Citations or Links
-
My I just verified 2 new locations via "Google My Business" (G+) for a client. - the purpose is to get visibility and rank in the google maps for those 2 new areas.
These locations are not storefronts but are verified in G+ as branches of the business. The G+ listings are set to display zip codes and not show the address to the public - this is akin to showing a service area radius.
Normally I'd just do citation building. But I dont want the address to show up to the public. Most listing websites need the address and don't really allow for service area radiuses.
Since they are not storefronts, I do not want to display their addresses online. My question is can I see traction to just get links other than business listing citations pointed to the G+ pages?
I think that since Google trusts it's own web pages above all else so pointing links to those G+ pages should work.
Who's got an expert opinion?
-
Hi Rich,
Here's what you'll want to do:
- Build citations on only those directories which support hidden addresses. Phil Rozek has done the most work of anyone in the industry on surfacing lists of these, which you can see here:
*Please note, those posts are couple of years old, so you may want to do some of your own research to see if there is anything different or new, but in the main, those lists should be a great start for you.
- Build links, yes, but do be advised that these may/may not have quite the same impact as citations. They should help, nevertheless. Interestingly, the quality/authority of inbound links to the domain were judged to have the 2nd greatest impact on organic rankings in the most recent Moz Local Search Ranking Factors but only the 12th greatest on local rankings. This is pretty typical, but I think it's important to note that many Local SEOs are advising increasing focus on link earning as a result of the universal rollout of the 3-pack, making local rankings harder to win and organic rankings more important to earn.
So, there's my expert opinion Hope it helps!
-
I would do both ... the citations you can that don't require address (this is something you should definitely keep track of with your list of citations.) and then link build normally to the page.
The thing with citations is you may not always see a way to avoid the address but I've put "private" or "private listing" in the actual address field and for many it does work. So even when it says "address, required" I'm filling in with "Private Residence" or "Address Not Listed - Private" and it works on many more than you would think.
Then, do custom searches. "Green Bay small businesses" and such. Find "area" directories and resource pages that way. If you do the search your customer wants to show up on you can usually find a few more authoritative links to add just in the top 3-5 pages of Google for that search.
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
-
New site links?
Hi all, Don't know whether this is new, or whether I'm very unobservant and just noticed, but certain results in the SERPs have started listing site links, more akin to Ads. So, if you google 'Department Stores London', you'll see the top listing 'Visit London' has four sitelinks underneath for Selfridges, Debenhams, Harrods and Fenwick. Is this markup? My website has sitelinks if you search for us, but if we appear in a generic list (like this search), then they disappear. Any ideas? Cheers, Rhys
Local Listings | | SwanseaMedicine0 -
Citations, SEO and a skeptical client
What do you say to a client who recently purchased an online business and says 'I don't really care if the phone number or address on a directory is old or incorrect'?I've tried to explain the value from an SEO point of view, but he's not really buying it.Anyone encountered this skepticism before and if so, how did you handle it?
Local Listings | | muzzmoz0 -
What is the ideal length of a business description for citations?
I am trying to write a business description for building citations. What is the ideal length or word count for this? I am using Yext to help get them listed, did a lot of searching for an answer and was unable to come up with a definite answer. Any help would be great! The business I am working on for this is James River Church, they have 2 locations. So I am trying to write a unique description for both locations.
Local Listings | | chris.oursbourn0 -
Local Link Building Question: High DA Chambers vs Low PA Trade Groups
Hi all, We've been researching relevant, real organizations in our area that allow members to link their websites from the directory. I've basically got two buckets of prospects: Chambers of commerce type sites with more authority (DA ~40+) but less relevance to our niche (injury law) Bar associations with less authority (DA ~20) but super relevant. Assuming that they cost the same and covered the same geographic area, which links would you go after if you had to choose one or the other? Thanks in advance.
Local Listings | | LeeAbrahamson0 -
Local Citations
So we are working on our citations. Now the issue is (not really an issue, but it is definitely very annoying) is that we have multiple locations. I get that you need to then have multiple listings. Where I get baffled is that I have read that you will then need to have more than 1 google + account for the different addresses. That seems like a lot of work to keep two google + accounts updated. Is this a must for SEO purposes?
Local Listings | | blackrino0 -
Best Local Citation Building Services
Hi, have any of you ever used a local citation building service? Are some better than others, any recommendations? Any bad experiences or companies to avoid? I'm fairly new to the process and it looks like there's a lot of snake oil salesmen in this vertical, so any and all insight you could give me would be great! Thank you in advance, I look forward to hearing feedback from all of you!
Local Listings | | maxcarnage0 -
Brain Teaser - Dead Link Ranking in SERP's
Hello Moz Brains. Came across a site that is coming up for "caliber signs and imaging" which is a brand I'm working with, and a few things have me baffled: 1. The link in the SERP takes you to an error page (you can manually access it by dropping the www.)
Local Listings | | VanadiumInteractive
2. The entire site is setup with iFrams (header frame, body frame, and footer frame) navigating throughout the site keeps the single url and only swaps the body content.
3. The site if for a sign company but the blog area served in the iFrame is in Indonesian and seems to about some soccer matches.
4. The business associated with this site is in AZ, but they are coming in local (Irvine, CA) results with a dead page and no locally relevant content. I'm I missing something or is Google missing something? The site is "http://calibersigns.com/" and it belongs to a company in AZ. -- it comes up for "caliber signs and imaging" (in my case on the 3rd spot) or even worse "caliber signs and graphics" where it seems to be at the top, with all the surrounding content being the true brand -- which makes it look like my clients Google+ reviews and other endorsements belong to them. I have my local setting set to "92618", Irvine CA Would love some feedback on this and your opinion on how we should proceed? thanks in advance0 -
How can I manually build local citations for a client?
Note: I am not interested in paying for services to build citations for me. I am managing building a client's citations. On many sites I am asked to create an account and verify my information. I have tried to create accounts using my client's email address and specified password so that they can manage their citations down the road should their NAP change. However, many sites require further verification such as security questions or a phone code. It isn't practical or effective to ask a client to confirm and verify all of these accounts. What is the most effective way to manually build local citations for a client? How can I get around the issue of email and phone verification?
Local Listings | | BlairKuhnen0