Local searchGEO TARGETING

Local search• Introduction

• Another year, another increase in the complexity of Local search results at Google.

• Last year’s survey was released almost simultaneously with the announcement of Google+ Local (which, according to the experts, has affected rankings surprisingly little), and this year’s edition follows close on the heels of widespread reports of Carousel results and the release of the new Google Maps.

• Two constants over the course of the past year, however, have been the continued appearance of Localized Organic results and the ever-increasing percentage of searches coming from mobile devices.

Local search

• Combine all those data points together, and it becomes very clear that there’s no longer a single “Local algorithm” at Google anymore—if, indeed, there ever was one.

• So in putting this year’s survey together, I re-examined how best to attack my original goal behind its creation: “to help small business owners confused by Local Search, or those strapped for time, to prioritize their marketing efforts.”

• The net result is a format that diverges considerably from previous years, but is one that I hope will be more actionable as we attempt to bring clarity to the ever-murkier waters of a Social-Local-Mobile world.

Normal search

Local and map search

Local

Foundational Factors

Foundational factors

• Foundational Ranking Factors

• 1Proper Category Associations

• 2Physical Address in City of Search

• 3Consistency of Structured Citations

• 4Quality/Authority of Structured Citations

• 5HTML NAP Matching Place Page NAP

Foundational factors

• 5HTML NAP Matching Place Page NAP

• 6Quantity of Structured Citations (IYPs, Data Aggregators)

• 7Domain Authority of Website

• 8Individually Owner-verified Local Plus Page

• 9City, State in Places Landing Page Title

• 10Proximity of Address to Centroid

Foundational factors

• 11Quality/Authority of Inbound Links to Domain

• 12Quantity of Native Google Places Reviews (w/text)

• 13Product / Service Keyword in Business Title

• 14Quantity of Citations from Locally-Relevant Domains

• 15Proximity of Physical Location to the Point of Search\n(Searcher-Business Distance)

Foundational factors

• 16Quantity of Citations from Industry-Relevant Domains

• 17Local Area Code on Local Plus Page

• 18City, State in Most/All Website Title Tags

• 19Quantity of Third-Party Traditional Reviews

• 20Page Authority of Places Landing Page URL

Competitive Difference

Competitive Difference Makers• Competitive Difference Makers

• 1Quality/Authority of Structured Citations

• 2Quality/Authority of Inbound Links to Domain

• 3Quantity of Reviews by Authority Reviewers (e.g.Yelp Elite, Multiple Places Reviewers, etc)

• 4Consistency of Structured Citations

• 5Quantity of Citations from Industry-Relevant Domains

• 6Quantity of Native Google Places Reviews (w/text)

• 7Domain Authority of Website

• 8Quality/Authority of Unstructured Citations (Newspaper Articles, Blog Posts)

• 9Quantity of Citations from Locally-Relevant Domains

• 10Page Authority of Places Landing Page URL

Negative Local Factors

Negative factors• Negative Ranking Factors

• 1Listing detected at false business location

• 2Keyword stuffing in business name

• 3Mis-match NAP / Tracking Phone Numbers Across Data Ecosystem

• 4Incorrect business category

• 5Presence of Multiple Place Pages with Same/Similar Business Title and Address

• 6Mis-match NAP / Tracking Phone Number on Places Landing Page

• 7Mis-match Address on Places Landing Page

• 8Reports of Violations on your place page

• 9Presence of malware on site

• 10Absence of Crawlable NAP on Website

Negative factors•

Presence of Multiple Place Pages with Same Phone Number

• 12Including Location Keyword in Categories

• 13Absence of Crawlable NAP on Places Landing Page

• 14Incorrectly placing your map marker

• 15Presence of Multiple Categories in Same Input Field

• 16Association of Google Places account with other suppressed listings

• 17Address includes suite number similar to UPS Mail Store addresses

• 18Keyword/city stuffed Place page descriptions

• 19Non-Compliant Categories (those that do not fit

• 20Listing 800 Number as Only Phone Number on Place Page

Key Changes• 2014 Updates

• HTTPS/SSL Update — August 6, 2014

• After months of speculation, Google announced that they would be giving preference to secure sites, and that adding encryption would provide a "lightweight" rankings boost. They stressed that this boost would start out small, but implied it might increase if the changed proved to be positive.

• HTTPS as a ranking signal (Google)

• Google Starts Giving A Ranking Boost To Secure HTTPS/SSL Sites (SEL)

Pigeon

• Pigeon — July 24, 2014

• Google shook the local SEO world with an update that dramatically altered some local results and modified how they handle and interpret location cues. Google claimed that Pigeon created closer ties between the local algorithm and core algorithm(s).

• Google “Pigeon” Updates Local Search Algorithm With Stronger Ties To Web Search Signal (SEL)

• Google Updates Local Algo with More Web Based Signals - Turmoil in SERPs (Blumenthals.com)

Authorship

• Authorship Photo Drop — June 28, 2014

• John Mueller made a surprise announcement (on June 25th) that Google would be dropping all authorship photos from SERPs (after heavily promoting authorship as a connection to Google+). The drop was complete around June 28th.

• Google Announces the End of Author Photos in Search: What You Should Know (Moz)

• Google Removes Author Photos From Search: Why And What Does It Mean? (SEL)