We strongly believe that building citations are essential for any business looking to target locally based customers. Along with helping to increase rankings in relevant Google Maps (and general search results), the offer the following benefits for businesses of all size.

The number of citations, the location of the citations and the consistency of the information can all play a key role in helping to influence Google’s rankings, particular with regards to Google Maps.

What Are Citations?

A citation is essentially any online mention of the name, address, and phone number for a particular business. Citations can be listed on business directories, on websites and apps, and on social media channels.

Citations can provide the ideal way for internet users to discover details relating to local businesses and also offer the chance to positively impact local search engine rankings.

One of the most important ways that citations can help to benefit a business is by increasing the chances of local customers to find your business online. These will include third-party sites that people use, like Google Maps, Yell, Yelp, FreeIndex, Yelp, Thomson Local and Foursquare to name just a few.

How Can We Help?

Citations offer a number of benefits but 3, in particular, stand out.

  1. They offer trusted sources of location information
  2. They help to create an excellent link profile (links back to your website)
  3. They form a key component of an impressive review profile (lots of destinations for customers to provide independent reviews)

Setting up or claiming existing citations (some directories may actually create a listing for you!) is just the beginning of the process. We will make sure that you squeeze every last drop of potential out of each and every listing.

We will do this by completing the following steps:

  • Making sure that all of the information listed on your account is accurate, relevant and verified
  • Flesh out your listing with as many relevant details as possible
  • Make sure there are no duplicate listings which may prove harmful in the future
  • We would actively seek to encourage customer reviews. For example, if you have an e-mail database for current and past customers, we will contact them on your behalf with links to your listing and a guide for the best and quickest way to leave a review
  • Keep your listings up to date

Getting In Touch

The above information is designed to offer a guide towards maximising the exposure and potential of your citation portfolio. There are also, of course, additional factors which must be taken into consideration. If you would like Footprint Web Design to help optimise your Google Maps listing, simply give us a call today on Tel. No. +44(0)1883 372488.

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