How Does Google Rank a Business Profile?
In local search results, Google uses three main factors to determine where your Google Business Profile appears.
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1. Relevance
Relevance refers to how well your business profile matches what the user is searching for. Google considers your business name, category, description, services, and attributes to determine whether your listing is relevant.
How to Improve:
- Choose the right primary and secondary categories.
- Add detailed descriptions of your services and products.
- Use keywords naturally in your business description and posts.
2. Distance
Google prioritizes businesses that are closest to the person searching. This is especially important for mobile users who are looking for local services.
How to Improve:
- Ensure your business address is accurate.
- Set up service areas if you serve multiple locations.
- If you have multiple locations, create separate GBP listings for each one.
3. Prominence
Prominence refers to how well-known and trusted your business is. When ranking your business, Google evaluates your online reputation, customer engagement, and overall authority.
How to Improve:
- Get more high-quality reviews and respond to them.
- Regularly post updates, offers, and events to your GBP.
- Make sure your business is mentioned on other websites such as local directories, social media platforms, and your website.
Tips to Improve Your Google Business Profile Ranking
Following these proven strategies can help boost your GBP ranking.
- Optimize Your Business Information
- Fill out every section of your profile, including business hours, website, services, and attributes.
- Use high-quality images and a professional logo.
- Encourage and Respond to Reviews
- More positive reviews contribute to higher rankings.
- Ask satisfied customers to leave reviews and respond to all feedback, both positive and negative.
- Post Regularly
- Add Google Posts weekly, such as offers, events, news, or promotions.
- Use images and keywords in your posts to attract more engagement.
- Get Local Backlinks and Citations
- List your business on relevant directories such as Yelp, Bing Places, and Facebook.
- Seek local media coverage or collaborate with other businesses for backlinks.
- Ensure Your Website Has Strong Local SEO
- Your website should mention your city, services, and business type.
- Use Google Business Profile insights to see which keywords customers use to find you.
Why Ranking Matters for Your Business
When your Google Business Profile ranks well, it appears in the Google Local Pack, which features the top three map results for local searches.
For example, if you are a plumber in Phoenix, you want to show up when someone searches for “best plumber near me” or “plumber in Phoenix.”
The higher your ranking, the more calls, website visits, and customers your business will receive.
Need Help Ranking Your Google Business Profile?
At BizIQ, we have helped over 33,000 businesses optimize their profiles and improve their local search rankings.
Get a free Google Business Profile analysis today! Let’s get your business to the top of Google.
