Is this business considered a SAB to Google?
-
Hi All,
We have a client who designs and installs custom closets, garage systems, wall beds, home offices, etc. They have a showroom that displays all this for their potential customers to visit.
I have hidden the address for this business but the client has an idea that, since they have this showroom that customers can go to, they should not be considered a SAB.
My issue is with this part of Google's quality guidelines
"If you don't conduct face-to-face business at your location, you must select "Yes, this business serves customers at their locations""
This client does occasionally conduct face-to-face business at the location BUT they serve the customers at their locations.
Opinions and suggestions greatly appreciated!
-
You are very welcome, Amber. I think you've made the right decision!
-
Hi Miriam,
Appreciate your feedback on this. Your reasoning is exactly why I chose to hide the address in the first place but, after the client questioned my decision more than once, I started to wonder if I was almost being too strict.
That response was the reassurance I needed to keep it hidden. Well, that AND avoiding a potentially endless dialogue with Google!
Thanks!
-
Hi Amber,
This is one of those grey area businesses. I can understand why you'd want feedback on this, for sure. I think the answer lies in this statement from you,
This client does occasionally conduct face-to-face business at the location
(emphasis mine)
Given that the bulk of the business model is go-to-client, your client will be safer hiding their address. Now, should they choose not to do so, and should a penalty occur down the road, they could potentially argue with Google staff that the business has a showroom and good reason to have their address shown and you might be able to win on that, but, if you'd prefer to play it safer, then hiding the address is definitely the easiest route for this client.
So, this isn't a totally clear scenario. You could choose to go either way with this client, realizing that one route may lead to a penalty that would then require a potentially endless dialogue with Google, whereas the other route will likely be problem-free. In my opinion, different Local SEOs I know might handle this situation in different ways, so you'll have to make a gut-feeling decision on what you, as the Local SEO on this project, feel is the smartest route for your particular client, weighing all potential outcomes of the 2 choices.
-
If your client serves his customers at their locations it is a SAB. No-brainer is you ask me.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Does Google automatically recognize pictures?
If yes, are there any methods to influence the image recognition?
Image & Video Optimization | | fduo0 -
Local SEO: Google Places and Google+
Hello, I'm a little confused by Google+ for business. I set up a Google Places page in 2010 and recently changed my address to incorporate my suite number and to spell out "Street" instead of abbreviating. I'm planning on carefully changing all citations to match. Next I started a Google+ page for my business. But I couldn't fill out the address and ended up requesting a postcard for verification to continue. The postcard was sent to the right address but no suite number. I'll still get the postcard, but I can't finish my page yet. Also, I don't know if I have to re-verify my Places page with the slight changes. Am I on the right track?
Image & Video Optimization | | BobGW0 -
Google Plus for clients
Hi folks, I am coming to the realization that most of my local business clients simply do not have the time, desire or knowledge to establish a Google Plus personal profile and business page. Therefore, I have been contemplating the best approach to establishing Google Plus business pages for multiple clients. It would appear that information attached to the personal profile for the primary Google Plus account is not revealed when a business page is viewed, and a single personal profile can establish multiple business pages, would it be safe to assume this may be the correct approach? For example: I have a personal profile and a page for my SEO business. Could I simply create additional business pages for my clients under my account - even though I am not business owner? Are there any adverse ramifications to this approach (e.g. ownership transfer, local SERP issues, etc.)? Thanks!
Image & Video Optimization | | SCW0 -
Google+Local Reviews have gone? Any ideas?
Hi Since Google switched places to Google+ Local lots of the reviews that were on the listing are no longer showing? A customer of mine brought up the point when visiting the store today, when they are logged into Google they can see their review under Your Activity, however when they are logged out the only review is listed under 1 Review from everyone and the review is no longer being shown? Any ideas on what is going on? Also with local search / places optimisation has the best practice guidelines changed now that is transformed into Google+ Local? If so it would be great to share any links on getting the most out of this new + local service
Image & Video Optimization | | ocelot0 -
Issues with google places.
Hey there! A few weeks ago I made some changes to my client's "google places page". I am facing two issues there which I could not resolve on my own, they are: After I made changes and updated the page I could not see any activity on the analytics section whereas before I updated the page there was some metrics visible. The client had already claimed his places page before he came to me and entered some information. He just stuffed some keywords in the description section. I made necessary changes to the description based on the best practices for places page and according to Google's guideline for creating a great listing.The problem is the category did not update on the places page that show up in SERPs(it ranks top for four major keywords with geo indicators). However, the changes I made does appear when on the lower left side when I login into my places page. I don't see any link that will let me edit "description". Am I confusing some other section with category? I have tried to be as lucid as possible. I will appreciate any help. Thanks for your time. epMp kPWpf
Image & Video Optimization | | virtualhandshake0 -
How to Fix Issue for Inactive Products in Google Merchant Center?
Today, I was checking my Google merchant center account. I come to know that, there are 145 inactive products are available from product feed. I have checked few products manually and found following error. "The URL specified in your data feed wasn't working correctly when we reviewed this item." You can view more by attached image. I have checked my URLs and it's working well. There is no issue in URL. So, How do I fix issue? 6327664099_0430ef187e_b.jpg
Image & Video Optimization | | CommercePundit1 -
Effect of Google Place listing on organic rankings
Is it true that Google place listing can provide increase in search engine ranking ?
Image & Video Optimization | | seoug_20050 -
What impact will Google removing 3rd party citations from listings have on citations being ranking factors?
So now that Google are going to remove 3rd party citations from listings, will they still carry the same weight for local rankings or will this be reduced? If so, how much and when?
Image & Video Optimization | | SteveOllington0