Ah, Google, the mighty double-edged sword of SEO that causes small businesses to both bless and curse its name. Which side of that you’re on depends entirely on whether your business has cracked the mighty “Top Three” of Google’s search results.
For those who don’t know, Google’s local search results has gone through many changes and permutations over the years as the search giant attempts to prevent more relevant, localized results. Google “dry cleaners,” for example, and the algorithm will know that you’re probably not looking for the (remarkably thorough) Wikipedia page on the practice, but that you’re looking for a dry cleaner near you.
But therein lies the rub – in order to streamline the information for you (not to mention leave plenty of room on the screen for targeted advertising), Google has limited the number of local businesses that appear up top to three (narrowed down from seven).
If you’re one of the top three, it’s money in the bank. At a single glance, someone who was just looking for a business in the area now has your name, address, phone number, rating according to Google users and helpful links to your website. They can even get directions to your door with a tap. The ever-popular Google Home currently mimics this top-three structure, but that will soon change (more on that in a bit).
It’s an implicit endorsement of your company by one of the biggest tech firms in the world. So how do you go about getting there?
Get Your Facts Straight
Begin by making sure Google has all the information they would possibly ever need to know about your business. You can start here. Every scrap of data you can give them on your business (including, crucially, different categories that might apply to you) helps Google match you with relevant searches. Even supplying them with photos can help boost your relevance (not to mention keep irrelevant or inappropriate photos from being used as your “official” image on Google. It’s rare, but it does happen).
Everything from updated hours of operation to verifying your physical address goes a long way toward boosting your business in the almighty eyes of Google. That’s the easy part. Far more difficult is answering to another key part of Google’s algorithm, your business’ “prominence.”
This is essentially Google trying to look outside of the Internet to your business’ prominence in the offline. It’s a way that Google ensures things like museums and landmarks get their due in search results, but it also affects how your business shows up.
Encourage customers to leave a review when possible, and be quick to respond when they do, whether positive or negative. That said, they will obviously boost businesses that have more positive reviews, so don’t be afraid to get happy customers speaking their mind online. Engagement is one of the biggest factors Google draws from in its ranking, and studies point to this online interaction becoming more and more prominent in the future. Yes, sadly, that means you will have to continue to post to Google+. It may not get as many eyeballs as a Facebook post, but it helps Google know you’re staying engaged.
Another way Google gauges prominence is based on information from around the web. Get your business on as many directories as possible, from the Better Business Bureau to the local chamber of commerce, and continue using best SEO practices.
About the only influence in Google’s local listings you can’t change is proximity – a large part of what lands a business in that top three is where the searcher happens to be physically located.
Ok, Google
Now that we’ve helped you crack the top three on desktops and mobile, it’s time to completely tear the whole thing down and start over, thanks to an entirely new way of searching. Thanks, Google!
As Google Home devices start making their way into the marketplace, Google is once again streamlining search results for local businesses. Right now, if you ask Google Home for a dry cleaner, it will essentially relate to you three results similar to what you would get if you searched on your phone. But that will soon change.
Understandably, getting three results with relevant details is a different experience when a speaker is reciting them vs. simply reading them from the phone, so it’s hard to blame Google for wanting to shorten the process. So what they’ve done is partner with local home service providers (such as HomeAdvisor or Torch) to give you the option of tailoring your search.
As an example, if you were to let Google Home know that you needed a dry cleaner, it might tailor your request with a few followup questions – what do you need cleaned, are you looking for one near home or near work, etc. The end goal is to deliver one quality match as opposed to three results.
Details of how this structured questioning is created are currently murky, and the feature has not seen official release, but most information coming from Google indicates it will lean heavily on HomeAdvisor for relevant results. One assumes Google’s own local services ads will be prioritized for every query, but with nothing officially released yet, no one is sure.
Suffice it to say, whether on a phone or at home, getting on the short list of Google’s local results can make or break your business. By following a few guidelines, you can crack the top three.
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