1. Craft Custom Business Descriptions for Each Location
When building a business description for any business location, focus on keywords the target market would use while searching instead of an explanation of services, facilities, products, etc. that set your business apart from competitors.
Previously, Google has limited the amount of characters a location could use on its page, but the new interface allows an unlimited number of characters. Still, remember to keep these descriptions short and sweet.
2. Add Additional Information (Photos, Videos, etc.)
While there are always fluctuations to the local algorithm, it is essential to monitor performance, because the number of photos a business adds may positively or negatively influence its rankings.
Because a business’ primary photo is the first one potential customers will see, ensure that photo is eye-catching.
In order to provide Google an additional link to where important information about the business is stored, identify a citation source Google has not. Retrieve the URL from a photo on that site, and then load that URL into your Google Business listing.
3. Identify and Remove Duplicate Listings
Duplicate listings are undesirable for any business, because they essentially pit that business against itself. Compounding the problem, one of the listings often contains incorrect information.
Ultimately, a business’ rankings suffer when reviews, click history, third party citations, etc. are split between two listings.
4. Identify Third Party Sites Where Adding Listing Information Can Improve Google Rankings
Google uses many off-site ranking factors to determine local results. Not only does Google check to see if other sites are mentioning the business; it also looks to see if that website is reputable. Because of this, it is critical to identify the most influential third party sites and submit robust information.
5. Modify Each Listing to Rank for Both Long- and Short-Tail Search Terms on a Continual Basis
As with almost any other digital marketing strategy, it is essential to keep tabs on Google business listings. The beginning of the optimization process requires the most maintenance.
Once your rankings begin to improve, upkeep will more than likely decrease, but businesses should track search volume trends that could affect their visibility positively or negatively.