How Google Determines Local Ranking

Google states on its website* that local results are mainly determined by three areas: Relevance, Distance & Prominence.  These three areas are put together to help find the best results for the user who is searching.  Thus a listing returned in a search result may not necessarily be the closest to the user because the other factors also weigh in on the final results.

Relevance

Basically the factor of relevance is how well a listing is a match to what the user is searching for.  Having up to date and accurate information about your business across all areas of the web will help Google better understand your business so it can return more accurate results.

Distance

Distance is simply how far a possible business listed in a search result is from the user that is performing the search.  Location of the user can be based on the terms used in the search or where they are physically based on what is known about their physical location.

Prominence

The idea of prominence is based on how well known a business is to the community.  This can be based on the information known to Google about a business based on things like listing sites, citations, links, articles, etc.  Google review counts and user ratings are both factors that are used in search rankings.  The number of reviews, the average score and the businesses responses to those reviews are all factors that affect local search rankings.  On-site SEO of your website is also a factor. 

Now that you are familiar with the above factors, you can see how important a Digital Knowledge Manager can be in helping your business rank well in local search.  Spyridon Technologies has multiple local search solutions available based on your goals and budget.  Contact us today to see how Spyridon Technologies can help your company succeed with local search! 

*google.com – December 2018

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