How to optimize Google Places listing?
-
I have a couple friends who need more traffic from their Google Places listing. They are in very niche businesses. One is a home remodeling contractor and one is a music teacher.
Does anyone know some good services to help optimize their listings? I feel I've helped them out as much as I can by getting real reviews to their Google Places page. But I feel that someone who's had the experience in Google Places optimization can pick up on something I'm overlooking.
-
Hi RicktheMarkt,
The main components of a strong Google+ Local page are that:-
There are no violations of the Google Places Quality Guidelines
-
You've chosen the best possible categories
-
All relevant fields have been filled out with correct information
-
You are earning reviews, and if the page is fully merged, adding posts
Beyond the existence and correctness of the Google+ Local page, there are many, many more factors that contribute to local rankings. These include, but are not limited to,
-
The authority of the website
-
The quality, quantity and accuracy of citations on third party sites (local business indexes, directories, etc.)
-
Traditional SEO metrics like age of site, quality and quantity of links
-
Social Media participation
In order to begin getting a handle on all of the components that contribute to local search rankings, I recommend that you and your friends study the Local Search Ranking Factors 2013 survey. There is no better place to get the big picture of all the contributing factors.
Now, all this being said, I believe that your friends may need to adjust their stated goals. You write:
"I have a couple friends who need more traffic from their Google Places listing"It's very important to understand that there was a very big change recently with Google's display of the Places/+ Local pages. In the past, a single click from the main SERPS would take you directly to a business' +Local page. This is no longer the case. Now, if a company's listing shows up, their will most commonly be a 'review' link attached to it. In the past, this would have taken a user to the +Local page for the business. These days, it only takes them to a popup showing the reviews. In other words, it is now much more unlikely that the average user will ever make it to a +Local page.
So, while the accuracy and completeness of a +Local page still play a vital role in rankings, the goal of getting traffic to the page may not be viable, given the fact that the pages have, in essence, been somewhat buried by Google. An odd turn of events, but there it is. It could change tomorrow.
In sum, your friends should formulate a more appropriate goal, such as earning higher rankings, achieving broader brand visibility, generating better conversions, etc.
I hope this is helpful! -
-
You can go through the listing and check if the description is optimized for the keyword terms that they are going after. Make sure the categories are correct. Make sure to get 100% score for the listings. Carefully take note of the Name, Address, Phone, Email, and Website and create listings in Yelp, Bing Local, Citysearch, Yahoo Local, Foursquare, and other relevant directories. For Google Local rankings having your NAP (Name, Address, Phone, Email, and Website) across the board will really help with ranking. And just like you have done with Google Places encourage reviews to Yelp, Citysearch, Bing, and Yahoo, etc.
Hope this helps!
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
-
Fetch as Google is showing this, help!
Our Fetch as Google in Google Webmaster Tools is showing this. What is this?? Thanks! https://imgur.com/k6KOQZz
On-Page Optimization | | bluejay78780 -
Should a keyword be optimized on One page only?
I have a niche website that focusses on selling pizza delivery bags, the search keywords that are used by users are about 7 and their are another 15 long tail keywords. The question is do i optimize every keyword per one page only? i have a blog on the website www.prodelpizzabags.com/blog/ if i write a blog post that would "compete" internally with another keyword, what should i do, what are the best practices I would be thankful for any insights regarding keyword/page optimization
On-Page Optimization | | akramsabra0 -
Optimize On-Page Mobile Version
Hello, Do we need optimize on-page for mobile version, such as: How about title tag, description tag? Should mobile have another sitemap or not? Does google penalty my webpages mobi vs desktop are duplicated content? Thanks for any your advice!
On-Page Optimization | | JohnHuynh0 -
Why aren't our articles ranking in Google?
We have a website promoting Pakistani lawyers online. The website also has an articles section where we post articles reviewing different legal cases and laws. All of our articles are written by actual lawyers are high quality and unique. Website itself doesn't have large page/site authority but its not a baby website either. I can't figure out why our articles don't rank on Google. Here are few of the articles:
On-Page Optimization | | Heydarian
http://www.pakistanilawyers.com/articles/pakistan-child-custody-laws-explained-479/
http://www.pakistanilawyers.com/articles/pakistan-divorce-law-476/
http://www.pakistanilawyers.com/articles/pakistani-law-insolvency-guide-460/ I don't know whether its simply because there are not enough links pointing to our website or if there is a problem in the website itself that i can't find. Thanks for the help0 -
Does Google Bias Against Homepages for Search Queries that are a Question?
If you are trying to rank for a keyword phrase that is a question (e.g. how to ___) does it matter if your page is the home page of your site or an article on your site? I suspect that Google would treat question search queries differently and would show preference for articles over a home page in most cases. An article would be more likely to satisfy the searcher by providing the answer to their question, whereas the home page usually doesn't provide specific answers. I looked at one keyword phrase that is a question and only 1 of the first 20 results was a home page. Any thoughts or experience with this?
On-Page Optimization | | Charlessipe0 -
Onpage optimization different outcomes for keyword with or without accent
I am a little bit confused with the results of the onpage analysis. I am trying onpage optimization for a spanish word which has an accent.. The results differ from Grade A, if i use the keyword with an accent, e.g. ropa premamá (the spanish word for maternity wear) to Grade C if I run the report without the accent ropa premama. I assume that most users will rather search for the keyword without accent. Would this mean that I need to change my keyword to non-accent or doesn´t it matter?
On-Page Optimization | | svenmu0 -
How would you optimize a news site with no defined keywords in mind
Hi I have setup a news site giving young writers a (paid) place to write mobbly.com but I want to promote it. there is no specific keyword apart from the top of the individual article should I choose some or just let each article do its own thing any advice would be greatly appreciated
On-Page Optimization | | jimsterg1640 -
Blog Comment IPs Seen By Google?
I have a page on a client's site for testimonials (a dental practice). The page is actually a post on a Wordpress install where customers can enter their testimonials as WP comments. In an effort to encourage more clients to give more testimonials I was considering setting up an iPad or other tablet at the receptionist's desk where patients would be able to enter their successes as comments on the page. If I made sure the patients all used unique names and emails in the Wordpress comments, would Google still see all the comments are from the same IP and view this as suspicious?
On-Page Optimization | | jargomang0