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href="/web/20170711171813cs_/https://nelsoncash.com/styles/vendor.css"><link rel="stylesheet" href="/web/20170711171813cs_/https://nelsoncash.com/styles/main.css"><script src="/web/20170711171813js_/https://nelsoncash.com/scripts/vendor/modernizr.js"></script><meta property="og:site_name" content="Nelson Cash"><meta property="og:title" content="Google: Connecting small businesses across America"><meta property="og:description" content="Nelson Cash launched two Google sites that supported small business: gybo.com, a website platform built to help small businesses stake their spot on the internet, and the Google Small Business Community, an online gathering place where small businesses could connect and learn from each other."><meta property="og:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/header-image.jpg"><meta property="og:url" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813/https://nelsoncash.com/google"><meta name="twitter:title" content="Google: Connecting small businesses across America"><meta name="twitter:description" content="Nelson Cash launched two Google sites that supported small business: gybo.com, a website platform built to help small businesses stake their spot on the internet, and the Google Small Business Community, an online gathering place where small businesses could connect and learn from each other."><meta name="twitter:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/header-image.jpg"><meta name="twitter:image:alt" content="Nelson Cash logo"><meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image"><meta name="twitter:site" content="@nelsoncash"></head><body class="case-study-animation" id="cs-google"><header class="site-header site-header-overlay" role="banner"><div class="container"><h1 class="site-header-logo"><a href="/web/20170711171813/https://nelsoncash.com/" title="Nelson Cash">Nelson Cash</a></h1><nav class="primary-nav" role="navigation"><h1 class="visually-hidden">Primary Navigation</h1><ul><li><a href="/web/20170711171813/https://nelsoncash.com/" title="Work">Work</a></li><li><a href="/web/20170711171813/https://nelsoncash.com/studio" title="Studio">Studio</a></li></ul></nav></div></header><main class="site-content" role="main"><header class="cs-header"><div class="cs-header-image"><div class="container"><p>We’ve helped <span class="cs-header-counter" data-count="27358">0</span> businesses get on the map in Portland, OR</p></div></div><div class="cs-header-text"><div class="container"><div class="grid-column cs-header-titles"><h1 class="cs-header-title">Google</h1><p class="cs-header-meta">Connecting small businesses across America</p></div><div class="grid-column cs-header-intro"><p>Nelson Cash launched two Google sites that supported small business: <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813/https://www.gybo.com/" target="_blank" title="Get Your Business Online with Google">gybo.com</a>, a website platform built to help small businesses stake their spot on the internet; and the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813/https://plus.google.com/u/0/+GoogleBusiness" target="_blank" title="Google Small Business Community">Google Small Business Community</a>, an online gathering place where small businesses could connect and learn from each other.</p></div></div></div></header><figure class="cs-section cs-section-gray-light"><div class="container"><div class="grid-column-ten"><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-image"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gabo-on-the-map.png" alt="Let’s Put Our Cities on the Map"></div><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-blockquote"><p class="cs-section-blockquote-large max-width-eight">29,856 cities and counting.</p></div></div></div></figure><section class="cs-section"><div class="container"><header class="cs-section-header"><h1 class="cs-section-title">The Inspiration</h1> </header><div class="cs-section-content"><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-text"><p>Small businesses are what make our towns and cities unique [Looking at you, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813/http://sawadacoffee.com/" target="_blank" title="Sawada Coffee">Sawada Coffee</a> (Chicago), <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813/http://www.brooklynroasting.com/" target="_blank" title="Brooklyn Roasting Company">Brooklyn Roasting Company</a> (New York), and <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170711171813/https://upperleftroasters.com/" target="_blank" title="Upper Left Roasters">Upper Left Roasters</a> (Portland)]. The local haunts we visit daily are an essential piece of making a town feel like a home.</p><p>For owners of those small businesses, technology is one of the most powerful ways to grow their business. However, very few small businesses are technologically fluent and aware of their online presence. So the Google Get Your Business Online (GYBO) team came to us with a challenge: Create a site that enables owners to easily claim their small business and establish their online presence.</p><p>But being found online is just the first step. Owning a small business is often a lonely, all-consuming pursuit with little guidance and advice available. That’s why the Google Small Business Community team wanted to use technology to further support small businesses. Why not also connect the small businesses across America so they could learn from one another?</p></div></div></div></section><figure class="cs-section cs-section-full-bleed"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-008.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community collage"></figure><section class="cs-section"><div class="container"><header class="cs-section-header"><h1 class="cs-section-title">What We Made</h1> </header><div class="cs-section-content"><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-text"><p><strong>Question:</strong> Can a team of four build a platform that gives every city in America a website in just six months?</p><p><strong>Our answer:</strong> Yes.</p><p><em>Let’s Put Our Cities on the Map</em> was designed to help strengthen our communities by connecting local businesses and customers so they could easily support each other.</p><p>We knew getting businesses online needed to be fast, easy, and free, so we started with two simple questions: “Is your business online?” and “Can people find it easily?”</p><p>Rather than diving into the headache of designing logos and developing a website, we started with the most important detail: A simple search tool that checks to see how your business shows up on Google.</p><p>From there, GYBO guides business owners through the process of updating the basics of their online presence, including adding more photos, creating a clickable phone number, listing hours of operation, and literally putting their business on the map.</p></div></div></div></section><figure class="cs-section cs-section-gray-light"><div class="container"><div class="grid-column-ten"><div class="cs-gallery-three-up"><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-nc-charlotte.png" alt="Let's Put Charlotte on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-il-chicago.png" alt="Let's Put Chicago on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-nm-albuquerque.png" alt="Let's Put Albuquerque on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-co-denver.png" alt="Let's Put Denver on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-ia-des-moines.png" alt="Let's Put Des Moines on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-oh-cincinnati.png" alt="Let's Put Cincinnati on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-la-new-orleans.png" alt="Let's Put New Orleans on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-ky-louisville.png" alt="Let's Put Louisville on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-tn-nashville.png" alt="Let's Put Nashville on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-mi-detroit.png" alt="Let's Put Detroit on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-or-portland.png" alt="Let's Put Portland on the Map"></div><div class="cs-gallery-item cs-gallery-item-squared"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/gabo-tx-austin.png" alt="Let's Put Austin on the Map"></div></div></div></div></figure><section class="cs-section"><div class="container"><header class="cs-section-header"><h1 class="cs-section-title">The Impact</h1> </header><div class="cs-section-content"><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-blockquote"><p class="cs-section-blockquote-large max-width-eight">From zero to 3.4 million members in 3 years</p></div><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-browser cs-section-item-browser-mobile"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-screenshot.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community on Google Plus"></div><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-text"><p>For the Google Small Business Community, Google had envisioned a gathering place online where small businesses could come together to get advice, ask questions, and share wisdom. But before it could launch, this gathering place needed a brand identity. We pursued a visual language that would feel approachable and welcoming to small businesses, while also representing the modern technology and perspective Google has to offer.</p></div><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-image"><p><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-001.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community"></p><p><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-002-alt.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community"></p><p><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-003.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community"></p></div><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-text"><p>Millions of small businesses put themselves on the map, while 29,856 unique websites (with 29,856 unique logos) gave each town in America a place online.</p><p>The Google Small Business Community grew from zero to over 3.3M members, uniting and empowering small business owners across the country.</p><p>For our Google teams, each of these solutions was built with easy customization and scalability. Although this posed a significant design challenge, it allowed Google to use assets without relying on a drawn out production process that would greatly slow pace and effectiveness. By setting this requirement from the beginning, we only investigated solutions we knew could scale.</p></div><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-image"><p><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-004.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community"></p><p><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-006.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community"></p><p><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/google/lg-gsbc-007.jpg" alt="Google Small Business Community"></p></div></div></div></section><section class="cs-section"><div class="container"><header class="cs-section-header"><h1 class="cs-section-title">The Insights</h1> </header><div class="cs-section-content"><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-text"><h2 class="cs-section-subtitle-alt">Be scrappy without sacrificing quality</h2><p>By making the GYBO diagnostic tool using already available tech (APIs, data sources, etc.), we built efficiently in a way that could quickly scale to reach every US city in a short amount of time, without risking reliability.</p><h2 class="cs-section-subtitle-alt">More starts with more</h2><p>At Nelson Cash, we’re small and nimble by design, and pride ourselves on wearing many hats. But to pull off something at the GYBO project scale, it simply required more people. All teams, including our clients (marketing, design, technical team), had to be engaged and participating from Day 1, versus waiting for a brief or hand-off later in the process.</p><h2 class="cs-section-subtitle-alt">Making big feel small</h2><p>With projects that need to scale quickly, every detail is important to keep the end product from feeling sterile or impersonal. GYBO websites are customized by city, using real local business information, and the diagnostic tool shows the business owner their actual Google My Business listing, along with helpful pointers on how to make it better. These features and designs made a massive effort feel personal and meaningful to an audience that values individual attention.</p></div></div></div></section><section class="cs-section"><div class="container"><div class="grid-column-ten cs-section-content"><div class="cs-section-item cs-section-item-list"><h1 class="cs-section-subtitle">What We Did</h1><ul><li>Program Management</li><li>Brand and Content Strategy</li><li>User Research and UX</li><li>App Development</li><li>Campaign Activation</li><li>Branding</li><li>Web Design</li><li>Photography & Illustration</li><li>Social</li><li>Direct Marketing</li></ul></div></div></div></section><footer class="cs-footer"><div class="container row grid-two-up"><div class="grid-column project-card project-card-left" id="project-card-my-lacroix"><a href="/web/20170711171813/https://nelsoncash.com/my-lacroix" title="My LaCroix"><figure class="project-card-image"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/project-card-my-lacroix.jpg" alt="My LaCroix"></figure><div class="project-card-text"><h2 class="project-card-title">My LaCroix</h2><p class="project-card-meta">898,000 flavors and counting.</p></div></a></div><div class="grid-column project-card project-card-right" id="project-card-make-it-stranger"><a href="/web/20170711171813/https://nelsoncash.com/make-it-stranger" title="Make It Stranger"><figure class="project-card-image"><img src="/web/20170711171813im_/https://nelsoncash.com/images/project-card-make-it-stranger.jpg" alt="Make It Stranger"></figure><div class="project-card-text"><h2 class="project-card-title">Make It Stranger</h2><p class="project-card-meta">Over 2.4M custom titles made.</p></div></a></div></div><div class="cs-footer-wipe"></div></footer></main><script>!function(e,t,a,n,c,o,s){e.GoogleAnalyticsObject=c,e[c]=e[c]||function(){(e[c].q=e[c].q||[]).push(arguments)},e[c].l=1*new Date,o=t.createElement(a),s=t.getElementsByTagName(a)[0],o.async=1,o.src=n,s.parentNode.insertBefore(o,s)}(window,document,"script","//web.archive.org/web/20170711171813/https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js","ga"),ga("create","UA-22288314-1","auto")</script><script src="/web/20170711171813js_/https://nelsoncash.com/scripts/vendor.js"></script><script src="/web/20170711171813js_/https://nelsoncash.com/scripts/main.js"></script></body></html>