What Are Local Citations SEO?
Local citations are an important part of any successful local SEO strategy. When it comes to Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), citations are when your business name, address and phone number (NAP) is mentioned on other websites. Google algorithms look for NAP information. This information signals that your business is authentic and relevant, located at the address that is showcased on your Google My Business profile.
Citations are important to SEO. When you are just starting your SEO journey, citations helps you appear in local search results. Creating citations, along with managing them is an important part of SEO that marketers use, helping to boost your brand visibility in local search results.
The local algorithm used by Google works to return the best local businesses for each query. Websites are ranked based on prominence and relevance, along with citations. Local citations helps Google verify your business location. Google crawls the internet twenty four hours a day, seeing numerous sites listing the same business information, it identifies your business as an authentic local business, increasing trust and increasing your chances of a higher ranking in results.
There is no set list of citations that you must have, as each city has their own citation websites. You can use local online directories, chamber of commerce, Yellow Pages, and other directory websites to help you achieve your local SEO goals. Other popular directory sites includes Google, Yelp, and Facebook, for example.
You can use a local citation finder based on your city. This can be done through a quick Google search of your industry and location. The citations appearing in the top three results are the ones you will want to focus on.
Citations can appear on sites, even if you didn't manually add them. Relevant and authoritative local directories accept data feeds from others when they get their information. If you are a new start-up business and you need to ensure your business is added to directories, there are a number of ways to do this.
Remember to always provide as much information as possible.
When it comes to local citations, it is imperative that you remain consistent at all times. Citations are an important part of your local SEO strategy, so you need to ensure that they are one hundred percent accurate. This means double checking the spelling of your business name, without adding any local keywords. Your address and phone number should be identical on each directory website. If your NAP is incorrect or incomplete on different sites, the Google algorithm may ignore it. The same applies to duplicate content. Ensure your business only appears once on each citation site.
As you can see local citations are more important than you may have expected. They are a valuable tool that helps Google identify your business as authentic and relevant. In turn, this can help you increase your ranking in local search results. Remember to remain consistent throughout when it comes to your NAP information.
It's important when it comes to local citations, that you look for duplicate content, you double check the spelling of your business name, and you ensure your address and phone number remain uniform across all the local directories that you submit to, helping Google identify your business as legitimate, helping you boost your local SEO efforts to achieve long term success.
Complete the form and a member of our team will be in touch shortly to discuss your enquiry.