You have a local business and you count on your local listings to bring you the business that keeps the doors open. Being found on the first page of Google is a major component in your business moving forward.
So, what should you do when your rankings begin to tank? What was previously a steady flow of leads and customers has turned into a trickle, and you don't have a hint why.
Getting your site back to its former high ranking might be a simple solution, that can be cured in a matter days. For some items, it can take a bit longer. Let's examine several of the more likely reasons your site might have dropped in the Google local rankings, and what you can do about it.
There are several reasons why your Google local rankings sometimes fall
- Violating the Google Places Quality Guidelines – Thankfully for us, Google provides you a list of all the things they expect of a site to list in their local listings. If you violate these guidelines, you'll likely begin a descent in your rankings.
- Poor site information – Getting your NAP info wrong or inconsistent is a common and easily correctable problem. Be sure you have accurate names, addresses and phone (NAP) information on every platform you're on. Fortunately there are several online tools that help you find any errors in this regard, and quickly fix them.
- Inadvertent duplicate content – If you have a site with multiple locations, it's very likely you have been tempted to re-use the same content on each site. Don't make this mistake. Make each page unique, and avoid this altogether.
- Nothing fresh in ages – Two reasons for this: first Google likes to see fresh relevant content, and second, your competition is doing it, and you will eventually be eclipsed by them if you stand pat and do nothing. Continuously seek to add new content, seek new reviews and citations, and share socially. This will benefit your site in many ways.