Local Citations – A Crucial Element in Local SEO Success

Local citations are mentions of a physical business on the web that include its name, address, phone number and (sometimes) a link to its website. These citations can boost online visibility and build customer trust.

Structured citations appear on local directories and third-party websites that search engines already trust. They may also appear on industry-specific sites or on blogs.

Getting Started

Getting the most out of local SEO requires a lot of time and effort, but it’s one of the most effective ways to reach your target market. The key is consistency. Once Google sees that your NAP (name, address, phone number) is consistently listed across various websites and directories, they will start to trust it. And, when Google trusts a business’ information, it will show it in local search results.

Depending on your needs, you can either use a data aggregator or a third-party listings management tool to build and manage your local citations. Both of these options can be very helpful, but it’s also important to perform some manual searches and research to find the best citation sources for your business.

A good place to start is Whitespark’s curated list of citation sites by country or their local citation finder. These lists will help you identify the top citation sites that are relevant to your business and ensure consistency on this website.

Identifying the Right Places

Local citations can be found on online directories, local news websites, social media platforms, maps, and industry-specific sites. Often, a citation can be spotted when an article spotlights a local business and includes the company’s name, address, phone number, and website link.

Online reviews also serve as valuable citations for businesses, and according to a 2021 Brightlocal survey, 77% of consumers “always” or “regularly” read online reviews before making a purchase. Therefore, it’s important to ensure that your company has an active and accurate presence on review sites and that NAP information is consistent across all citations.

NAP consistency is especially crucial on major citation websites, such as Google My Business and Bing Maps. Other important citations include.edu websites (if your company is a member of a professional organization such as the Chamber of Commerce), local news websites, and industry directories (e.g., for lawyers, real estate agents, or restaurants). Local citations can also be obtained from local event websites and even from bloggers.

Keeping Information Accurate

When it comes to local SEO, consistency is key. That’s why it’s important to make sure that all citations are accurate and consistent, including NAP (name, address, phone number) data and a link to the business website.

Accurate citations help search engines verify that the company exists and can be found in the area in question, which helps improve rankings in local searches. This means more web, phone and foot traffic for the business, and a positive impact on reputation and sales.

Common sources of citations include online business directories such as Google My Business, Bing Places, and Yext. Moreover, there are also industry-specific directories that provide listings for companies in specific industries like real estate agents and lawyers. Finally, there are big data aggregators that provide listings for a small fee or for free to businesses that want their information published across many different directories and websites. There are also listings management tools available that can monitor your citations for accuracy and ensure consistency.

Keeping Track of Your Citations

While citations may seem like a minor SEO ranking factor, they have a huge impact on local search engine optimization. As a result, it’s important to keep track of your citations to ensure accuracy and consistency.

There are many tools available that can help you monitor and manage your local citations. These tools can alert you to new citations, and even notify you when your business has changed information. This makes it easy to monitor and address any inconsistencies that could be impacting your local search engine rankings.

In summary, a local citation is any mention of your business’ name, address and phone number (NAP) online. Most of these are structured citations, which are listings on relevant business directories and third party websites that have pre-existing databases of reliable information that Google trusts. Other types of citations are unstructured, which can be anything from an online article in a newspaper to a social media review or recommendation.