As a modern business owner, you must be well aware of the importance of having a strong digital presence, and how Google My Business (GMB) helps in strengthening one. While there are several factors responsible for your GMB ranking, Google Map citations undoubtedly play a crucial role. It lets your customers spot you and reach you as effortlessly as possible. However, to ensure this, you must have a strong understanding of Google Map citations – their meaning, and how they play a pivotal role in securing a high GMB standing.
In this blog, we shall take a look at the significance of Google Map citations and how they directly impact your ranking.
What are Google Maps Citations?
A Google Map citation is a mention of your business’s name, address, and phone number (NAP) on multiple online platforms, such as business directories, social media profiles, and websites. These citations convey to Google the trustworthiness of your business’s existence.
When we talk about Local Citations aka local business data, you must be thoroughly aware of the seven core elements as mentioned below –
- Business name
- Business street address
- Business phone number
- Business Website URL
- City
- State
- Zip code
By publishing local SEO citations extensively, you can enhance your business’s rankings when people look for them on Google Maps or even on the regular Google search. Moreover, these citations confirm the precise location of your company, provided you don’t remove the corresponding data from your Google Business Listing.
Why Google Map Citations Are Crucial For GMB Ranking
Here’s why Google Map Citations are important for GMB rankings.
- Fuels Your Local SEO Efforts
The presence of your business on various platforms in the form of citations indicates that your business is legitimate and trustworthy. Additionally, such consistency also helps in local SEO, which directly influences your GMB ranking. A higher ranking also gives you a better chance of appearing in the Google Local 3-Pack on search results.
The Google Local 3-Pack is the listing of the first three businesses you see in the results when searching for local businesses. These three businesses are the ones that Google considers to be most relevant.
- Improves Organic Search Rankings
Google Map citations do not only boost your GMB ranking but also bring about substantial improvements in your organic search rankings. Consequently, a higher organic ranking translates to a better GMB ranking, which further increases the likelihood of potential customers discovering your business.
- Boosts Relevance and Credibility
In a way. Google Map citations validate the authenticity of your business by ensuring the information provided is accurate and consistent. It helps Google recognise the relevance of your business to users’ search queries and establish your business’s credibility, thus positively impacting your ranking.
Besides, when users see the expanse of your digital presence and the consistency of your business details, they want to trust you and choose you over your competitors.
- Fetches Higher Online Visibility
It’s a simple science – the more citations you have, the more platforms your NAP information appears on. This increased visibility results in a higher probability of potential customers discovering your business through various platforms, indirectly driving your GMB ranking.
A higher GMB ranking is likely to result in a better click-through rate as a higher number of users would land on your listing.
The Bottom Line
Google Map citations play a vital role in determining your GMB ranking. To leverage the power of Google Map citations, maintain consistency across all platforms, update your citations regularly, and utilize well-reputed business directories, such as Yelp, Foursquare or Yahoo Local to achieve the best results.
It would be best to work with local SEO experts in Kolkata like Expro Lab. Our highly skilled professionals leverage their exceptional industry knowledge to help you achieve the best rankings on Google My Business. We also keep up with the latest trends and developments in the industry, so our clients always get that desirable competitive edge in the market. Get in touch with us for further queries.
