For local businesses, being at the forefront of potential customer’s searches is vital for business success. In today’s fast paced and often brutal economy, local businesses are relying heavily on word-of-mouth marketing and good reputation to gain new custom, so it should be quick and easy for customers to find your business online.
Local SEO is a hugely important element in digital marketing and for businesses who operate within a specific or localised area, implementing a local SEO strategy catapults your business miles ahead of your competitors.
If you’ve found that your business doesn’t show on Google Maps, this usually indicates you currently don’t have a very strong local SEO strategy, meaning you could be losing out on invaluable new custom. With that in mind, let’s take a look at what to do if your business is not showing on Google maps.
What is Local SEO?
Local SEO is distinct from general SEO in that it requires a more strategic and targeted approach to achieve results. It is a branch of SEO which looks at optimising a website so it can be found within local search results, such as on Google Maps.
Local SEO uses processes which differ slightly to general SEO to improve rankings and results for queries which are more specific to a geographical area, for example “coffee near me” or “hairdressers in Warwick”.
Why Is Local SEO Important?
It is important for businesses to optimise for local SEO, particularly ones which look to serve specific areas. If done right, then these optimisations allow potential customers to quickly find your business, with your profile standing out from your competitors. 4 in 5 consumers now carry out searches with local intent on Google, meaning that there is huge potential to increase your customer base with a well optimised and considered local SEO strategy.
Why Is My Business Not Showing on Google Maps?
If you’ve ever tried searching for your business within Google Maps and have found it isn’t showing in the results, this could be for a few different reasons, all of which point towards a poor local SEO strategy.
It is important for your business to be found within Google Maps, as a strong presence here means it will be much quicker and easier for customers to find your profile amongst your competitors. Infamously dubbed “Google’s Map Pack”, this term refers to the top three appearing profiles within Google Maps listings. These profiles, due to their higher ranking status within Google Maps, will likely benefit from higher website click through rates, better keyword rankings and will be more likely to appear as the top result within voice searches.
If your business is not showing on Google Maps, here are some reasons why your listing could be missing.
You Don’t Have a Business Profile Set Up
One of the most common reasons your business is not showing in Google Maps may simply be because you don’t have Google Business profile set up. You may find that there is some information about your business on Google in what can look like a Business Profile, but these profiles need to be claimed by the business owner (yourself) before they have the chance to begin appearing in Google Maps.
By either setting up or claiming a Google Business profile, you then begin to manage your online presence and start optimising your profile, ensuring any information on there is accurate.
Your Profile is not Verified
In order to ensure it provides information which is both accurate and reliable, Google only shows profiles which have been verified in Google Map listings. If you have set up a Google Business profile, but have not yet verified it, this could be stopping your profile from being seen by potential customers.
To verify your business profile, there are a few different ways Google may request this to be done, but this can be accessed from your profile dashboard. Once completed, verification takes between 1-5 days to show.
There are no Local Optimisations on your Website
If there are no mentions of local keywords, your business address or contact information on your website, this will influence how your website appears in search results for local search queries, as well as in Google Map results. Local SEO algorithms differ somewhat from general SEO algorithms in that alternative factors are considered by Google when looking at assigning rankings to a website for local searches.
Efforts should be made to optimise your website where possible with local SEO in mind, particularly if you have found that your website is not showing in Google Maps results, as well as optimising your Business Profile.
You Have Poor or Few Google Reviews
Local businesses rely on a lot of word-of-mouth marketing, as well as building and establishing trust with customers over time. Google values this, and a large part of your Business Profile can be used to build consumer’s trust before they take out a service or pay for your products.
Having positive reviews on your profile not only work to establish this trust, but they also have an influence on your local SEO success. As a business owner, you should aim to grow the number of reviews your business has, as well as increase your overall star rating if you want to increase the chances of your business showing on Google Maps.
There is Inconsistent NAP Information
If there are inconsistent or inaccurate mentions of your business NAP (name, address and phone number) online, then Google will struggle to understand exactly where your business is based. As such, it will likely choose not to show your business information to customers due to the risk of them becoming confused in their search and choose instead to show competitor’s information instead. Having such inconsistency has negative impacts on your local search visibility and rankings.
Make sure any mentions of your business information are accurate, following the same format where possible. You may wish to revise your business information on your website if it is outdated or no longer correct.
Boost your Local SEO with Formation Media
For localised businesses, local SEO should be a considered part of your marketing and overall business strategy – after all, who doesn’t want new customers or clients? If your business is not showing on Google Maps or you wish to enhance your local SEO optimisations, then you’re in the right place – contact Formation Media today to discuss your new local SEO strategy!
