Top Tips for Local SEO: Why NAP Listing Consistency Matters

Run a brick-and-mortar business? You probably face tough competition to turn search traffic into foot traffic.

But the majority of businesses fail to act on one of the most basic elements of local SEO: claiming listings on search engines and business directories. Not only that, but many also fail to maintain accurate NAP (Name, Address and Phone Number) listings across those profiles.

The good news? With a little bit of knowledge and effort, you can develop a considerable advantage pretty easily.

How Does NAP Info Impact Local Search Rankings?

Good UX Means Good Business

In a world where technology is rapidly advancing and user expectations are rising, it’s no longer enough to have an average user experience; to delight your users and surpass your competition you must strive for the exceptional.

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Search engines use instances of your business name, location, and contact information around the web to accurately understand who you are. Where you’re located. And how customers can reach you.

Since the number one goal of any search engine is to provide a quality experience, it’s important this information be accurate. That’s why they pay close attention to every detail of how your NAP information is formatted. Because if they present users with outdated or wrong information? It erodes trust between their service and the consumer.

Listen to our friend Dwight.

When creating listings on local directories (as well as Google My Business, Bing Local, Yahoo Local and your Facebook page), it’s important to ensure that your business name, address and phone number are accurate everywhere they appear on the Web. This means all listings should match the syntax and formatting of these items on your website (and they need to be easily visible on your website, if they aren’t already).

Overall Tips for Formatting Your NAP

1. Ensure your NAP information is included in the HTML of your website (rather than placed on an image file), so it can be crawled by search engines.
2. Ensure the formatting is 100% the same (or as close as possible) all across the web. That means if your phone number started with a 1 on your website, it should start with a 1 on every profile and directory.

These may seem like minor details. But the tighter you can lock this down, the better your odds at achieving strong local search rankings.

Additional Tips for 4 SEO Avenues

1. Google My Business (free) This service is a critical component of any local SEO strategy. Why? Google uses the information included on your page to determine how your site appears in local search results. You can access Google My Business through the same dashboard as the Google+ account for your business. When creating your listing, be sure to:
   • Select categories that accurately reflect your business.
   • Include a descriptive bio.
   • Upload high-quality photos.
   • Connect your Google My Business account to your Google Analytics account.
   • Make sure the name, address, and phone number matches the information on your website exactly.
   • Don’t forget to include your URL.

   NOTE: The Google My Business dashboard features a progress bar that will let you know when your page has reached 100% optimization. This should be your goal.

2. Bing Places for Business (free) and Yahoo Localworks (free/paid options) Best practices for optimizing your profile are similar to Google My Business. Even if you rarely use these search engines yourself, neither should be ignored. With nearly 10% of total search market share each, the combined traffic could add up quickly for your business.
   Local search is competitive, and this is a battle of inches. Give yourself every advantage possible.
3. Business Directories: While directory links have long lost SEO relevancy for large websites targeting a national audience, they remain crucial for any successful local SEO campaign. Specifically, make sure your business is visible on these local directory websites:
   • YP.com (Yellow Pages)
   • SuperPages
   • FourSquare
   • Yelp
   • InfoGroup / Express Update
   • NeuStar Localeze
   • Factual
   • Best of the Web
   • Axciom
   • CitySearch
   • CityGrid
   • HotFrog

   Not only will optimizing your presence on these directories improve your back link profile, they may also help send referral traffic directly to your site.

   TIP: You can use a premium Moz Local account to manage your data on all of the above sites and directories from one place. This will save you time, money and innumerable headaches in the long run.

4. Other Websites: In addition, consider other local directory and sites with business listing pages for links and citations, such as:
   • The Better Business Bureau
   • Your local Chamber of Commerce website
   • Local clubs and professional organizations
   • Local or regional industry directories