Why Your Business isn’t Showing Up on Local Maps
and How to Fix it
Perhaps it’s happened to you as well. Excited to see your business on Google Maps, but no luck whatsoever. You begin to wonder why Google recognises the small hair salon next to your company, but your company is missing on the map. It’s not something to overlook. Google not recognising your business entails you missing lots of customers, and that's something you want to avoid at any cost. For those of you who have this problem, here is what you should do to fix the problem and improve your business.
Not listed on Google My Business
If you want your business to be found on Google Maps, the first step is to list it on Google My Business. Google My Business is a profile you make for your business on Google so that its search engines remember your business listing. This way, when somebody near your location searches something related to your business, your business and its NAP (name, address, phone number) will most probably appear on the first page of Google. But it’s easier said than done. Many businesses are missing on Google Maps, despite being listed on Google My Business. Here are the main reasons why this happens.
Unverified Account
As mentioned earlier, you must create a business profile on Google. Then, you need to claim your business and add all related information. The next step is to verify your business which can be done via email, phone call, video recording, etc. In each case, a postcard with a unique code is sent to you. You should enter that code in the section related to your account verification. A common mistake that many business owners make is creating a profile and not claiming their business. As a result, their business is not verified, and they see their business missing on Google Maps.
Suspended Account
At other times, you may have verified your business account but find out later that your account has been suspended. Having a suspended account results in the same problem as having an unverified account, and your business disappears from Google Maps. There might be several reasons why your account is suspended, but the main reason why this happens is that you have added two or several NAPs of your business and have, unwantedly, made Google recognise your business profile as a fake one. You can tackle this problem by removing all the unnecessary NAPs and leaving the correct one only.
Wrong or Shared Address
On many occasions, your account is suspended if you change your location and do not update your business profile. As you might guess, this happens because somebody might have started a new business in your previous area and created a business profile, adding the NAP you previously used. When search engines come across two similar NAPs for two different profiles, they suspend both until the wrong NAP is edited.Also, if you enter exactly the same address as a nearby business, your account will be suspended.Suppose you have an office in a five-story building. The name you enter for your business differs from that of your neighbours, but the address is the same, which sometimes causes account suspension.
No Location Authority
Location authority refers to your location's amount of power and credibility in local searches. Obviously, a higher location authority results in being ranked higher in Google, which entails more online visibility of your business. The main reasons your business has no/poor location authority are; incorrect or unverified NAP, your business branding, its actual physical location, and link relevancy. We already discussed wrong or unverified NAPs. You can't do much about your physical location, and your branding needs some time to find fame. However, “link relevancy” is a tool you can use to improve your location authority.
Simply put, link relevancy refers to the degree of relevance between your website, if you have one, and all the links your site is linking to. Google ranks websites with relevant links higher than those with irrelevant links. If you have a bookstore and write about books on your website, you should link to other websites relevant to books, bookselling, book readers, etc. Suppose you link back to sites with little or no connection to books, such as sports or celebrities. In that case, your location authority will shrink due to poor link relevancy. Hence, one way to improve your online visibility is to create a website for your business and improve your location authority by linking to websites relevant to your business.
No Local Citation
Yet, many business owners do not have the time or tendency to create a website and want their business to show up in local searches. If this is the case with your business, you should resort to local citations, which refers to online mentions of your business. When your business is mentioned repeatedly on other websites, search engines categorise it under a specific niche. Therefore, when people close to your location search that niche, your NAP will be among the first suggestions Google provides. All you need to do is to find a good SEO agency near your location, send them your NAP, and they will mention your business monthly on different websites. They can also deal with all the previously-mentioned problems. Remember, the company you contact should be located in the same location as your business. If, for example, your business is located in Melbourne, you should look for an SEO agency in Melbourne, not Perth. A prestigious local SEO agency from Melbourne understands your business and related Melbourne-based websites than the one in Perth does.
Another problem you might face is that too many so-called SEO agencies are around, and finding the best one is a rather annoying job. To find the best agency in Melbourne, you need to come up with a list of agencies near you and then do some research online. The best agencies are the ones that have lots of Google reviews from their previous clients. It shows that they have done local citations for other businesses earlier. Last but not least, you should be careful as many SEO agencies ask their own employees to leave fake reviews on Google so as to convince business owners that their agency is a good one. So, you are highly recommended to reach out to those business owners who have received services from the SEO agency you have selected and ask them to provide you with some information.
Conclusion
Making sure that your business shows up on local maps means higher business productivity and security from financial issues. This article discussed common reasons why many companies do not show up on local maps and how to fix this. Hiring a good SEO agency guarantees a perfect business profile and constant mentioning of your business which help improve your rank in Google, where hundreds of potential customers are waiting for you.