Interest (POIs), such as the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, and Central Park. Whether your business is a POI itself or you offer experiences related to those POIs, you can showcase your offerings when people search for these locations on Google. Additionally, you can utilize Google Ads to have your products featured on the Ads Carousel located at the top of Google's search results.
Q: How do I improve my ranking with Google?
Improving your local SEO rankings is crucial, and Google My Business (GMB) plays a significant role in achieving that. Simply creating a GMB account isn't enough - you must also ensure that it's verified, optimized, and regularly maintained. In fact, GMB has emerged as the most crucial factor in local rankings. Google offers a useful resource that you can access to help you improve your ranking.
Q: How do I get the “Official Site” icon for my product?
The Official Site icon is reserved for the experience operator. You must meet Google's criteria to get this. To learn more, click here.
Q: What if my business is not the main operator of a Point Of Interest?
Google Things to Do will still showcase your experience options as long as you’ve included the point of interest in Xola.
Q: Can I charge more/less for my Google Things to Do experience?
Your experience on Google Things to Do must match the price offered in Xola, or Google will not display that experience.
Q: What’s the difference between Google Things to Do and the old Reserve with Google?
Reserve with Google relied on certain OTA and Reservation Technology companies to function. However, this often meant operators had to pay a commission for bookings made through Google. In contrast, Google Things to Do allows customers to book directly through your website, eliminating the need for a middle man and you receive the bookings directly.