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Local Search Ranking Factors for Google Places

Written by Martin Wong on June 7, 2010

Today, David Mihm released his influential 2010 Local Search Ranking Factor survey. This year 34 search engine marketing experts provided their insights and the result is some very valuable information to help you gain a better understanding of how Google’s Local Algorithm ranks listings.

The Top 10 Local Search Ranking Factors:

Based on the collective insights of all the search marketing experts, these are the top 10 factors that stand out from the survey:

1. Claiming your free Google Places listings obviously has a huge impact. Fully completing your profile with all the requested information will provide the foundation to achieve a high ranking.
2. Having a business address in the city being searched is a crucial factor. Well-optimized listings from suburban locations can also rank well in the search results. It is recommended that you use an physical business location rather than a P.O. Box or residential address.
3. Choosing the right business categories is highly beneficial. As categories are becoming more customized it is important that you target the most effective and relevant categories.
4. Adding your targeted product/service keywords in your Google Places Business Title still seems to be an effective way to rank. This is likely to change as it is against Google’s listing guidelines. Ideally, your keywords should be part of your official business name. Othwerise, it is best to avoid keyword stuffing in the title.
5. The quality of the off-page citations and incoming links to your business website is one of the most powerful ranking factors. Citation sources include Internet Yellow Pages websites, local directories and blogs. This factor will continue to rise in importance.
6. Customer reviews can be very helpful. Having good reviews may not make a significant difference in your rankings but it is a  huge factor in converting visitors into leads and sales. Reviews on third-party websites like Yelp can also influence local ranking.
7. The proximity of your business address to the center of the city continues to hold sway. In competitive markets, this can be a significant factor but is likely to decline in importance as Google improves its local listing algorithm. You should also use the dominant local area code as your primary phone number rather than a toll-free number.
8. Having your product and service keywords in your page description tends to work very well. Keep it mind that your business description should still read naturally to your potential customers.
9. Adding photos to your local listing remains an easy way to increase your visibility on Google Places. Not only will they help your ranking, photography and company logos make your business look more professional and trustworthy.
10. Another important factor is having your business included in user-generated content like MyMaps, KML files, geotagged images and videos.

Other ranking factors are discussed in the survey, including: new service area features, the value of coupons, the dangers of using multiple Google Place pages and the quality of location check-ins from FourSquare and Gowalla.

While creating an effective Google Places page is important, keep in mind that Google wants to display the most relevant and engaging content to searchers. In addition to having a quality Google Places listing, your website should be full of useful information and have lots of natural links from local sources (i.e. links from within blog posts and articles – rather than artificial links from directories).

You can read more about Google Places listings here, or read the full 2010 Local Search Ranking Factor survey.