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help with our local listing ...

by glennib
7 replies
we have a local listing that had been ranking for say

plumber new york
plumbers new york
house plumber new york
house plumbers new york
commercial plumber new york

and so on

we got a phone call from google staff to ask about our location.. they accepted it and all was fine.. in the process of google rep tweaking our location info they changed our main category from "plumber" to "commercial Plumber"

this has thrown out all of our rankings .. we have lost all rankings inc the big ones

plumber new york
plumbers new york

but maintained house plumber new york..

this is strange iv waited 3 months for it to settle out but no changed we are stuck on the local rankings 2nd page for all the good keywords.

iv just finished an order of more citations, and upping backlinks but what else can i do to increase rankings?

at our peak we held a spots for all keywords and have more reviews not only just on google but collectively throughtout other domains scraped by google.
#listing #local
  • Profile picture of the author smartfinds
    Hi Glenn,

    I hope you will accept the below information as a means to provide you an honest response. Based on your response, I hope you won't mind a direct response.

    I have been in the Internet industry for nearly 20 years and the one thing that is always consistent, is that there are always changes going on. Whether it is a matter of algorithms with the search engines or if it is new technologies, one way or another changes continually happen through a month or year.

    Secondly we have to keep in mind that based on the continual changes that performing a marketing task one time probably is not going to do the trick long term...unless you are doing something ongoing.

    Lastly, the Internet has been moving more and more to a multi-channel marketing effort. A single channel is not going to be effective. This may entail making sure your local business listings are up to date throughout multiple sources. This gives Google citations to validate your company and address.

    What are some things you can do? I'm going to assume you're a small business with a limited budget.

    1. Go to a company like Yext, Localeze or UBL and use them to syndicate your information out to more websites.

    2. Have you claimed your listing? Is it up to date? Have you checked your listing with Google Map Maker?

    3. As far as Google is concerned, are you engaged with Google+ an tie that into your Google+ Local Listing?

    4. Do you use Schema.org data classification on your website that will work together with your local business listing information?

    5. What type of web marketing (outside of your website) are you doing..eg. News Releases, Social Media Marketing, Blog Marketing to name a few.

    Let me leave you with the above information and I hope it will at least paint a picture showing that there are multiple elements involved that will faciliate the ranking of your local business listing.
    Signature

    Melih Oztalay, CEO, SmartFinds Internet Marketing
    Corporate: http://www.smartfindsmarketing.com
    melih@smartfindsmarketing.com
    Tel: (248) 568-2241

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    • Profile picture of the author Jay Levine
      Hi Glenn,

      I have to agree with smartfinds. Ranking high on Google or local is great, but there are often things about rankings that are out of anyone's control. When something happens to rankings, you have to have alternate and additional sources of traffic in place, which by the way usually helps with your rankings. It's also a good idea to look into what works in your industry from a traditional, non-internet marketing standpoint. Sometimes these things can also be tied to driving traffic to your site as well, also helping with rankings. A balanced approach to marketing is becoming more and more important as things change in the Internet world.
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      Learn web design, marketing, and SEO from beginner to agency owner. Save time and energy by tapping my 20 years of agency experience for free at BestWebSecrects.com

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  • Profile picture of the author vndnbrgj
    Call Google and speak with your rep.
    Let them know that you are primarily a residential plumber.
    You noticed that you have been listed as a commercial plumber, and have tried to change it to no avail. Can they help?

    I agree with others that you should he doing additional things, but that doesnt solve your current problem. The phone call might.
    Signature
    Life Begins At The End Of Your Comfort Zone
    - Neale Donald Wilson -
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    • Profile picture of the author Catalyst eMarketing
      Yes for sure. In spite of all Google's changes, if something is wrong with your listing you should try to fix it. Phone support is available now so use it.

      However I'll warn you, Google does don't really help with ranking problems so don't lead with that.

      Lead with data integrity. "Our primary category is plumber not commercial plumber. (Or we do both or whatever.) Can you please help me fix our category problem?"
      Signature

      Linda Buquet :: Google+ Local Specialist and Google Top Contributor
      ADVANCED Google+ Local Training :: Also offering White Label Local SEO
      Latest Google Local News, Tips & Tricks

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  • Profile picture of the author trishabangalore
    Local listing is meant only for temporary rankings. You shouldn't totally rely on local listing. Get referral links.
    Signature

    Trisha Interiors Extraordinaire is the best hardware dealers in Bangalore.

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  • Profile picture of the author pilaruk
    With local listings you need to make sure you are getting plenty of good reviews from your customers.
    Listings with honest and real reviews tend to be the ones that do better in terms of position.
    Hope that helps.
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  • Profile picture of the author NateOlsen
    Obviously Google felt something wasn't right about your business, They don't call for no reason and the plumbing industry is being hit hard because of fake locations etc.. So I think a competitor or someone reported a problem with your listing Google called did something to your listing and your probably lucky it wasn't deleted but your listing needs straightened out probably on both ends dashboard and Google's end if you wanted to PM me or email me I would be happy to look it over for you thanks,
    Nathan
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