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SEO For Google Local Search Results (Google Places)

by bosmolskate
6 replies
  • SEO
    • |
I have a few clients with multiple business locations that want to rank in Google Places. i was wondering how to name the business in Google Places and when getting citations from other sites?

Do you keep all the business names the same or do you add the location (city name) that they operate in to differentiate your listings and to better optimize it?

THANKS FOR THE INSIGHT!
#google #local #places #results #search #seo
  • Profile picture of the author jettjeffries
    Each location needs to be treated as if it were it's own client. Add city information for each listing.
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    • Profile picture of the author kfira
      the reason you should treat each location as a separate listing with separate seo strategies is the fact that the keywords might differ:

      e.g: pizza new york / pizza new jersey / pizza Brooklyn etc.

      assuming each location is targeting specific territory you would need to define keywords with different location modifier.

      also note that every keyword combination retrieves different set of top 7 that u need to do competitive analysis to.

      therefore, determine the categories , citations/reviews sources per each location according to the competitors analysis.

      you can name the locations by the same name , as long as the address and the Phone numbers are unique.

      watch out of 1-800 numbers!
      i hope it helped

      kfir
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      • Profile picture of the author rbrShorty
        Everything Kfir said is true, except for the location modifier. Please, whatever you do - do not put location in your categories in your Google Places. It will at best get your listing rejected.

        Also sometimes it might occur a problem if the company is with the same name and in the same town area. If the listings are in different cities and with different phones it is no problem to have the same names.
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        • Profile picture of the author kfira
          Sorry if i was misunderstood. you are definitely right regarding the categories. it's a big No No to enter any location modifier in the categories.

          While sharing Phone# or/and exact address will get you merged with other listing , sharing the same name is not.(in the cases below).

          take example the big chain stores, like taco bell, The home Depot etc.
          those stores has more than one location in one city and the naming is mostly identical, while the Phone number and address are unique.

          Google knows that same Name can be assigned to more than one location.
          in these types of businesses , so i don't think there's a problem with that as long as it's legit and it reflects the reality of the business.

          personally I would use the same name only if legally the location are called the same.

          BTW, adding location modifier to the name of the business to make it unique its big mistake . Google is very sensitive to that. (e.g pizza hut Brooklyn, pizza hut 5th avenue ny)


          Regarding citations:

          One of the main reasons its not recomended to change the location Name just because its not unique, is that you loose a lot of existing citations that might get picked up by Google.

          • You need to build citation per business location and not per brand .

          • The citation's NAP should be always the same as in the Places listing of the location.


          All of the above are my opinions.
          i apologize for my English .. :-)

          Kfir
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          • Profile picture of the author rbrShorty
            Thank you for the clarification, Kfir.

            Yes, it's very true that many locations could have the same name, but as I pointed out, I have observed problems particularly when there are locations with the same name in the same city area. And this is the only case I know of for problems regarding the same business names.
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  • Profile picture of the author bosmolskate
    Thanks for all the insight, as this has really helped me.

    I do however have 2 questions. First, when selecting categories do you use the preassigned Google categories or do you create you own keyword rich categories?

    Secondly, if i have multiple business locations can I use the same photos and videos, just changing the file name? Is this effective or should I create new videos and images?
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