Google Maps SEO: Know How To Rank Your Business On Google Maps

Are you tired of struggling to get your business noticed on Google Maps? 

With over 1 billion monthly active users, Google Maps is a powerful platform for local businesses, but with millions of other businesses vying for attention, it can be difficult to stand out. 

In fact, research has shown that only 37% of local businesses have claimed and verified their Google Maps listing. If you’re one of the many business owners who feel lost in the sea of competition on Google Maps, you’re not alone. 

In this blog post, we’re going to show you how to use Google Maps SEO to improve your visibility and boost your rankings on the platform. 

I am going to provide data-driven strategies and best practices to help you get ahead of the competition and start attracting more customers to your business.

10 Insane Ways To Rank Your Business On Google Maps

Right here, we have some insane ways to rank your business higher on Google Maps and get you more and more customers at your doorsteps. 

Claim Your “Google My Business” Profile

So here’s how you begin: 

You must first claim and optimize your Google My Business profile. So you need to search for your business name on Google Maps and verify your business listings.

Google’s business profile tells Google about your business’ existence. The information provided by Google’s business profile is trustworthy and can be relied upon.

Since Google cross-references these details with the ones that it finds on your website, local directories, and resources.

Now I am going to explain the list of steps to claim your business profile on Google:

1. First, sign in to Google Maps on your computer.

2. After reaching the home tab of your google my business profile go to the info tab and click on the info button.

3. You will now reach out to the blue phone icon on the page where you have to add your phone number to the Google My Business listing.

You can do so by clicking on the “add phone” icon, which is next to it.

4. Now click on the grey pencil symbol to include or edit the business phone number.

5. A message will then appear, which will tell you to enter your phone number.

Add Information To Your Google Maps Business Listing

Having created a GMB profile, it is imperative to add information to it as per the Google Maps SEO methods.

Remember this piece of advice “The more information on your GMB profile, the higher the chances of ranking it in local search results.”

Now we will follow a series of steps to do this:

First, log in to your Google My Business account, where you will find a dashboard containing several tabs.

Now select the “Info” tab, which includes your name, category, service area, address, hours, phone number, attributes, description, and services.

Here you would not want to miss the major SEO tips for optimizing the information on Google Maps.

1.) Maintaining consistency in your name and address: By consistently posting information on Google Maps, you increase your chances of having your page ranked on Google Maps.

Google’s E.A.T. algorithm ranks business pages that it believes are trustworthy. Your information is the measure of your trustworthiness; therefore, keeping it accurate and truthful is the key to success.

For example, if your company name is Arthur and Bells Institute, you should keep it consistent across the dashboard and avoid using names like Moris and Belgium Industries.

2.) Using a telephone number to rank higher: Be aware of the fact that using a number that looks something like (800 755 322) is generally considered spam in the eyes of Google.

You can clearly see an area code in this picture.

You must use your telephone number with an area code since it helps you rank higher on Google Maps.

3.) Add your track number and main number: Remember, if you are using call tracking, you need to use a tracked number for your business phone number.

This will ensure that most of your calls come through the tracked line so that you can see the efficiency of your listings.

4.) Keep your working hours updated: As I explained to you the importance of keeping your information consistent, I would also like to relate it to keeping your working hours updated.

You can mark your business hours as “temporarily closed” or “permanently closed.”

The logic remains the same, you get the trust of Google Maps to rank you higher. Trust, being an important parameter, is used as an algorithm by Google to rank you higher.

5.) Optimize your business description properly: Your business description is the first thing that your customers read about your business.

Do you not find the use of keywords such as “cloud computing,” “Internet-related services,” and “products” in the description used by Google?

Yes, that is the right SEO for Google Maps. You must make use of the right keywords so that a positive impression is created in the minds of the customers regarding you.

6.) Using the right business categories: While you make the selection of business categories, make sure to add those categories that best represent the core offering of your business.

If you want to add additional categories, put them under secondary categories.

Update The Linked Content

Having added information to your GMB listings now is the time for you to update that content. 

Your NAP (Name, Address, and Phone number) is an important piece of directional information on your GBP website and this is what you need to start updating

It is critical for both Google and your audience to see your NAP consistently across all platforms.

You can do so by simply searching your business name and ensuring that it can be found in all the places to ensure that your NAP is up to date.

What you see in the image above is a consistent NAP across the two addresses.

Now you can check each instance and reach out to the directory to update the important contact information you need.

You can also find free and paid automated local listing services that will help you update your NAP along with other business information such as website URLs.

Build Local Backlinks

When your website links to another website with anchor text, you create a backlink.

These outbound links allow you to link your primary website to a third-party website link. These backlinks can validate your business from a product or service perspective.

For example, if you are maintaining your business in local directories, you would want to make sure that those listings are in the proper category.

These links act as “follow” links to your website, meaning that Google will follow and recognize the source of the link to your content.

You will find many directories that even charge for including backlinks because of the value of these links.

As per my analysis of Google Maps SEO, you should also look forward to securing opportunities from other non-paid sources.

You can make use of tools such as SEObility to check high-quality backlinks which you can link to: 

I personally recommend you need to keep the following parameters in mind for building backlinks:

• In content, anchor relevant text.
• Using natural backlinks with high-quality content.
• using content that has been published in highly authoritative publications.

Use Local Business Schema

After you’ve built the necessary backlinks, I’d like to direct your attention to structuring your NAP information. 

This is where schema plays an integral role since schema helps your business to wrap around the schema language.

Basically, schema language is a structured protocol used by search engines such as Google, Yahoo, etc. with the intent to make it easier to determine certain databases within the web pages.

When you wrap your NAP around the schema, you send a high-quality signal to Google and other search engines regarding the relevance and authority of your business location.

For better understanding, schema covers most of the same details that are covered in the Google My Business profile, which is naturally cross-referenced by Google.

One thing that you must note here is that the easier it becomes for Google to validate your location, the higher the chances are for your business to show up in Google Maps.

Work On Citation Distribution

After updating your business information using schema, the next key to unlocking Google map SEO is to work on citation distribution.

Now, “citation distribution” refers to the distribution of citations for a particular publication. This can be analyzed in a number of ways, such as citations per publication, per author, or over time.

Now, these can be used to assess the impact and influence of a particular publication in the field of research.

Another advantage that you get is a metric for research publication that can be used to measure the impact of research work, authors, and journals.

But even before you understand the concept, you must take note that if there are inconsistencies in your NAP information, Google will not show your listings in the search results.

Get Google Reviews

Google reviews are a powerful way to boost the visibility of your business on Google Maps. By encouraging your customers to leave reviews, you can improve your search ranking and increase the chances of potential customers finding your business.

Here are some tips for getting more Google reviews:

1. Make it easy for customers to leave a review: Include a link to your Google Maps listing on your website and in your email signature. You can also provide instructions on how to leave a review in-store or on a receipt.

2. Ask for reviews: Don’t be shy about asking customers to leave a review. A simple request can go a long way in getting more reviews.

3. Respond to reviews: Show your customers that you value their feedback by responding to their reviews. This shows that you are engaged and actively working to improve your business.

4. Use social media: Share your Google Maps listing on your social media accounts and encourage your followers to leave a review.

5. Incentivize: Consider offering a small incentive for customers who leave a review, such as a discount on their next purchase.

By following these tips, you can increase the number of reviews your business receives and improve your visibility on Google Maps. Remember, the more positive reviews you have, the higher your search ranking will be. So, it’s worth the effort to get more Google reviews for your business.

Embed Google Maps To Your Website’s Contact Us Page

You can add a map of your business’s location and reviews to your website. This addition to your website allows the customers to get an overview of your website in seconds.

Embedding Google Maps to your website’s “contact us” page is preferred by Google in a specific format.

The secret is to use the HTML and iframe> codes. 

Google can ensure a consistent user experience for searchers by employing the above SEO for Google Maps.

Engage With Your Community

Adding a location to your Google Maps gives Google access to see how closely your business is involved with the community.

Google also keeps an eye on how well your business has engaged with society to establish its presence and authority there.

Engagement denotes publishing and promoting event announcements, partnering with local businesses, and getting involved with the local news and headlines.

You can make use of methods such as using the Q&A feature, google knowledge panel. 

Track Your Google Maps Ranking

Tracking your Google Maps rankings is essential for understanding how your business is performing on the platform and identifying areas for improvement. By monitoring your rankings, you can gain insight into how your business is perceived by potential customers and make adjustments to boost your visibility.

Here are some tips for tracking your Google Maps rankings:

1. Use a Google Maps ranking tracker: There are several tools available that can track your Google Maps rankings for you. These tools will give you a clear picture of where your business stands in the search results and how it compares to your competition.

2. Monitor your reviews: Keep an eye on the number of reviews your business has and the overall rating. This will give you a good indication of how your business is perceived by customers.

3. Check your search ranking: Search for your business on Google Maps and note the position it appears in the search results. This will give you an idea of how visible your business is on the platform.

4. Look at your competitors: Check the rankings of your competitors and compare them to your own. This will give you an idea of how you compare to other businesses in your industry and help you identify areas where you can improve.

5. Analyze your data: Use the data you collect to identify trends and patterns. This will help you understand what is working for your business and what isn’t.

By tracking your Google Maps rankings, you can gain a better understanding of how your business is performing on the platform and make adjustments to improve your visibility. Remember, the higher your rankings, the more likely it is that potential customers will find your business. So, it’s essential to track your Google Maps rankings to ensure your business is performing at its best.

Conclusion

Optimizing your business for Google Maps is crucial for increasing the visibility of your business and ensuring that potential customers can find it. By encouraging customers to leave reviews, tracking your rankings, and understanding how the platform works, you can improve your search ranking and drive more traffic to your business.

However, it’s important to note that the process of optimizing your Google Maps listing is not a one-time thing, it’s an ongoing process. Therefore, it’s important to stay up to date with the latest trends and best practices.

If you’re looking for more guidance on how to optimize your Google Maps listing and drive more traffic to your business, we would be happy to help. We offer a 30-minute strategy session where we can discuss your business and come up with a plan to help you achieve your goals. Book your session today to take the first step towards boosting your business’s visibility on Google Maps.