Google vs. Google+ Local Rankings - How do they relate

[Czubmeister]

I have a client who ranks #7 in Google+ Local for search term dentist Oxnard CA & Oxnard CA Dentist but for regular Google search results, they are not in the top 50. How is this possible? No penalties in Webmaster tools. I've been working on this client for over a year. All of the other pages on the website are ranking very well but the all elusive dentist Oxnard CA position is 0

How does regular Google search results relate to Google+ Local?

[Czubmeister]

I am using ranking reports from BrightLocal. Brightlocal gives you ranking reports that check your ranking by keywords like this:

Google    Google+Local    Yahoo   Yahoo Local   Bing   Bing Local

So apparently, there are multiple ways to rank in Google

1. Go to Google.com and type something in.
2. Go to this url https://plus.google.com/local and type something in
3. Go to maps.google.com

For regular Google search. my client isn't in the top 50 for keyword search "dentist Oxnard CA"
For Google+Local, client is #7 for keyword search "dentist Oxnard CA"

Do people even use Google+Local Search?

My question was how is it possible to not be in the top 50 for Google search for "dentist Oxnard CA" but be #7 for Google+Local search?

[MiriamEllis]

Hi Czubmeister,

I'll echo back to you what I believe you are describing, just to be sure I'm correctly understanding your client's situation

• The client ranks in the 7 pack for his 2 core terms, but does not rank organically for these same terms

• The client ranks well organically for other terms

Hopefully, I've got this right.

Here's what I believe you're experiencing:

The client's organic strength for those 2 core terms is a major part of why he is ranking in the local pack of results. His organic rankings for those 2 terms have been subsumed into his overall local ranking. Since the Venice update in early 2012, it has become quite uncommon for any business to have both an organic and local ranking for a single search term. Though you'll find exceptions to this here and there, typically, if a business has earned a spot in the local pack, the owner should not expect to also see himself in the organic results for the same term.

So, just remember that organic factors are part of the local algorithm, and your client's local pack ranking does represent his organic strength, in a result which combines both organic factors (like website authority) with local ones (like citations and number of reviews). Hope this helps!