Business Listings: SEO's Secret Weapon

Looking for powerful SEO tools to help your business? There certainly are plenty of ways to improve your SEO online and drive local search results. However, one of the best things that you can do for your company is to ensure that your local business listing is working for you and not against you. You might find yourself wondering, what are business listings, and how can they be used to help drive traffic and sales? That’s exactly what we’re here to explore! Below, we’ll discuss the benefits of having an accurate local business listing to increase online visibility, build brand awareness, and more!

The Importance of Your Business Listing

So exactly what are business listings, and why do they matter? You can think of your online business listing as the fully loaded digital version of a phone book listing. These online business listings are part of a comprehensive library with key information about your company, including your address and phone number, web domain, and if you have a physical location, a map listing that can be found on sites like Google. When people search for terms related to your company, brand, or business, search engines will scour this digital library and may or may not use the information you have listed to direct leads your way.

These Listings are a Powerful and Necessary Tool

As you can see, having an accurate business listing can lead directly to better online visibility in search engines to help you drive traffic, bring in new potential customers, and, ultimately, increase revenue.

Although these local business listings are so important, you might be surprised how frequently entrepreneurs underestimate (or entirely overlook) them. Making sure that you get your business information up to date and working in your favor can go a long way toward supporting your local SEO results!

How to Use Your Business Listing for Better SEO

Now that you know why your business listings are so important, you may be wondering what you can do to ensure they get noticed and utilized by search engines and potential customers. First and foremost, it is important to know what sites your business should be listed on. The top business listing sites to use for your company are:

1. Google

2. Bing

3. Facebook

4. Yelp

5. Merchant Circle

6. Angie's List

7. Yellow Pages

8. Super Pages

9. White Pages

10. Manta

11. MapQuest

12. City Search

13. Local

14. Four Square

15. Yellow Book

16. Kudzu

17. Hot Frog

18. Show Me Loca

19. Brown Book

Some of these business listing websites are universal, meaning that no matter what type of brand or business you have, it should be listed here. Places that you should always make sure your business is showing up include Google, Facebook, Bing, and Yellow Pages. Alternatively, other listing websites may be important to your enterprise, depending on what it revolves around. For example, if you have a coffee shop or bistro, you will want to make sure that it comes up when searched on Yelp. Or, if you offer a service like carpentry, Angie's List could be among the most essential places to list your business.

Does your business have a physical location, or is it an online-only operation? If you do have a physical address, make sure that your business listing or profile can be found on Apple Maps and MapQuest.

How to Make Business Listings or Claim Them Online

Have you claimed all of your existing business listings yet? Managing your local listings is a fairly straightforward process, requiring only a bit of time and effort. On some listing sites, you can claim an existing listing in just a few minutes. On others, you must make a profile for your business or follow verification steps.

Check all relevant sites and claim any existing listings. This may involve creating an account for your business and/or verifying its ownership. You can do this through a phone call, via email, or, in the case of some Google Business Profile listings, with a postcard that will be received in the mail.

Set Up Your Online Listings Correctly, Including Keywords and USPs

Once you have claimed your listing, take some time to fill out all relative search fields. Include as much information as you can in your description, and try to add some keywords and search terms in any relevant places. Also, be sure to add details like your hours of operation, address, phone number, business owner contact information, and official website address. This is also a great time to add photos that represent your business favorably.

You will also want to be sure to include a unique selling proposition (USP) Wherever you can for your business listing or profile. The definition of a unique selling proposition is a simple descriptive statement that tells how your company, service, or product is different from your industry competitors. This is a great way to give your target audience a brief rundown on what you can offer and why they should choose you over another business listed online directly above or below you.

Managing Your Listings

Once you have set up and verified or claimed your listing on a website like Google My Business or Yelp, it's time to ensure you are managing your listing properly. This is a critical component of optimizing your local search results. Obviously, you will want to ensure that information like your address and phone number are always up to date. Beyond that, it is important to do everything you can to prove that your business is legitimate and active. There are certain ways that you can send signals to search engines and rank higher online. These include:

• Responding to customer reviews

• Improving the user experience

• Using a unique selling proposition (USP)

• Having photos that represent your enterprise positively

• Implementing keywords

• Increasing listing click-through rates

• Updating your website content regularly

• Managing your back page SEO

Regularly adding blogs to your website, responding to customer reviews, and making sure to always keep your information accurate and up-to-date can go a long way toward helping you drive online traffic and increase click-through rates.

Start Promoting the Growth and Success of Your Business Now

So what are business listings? Business listings exist in online directories and usually include your web URL, business name, address, hours of operation, phone number, photos, and reviews. These listings can be found on Google, Yelp, Bing, and others. If you want your enterprise to find success online, these listings can be a necessary and important business tool to use to your advantage.

Looking for help with your business listing and online SEO? Using a top-rated online marketing website can help! E-Marketing Associates is here to do everything possible to promote the prosperity and growth of your proprietorship, small business, LLC, or brand. If you're ready to generate more leads, click-throughs, and conversions, contact E-Marketing Associates and let us help you maximize your potential!

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