To Improve Local listing Ranking

1. Make your website has the NAP that matches the Google Listing.

2. Complete the full profile and verify your listing.

3. Ensure your onpage of your website solid.

4. Acquire citations, links and reviews.

Commenting on Local Blogs
Give testimonials to other local businesses that you like
Guest blogging on your local niche sites
can be useful to improve your local ranking!!

Make sure the listing is complete and accurate
Choose the most appropriate, specific categories for your business
Establish a strong, accurate presence on the web
Include images and videos to help the listing for your business stand out
Encourage customers to review your business by clicking Write a review on the local listing

Google+ is best for optimising search engine results. Since Google shows results from Google+ and local listings, it is important for brands to manage their Google+ pages and populate it with photos and tags. Verify your Google+ pages by linking them to your website and adding a Google Map to your brand profile.

Make sure your business listing is complete and varified
Address should be same on all your business litings
Select correct business category and upload images or videos
Participate on others listings by post comments

after pigeon update local seo , citations playing very important role in online marketing I was reading same article in next browser


Post-Pigeon Best Practice: How To Optimize For Internet Yellow Pages & Directories

I hope this is very useful for all of us.

Here are a few ways that you can increase your business listing rankings.
1. Set up a free Google Business Listing here. If you dont have an account, search for your business on Google Maps, and if found, click the 'Claim Business' link to claim your business.
2. Use Keywords in your Company Name. Don't completely change your name, but in a case like ours, change it up a little. We are a graphic design firm, so instead of 'Black Bear Design', I will use 'Black Bear Graphic Design'.
3. Use Keywords in your Company Description. Google gives you an area to describe your business, use it strategically by adding your most important goods or services.
4. Add Photos and your Company Logo. The more pictures you add, the better your ranking will be, and your images will show up in the image search as well.
5. Add a Coupon. Google tells you up front this will increase your ranking, and it may also increase the chances of receiving a call from those bargain hunters.
6. Add a Video to your listing. If you have uploaded any training videos, or have a commercial you have uploaded to YouTube, Google makes it very easy to pull that into your listing.
7. Complete all of the Information. Take a few extra minutes, add all of your business hours, payments and anything else you think is important. The more comprehensive your listing is, the better chances your will have. Complete all of the categories, and add your own if you cant find categories that fit.

To improve local listing, there are few key factors
-right category selection
-consistency
-quality backlinks + quantity backlinks
-domain authority
etc.
Here are top 10 local ranking factors you use improve in order to increase your ranking position:
Top 10 Local Search Ranking Factors | Siteber

To add to the list, i also believe the nature of business also can be a factor, really depends on competitive of your niche is. If your niche is very competitive in your local area, you might need to work harder to improve the ranking.. if not, then, i think it will be easier to outrank your local compeitors

Ensure that your NAP information is consistent. Do quality citations and sign up for MOZ Local for best results.

You must need to provide your all valid information's about your local business & contact details too...
Most important, you should verify all your local business in listed local listing websites..

All the tips above are great for local SEO!

I also recommend you to use Local Related Long-Tail Keywords throughout your content - this will help you get more search engine organic traffic. And it also can help you rank for your main keyword a lot better.

I wish you the best of the best!

Cheers!

Research your keywords
Optimize your site and content
Category Association
Get your business on Google Local
Create or claim your local listings
Name, Address, and Phone Number Consistency
Google Reviews
Optimize your social profiles

Make sure your business listing is complete and varified
Address should be same on all your business litings.
And do classified local base.

Reviews are NOT as important as everyone is saying they are. Do not get me wrong, they are important. Not as important as many MANY other things.

People are still stuck on the old Google ways, Google is changing, evolving, Get with it people!

-Website
Make sure your website's name,address,phone number (NAP) are the same as all of your citation listings. What is a citation? A citation is a directory listing.

How can I find where I am listed?
This one is a real hard question... GOOGLE.
Go to your Google Search engine type in your "Phone number" Press Search. The listing will give you a idea where your phone number is pulling up. This is what Google sees. Play around with it, Enter your phone number and location.

Tip: Find where it says "Search Tools" Change your location to where your client is located for more accurate results.

-Content is a huge thing with Google. They are after GOOD content. I was speaking with a Google Employee one day, his humor was very entertaining, but I will never forget what he told me. Google views it like this if you are ranking highly and you send someone to a website with not enough or poor content (Recommended me 3 - 4 paragraphs) You are wasting that persons time. Google Frowns upon this. Now this employee also told me Google keeps it pretty "Hush, Hush" about it's ranking algorithms. He assured me Google is after GOOD content.

-Category
Choosing the correct category is a very important factor. If you are just starting out and do not have very many directory listings and lets say you have filled out a citation but upon completing this citation you find that you can not find the correct category you would fall under. Stop what you are doing, stop the citation. Find another source. It is very important not to confuse Google. Focus on doing only the citations that have the correct category. After getting some citations under your belt. Then i would suggest being a little more less worried with your categories.
Google is starting to recognize the meaning behind Keywords rather then the actual keyword itself.

Patience

Remember DO NOT underestimate Google, space out your citations. YES, some of these citations take time too submit or be accepted. Still, be patient. Do not over due it! Quality over quantity

Build yourself a list of completed citations, go through them. Make sure you are listing correctly.

Ensure consistency of NAP information and get some good reviews. Also build citations.

- use local domain
- use local hosting
- register domain address should be same on all your business litings
- Commenting on Local Blogs
- Give google place review
- Guest blogging on your local niche sites

Below is the list of my suggestions is how to improve local listing:
Google map submission
Local citation submission
Yellow pages submission
Classified ads websites
review websites submission

Google Places Listings
Local Backlinks and citations
Customer Reviews
Local keyword rankings

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If you wants to improve the local listing ranking of your business website. Then you need to verify your website with all the local listing websites. If you get verified then then all the search shows your business pages.

i think you should promote your site on Local Clasified Website & directory.

I am totally agreed with Fkmdiscountcoupons and Glenn Rodgers, they both has mentioned the citations role after pigeon update. The Local citation submissions and Classified ads submissions (regionally), Google places are the main factors to improve your local searches. Rest, you need to target long tail region based keywords for your services!

To improve the ranking in Google maps listing it is important to follow below mentioned steps:

1. Complete Google maps listing of the website with the exact address and verify the listing.
2. You can create listing title and description by using targeted local keywords.
3. Ask you customers to post reviews into it. As, review play most important role in improving the performance of the listing in Google maps.

according to me if you promote your business in local market through any classified sites then it would be useful to improve what you have asked for here for sure

If you are facing difficulties in improving local listings then start using a different technique. Start making local groups on social networks quite popular in your area and start working on them and market your local listings in those groups.
If you have time and money to spend on some paid links just buy some paid links on top local business directory websites.
This strategy has worked for me in past that is why I am sharing.