Your Google Maps listing is a crucial marketing tool for your business. It can help you get discovered by new customers, stand out above competitors, and generate more business—all for free. But these benefits are really only attainable if your listing has strong visibility, and just because your business is listed in an area does not mean Google will automatically rank it for searches in that area.
In fact, proximity is only just one of many factors Google Maps takes into account when ranking business listings. In this guide, I’m going to walk you through 10 tactics/strategies to get your Google Maps listing to rank higher in results and reap all of the associated benefits.
We’re going to cover:
- How to create and claim your Google Maps listing if you haven’t already done so.
- How to provide supplemental information that boosts your rank and increases your appeal.
- Additional steps you can take on your website to further improve the rank of your Google Maps listing.
Why rank higher on Google Maps?
Research shows that Google Maps is the preferred navigation app for 67% of consumers. And with consumers rarely looking past the first few results when looking for a place to go, it’s crucial to make sure your Google Maps listing is optimized to show up first for relevant searches.
Research also shows that these consumers end up on Google Maps business listings from a keyword (aka “discovery”) search far more often (84% of the time) than from business name (aka “direct”) search. That being said, it’s important that your listing ranks high on Google Maps for these terms your potential customers are searching.
Another reason to rank on Google Maps is that the top three Google Maps listings will also display in regular Google Search results if applicable. And with 46% of searches on Google having local intent, showing up in that “Local 3-Pack” can greatly increase the visibility of your business.
The third reason to rank higher on Google Maps is because the things you do to rank higher will improve the quality of your listing and add multiple ways for consumers to engage with your business. With 86% of consumers using Google maps to look up a business, this opens up a lot of opportunities to boost engagement.
How to use your website to rank higher on Google Maps
In addition to taking action directly on your business listing, there are some optimizations you can perform on your website to support higher Google Maps ranking.
Make sure your website is responsive
The first is to make sure your website is responsive, which means that it functions consistently across any device or screen size. This is because Google Maps business listings contain a link to your website, and nearly 60% of Google searches occur on mobile devices. So if your listing takes searchers to a website that requires pinching and zooming, has broken links, or is slow to load, your Google Maps ranking will suffer.
Add local keywords to your website
The second way to use your website to boost your Google Maps ranking is to target it for local search. Of course, this will help your website to rank higher in Google Search, but may also influence how high your Google Maps business listing ranks. So be sure to incorporate location-based keywords to the main pages of your site, such as the homepage, about us page, contact us page, products and services page, and even blog posts—and not just to the title of the pages, but also to the headings, body text, image tags, captions, and URLs.
Emphasizing to Google through your website that you are prominent in your local area can help Google to feel more confident in ranking your business listing on Google Maps for that area as well.
Embed a Google map on your website
Another way to rank higher on Google Maps is to embed a Google map on your website, which most businesses do on the contact us page. Embedding a Google map is just another way of telling Google that your business is located where your listing says it is. Use the same address that you have on your Google Maps business listing.
To embed a Google Map on your website, search for your business name in Google Maps. Click on “Share” in your listing and select the “Embed a map” tab. Copy and paste the link on your business’s contact page.
Experience the benefits of ranking higher on Google Maps
We threw a lot at you in this guide, so here’s a quick recap of all the strategies we covered for ranking higher on Google Maps:
- Create and claim your Google Maps business listing
- Complete every section of your Google My Business dashboard
- Keep your name, address, and [preferably local] phone number consistent
- Properly describe and categorize your business
- Add photos and posts to your listing regularly
- Get Google reviews
- Consolidate duplicate listings
- Have a responsive website
- Target your website for local keywords
- Embed a Google Map on your website
Business listings on Google Maps are becoming more advanced, allowing consumers to quickly get the information they need and make informed purchasing decisions. Follow the tips in this post to get your business showing at the top of Google Maps, and you’ll get to experience the increased visibility, engagement, and revenue that comes along with it!
If you have questions or concerns about your online presence give Stratedia a call at 860.415.0430 or visit us online at stratedia.com. We‘re ranked #1 as the top seo company CT by Clutch.co! Let Stratedia help you, GET TO THE TOP!