When you run a local business, optimizing your Google Maps website ranking is an important part of your overall local SEO strategy. After all, your company’s Google Maps listing shows up above organic search results when people look for businesses in your area. As such, you need to ensure that your Maps listing ranks well for a wide range of keywords.
In order to optimize your Google Maps listing, you need to focus on a number of factors, including your website’s NAP data and its relevance to local search queries. In addition, you need to make sure that your Business Profile is accurate and complete, and that it contains relevant and descriptive content. Finally, you need to build and maintain a strong social media presence and a robust link-building effort.
Another important factor in determining your Google Maps ranking is the proximity of your location to searchers. This factor is based on Edsger Dijkstra’s algorithm, which finds the shortest path between two points in a graph, such as a road network.
In the past, it was possible to improve your Google Maps ranking simply by making sure that your address was in the right location on your website. However, this is no longer the case. Since Google’s 2015 “Vicinity Update,” the focus of this factor has moved from physical location to proximity. This means that you must optimize both your website and your GMB to improve your Google Maps rankings.
The final factor in your Google Maps ranking is prominence, which refers to how well-known your business is in the real world and online. Google’s documentation claims that prominence is based on a variety of factors, including your online presence, GMB reviews, and backlinks. Although it’s not as easy to influence as other factors, you can still do things to help your Google Maps prominence, such as generating positive reviews for your business and campaigning for them on a regular basis.
It’s also essential to monitor your local SEO ranking progress each month, either through KPI goals or percentage of growth. This way, you can be sure that your efforts are having an impact and bringing results. By doing this, you can nurture the areas that need it the most and avoid neglecting any one aspect of your strategy.
While focusing on your Google Maps listing is a great start, you need to optimize your entire website for local searches. This includes using a local keyword in your title tag, headers, meta tags, and other places throughout your website. In addition, you need to ensure that your website is mobile-friendly and contains high-quality, relevant content that’s readable by human readers.
While it’s easy to overlook the importance of your Google Maps ranking, it can be a key factor in gaining visibility and getting new customers for your local business. By implementing these tips, you can help your business improve its ranking in Google Maps and get more views, clicks, and paying clients.