Google Maps Ranking is a crucial part of any local SEO strategy for businesses that depend on local traffic. Getting into the coveted “Maps Pack” search results can give your business an instant boost of visibility that can lead to more clicks, views, and ultimately paying customers. To rank highly on Google Maps, you have to focus on the details better than your competition – and that starts with understanding what goes into the algorithm that determines how well you rank.
In order to improve your Google Maps Ranking, you must focus on a number of key areas – including the primary categories for your listing, local keywords, and reviews. While the list of factors can be overwhelming, focusing on these areas will help you achieve greater success with your Google Maps Optimization and local SEO efforts.
The first factor in Google’s Maps ranking is relevance, which refers to how closely your business matches a user’s search query. This can be improved by ensuring that your Google Business Profile (GBP) is fully filled out and that you are using the best keywords in your title and description.
Next up is distance, which relates to how close your business is to the searcher. While this can be difficult to change, you can improve your distance ranking by ensuring that your address is listed correctly and that you are located near the geographic center of your city or town. Finally, prominence is a tricky ranking factor that Google’s documentation claims to be determined by your company’s online and offline presence. This includes your website’s organic positions, GMB reviews and ratings, backlinks, and your overall brand recognition.
Google is constantly tweaking their search engine algorithms, and this applies to Maps as well. The most recent update was the Vicinity update, which brought proximity back into one of Google’s main ranking factors. Since then, businesses that had keywords in their names and other spammy tactics have seen significant drops in their rankings.
However, there are still many ways to rank high on Google Maps despite these changes. Focusing on your Google Business Profile and ensuring that you have positive Google reviews is still the most important thing that you can do to improve your Maps ranking. In addition, focusing on improving interaction with your Google Business Profile will also help you to rank better in the future, as this will signal to Google that people like and visit your business. So don’t wait any longer, and start improving your Google Maps ranking today!