We summoned our brave community to share their most spine-tingling, hair-raising, and downright terrifying local SEO experiences. Prepare to be haunted by client catastrophes, cursed Google Business Profiles, and marketing stories that are best told under the cloak of darkness. Read on if you dare!

Greg "Ghostly" Gifford

Chief Operating Officer at SearchLab Digital

Claire "The Crypt Keeper" Carlile

Local SEO Expert at BrightLocal

In addition to Greg’s totally terrifying Q&As, Claire found even more horrifying answers on a Google Business Profile. 

As you can see, one local car dealership’s poor customer service was brought to the forefront of their GBP Q&A section. Surely answering the phone isn’t as scary as they think? 

In the words of Stephen King, “hotels are superstitious places. No thirteenth floor or room thirteen, no mirrors on the back of the door you come in through, stuff like that.”

However, the Stanley Hotel that inspired his book, The Shining, is making good use of their Q&A section, with guests asking the all-important questions. 

Melissa "Poltergeist" Popp

Content Strategy Director at RicketyRoo

“RicketyRoo welcomed a client fleeing from an evil past agency, a villain that had orchestrated an unholy contract, claiming copyright ownership over every piece of content on the client’s existing website. Like an eerie ghost story where the antagonist traps the innocent in a haunted mansion, this agency had the client ensnared in a legal nightmare, forcing them to relinquish their own digital home.

“The terror didn’t stop there. As we hurried to recreate their website, we felt the haunting pressure of the clock ticking ominously, knowing the previous agency’s shadow loomed large. This unsettling episode wasn’t just a jump scare but a full-length horror film that unfolded right before our eyes. We managed to exorcise the client’s digital demons, but the fear for our industry—now revealed to have its own set of lurking monsters—still lingers.”

Elizabeth "Ghoul" Rule

SEO Analyst at Sterling Sky

“Here is a Local SEO horror story I think many can relate to!!

“It takes a lot to scare me, but when a client sends an email that they have moved their office address without consulting their SEO team I get instant chills down my spine.

“The chills only get worse upon checking the new address when we discover it happens to be located in the SAME building as some of the toughest competition in their industry. This scenario would make even the bravest local SEOs want to run and hide.

“Turns out ALL the injury lawyers in the area rent offices in the same building the client just moved into… guess PI lawyers get a good deal on rent there Cue the Psycho style scream as I realize I will need to explain to the client how the local filter was now going to be working OVERTIME on their listing and their rankings were going to take a hit. Making major business decisions without consulting your SEO team? Now THAT’S scary!!”

Blake "Dracula" Denman

Founder at RicketyRoo

“A former PPC client sent someone to my apartment to threaten me. The client thought I was clicking on his ads. He added single keyword, broad match and upped the budget to $5k/day. I fixed it, and he sent me a commercial grade Vitamix that was used in a Burger King promo. Still have it!”

Amy "Tomb" Toman

SEO Analyst at Digital Law Marketing

“I’m aware of a website that has 200+ “keywords” added in an exceptionally small font on the bottom of every single page (not a footer; customized to each page). I thought that went out in 2010 2005. ”

Dana "Dastardly" DiTomaso

President & Partner at Kick Point

“[I once had] a client who originally wanted to focus on organic traffic increases but then didn’t actually say what they do at their company on their website, in their marketing materials, literally anywhere at all. ”

Ben "Boo" Fisher

Founder and VP of Marketing at Steady Demand

In our latest webinar, Ben Fisher shared a rotten example of a business who created their own business signage to get their GBP verified… This led to a suspension, and we all know there’s no worse local SEO horror story than a GBP suspension! 

Celeste "Gory" Gonzalez

SEO Strategist at RicketyRoo

“A client demanded to know why they did not receive the same amount of leads as they did the year before when they had never done SEO before or tracked leads from their website. Their leads from the previous year came from their paper flyers, Facebook groups, and NextDoor posts. Then that same client then also was upset about Google Ads leads coming from the location radius that he had set and confirmed with our PPC team.”

Krystal "Fang" Taing

Solutions Engineer, Strategic Partnerships at Uberall

“I once had a multi-location eyeglass retailer where a customer spammed their listings and added pictures of Lord Voldemort in glasses to about 50 different locations. This was fun reporting and escalating to Google! “

“Be afraid. Be very afraid.”

The Fly (1986)

Even More Tales from the Web-keepers

We also asked our community of local SEOs for their spooky tales, and let’s just say, you might want to sit down reading some of these; they’re guaranteed to scare the hell out of you (or at least make you laugh!). 

Nina P, SEO Lady shared:

“The eCommerce [I owned] sold same sex wedding table decorations, like Mr & Mr / Mrs & Mrs. However, it’s a site I built which had my home office address [on it]. Putting it on Google Maps was a dreadful mistake. We had swingers knocking on the door asking to buy latex clothing and wanting to come in. I still have an answerphone message with a mobile phone number asking me whether I’d like some fun this weekend!”

Nina followed up with another story…

“I was in Tunisia on holiday with my school friend and drinking wine by the pool when my phone pinged and it was the front door CCTV. A very dapper older gentleman with white hair, a leather man bag and golf umbrella was waiting.

“My husband answered the door, there was a short exchange, and the door slammed leaving the gentleman standing there for a second.

“My phone pinged, hubby was furious. Marriage ending mad. “WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING?” and I had to put down my wine.

“The gent had politely enquired what range of butt plugs we had in stock, and could he come in to take a look at our toys. What surprised us both is that we are on a residential street with no shop front. 

“My husband thought I was having an affair! I explained about Google Business and in 15 years not one person has come knocking on our door to speak with the SEO Lady. Clearly I’d underestimated the gravitas of naming my business samesexgifts.co.uk which was named Same Sex Gifts on Maps and Facebook.  

“When I got home I hid our address. The domain and eCommerce site are for sale .” 

Ash Nallawalla explained:

“I didn’t keep a screenshot, but my detailed check of a bank’s GBPs showed a horror story that had not been picked up. Google had scrambled up entries of many entities. e.g. Bank A’s ATM showed the address of Bank B or of Bank C, all on the same page. During the same Google glitch, I lost my own “Melbourne SEO” ranking in GBP to a competitor on the same floor of our building. Their photos were shown among ours and the two addresses were mixed up.”

Stefan Janjić Lozo told us: 

“There’s an auto wrecker and spare parts business in Serbia where the reviews on the business are becoming a meme in the region.”

A note from BrightLocal:

Upon further investigation, we found the owner of the business is just plain rude to his customers! We’ll keep the business anonymous, but as you can see from the 1-star review below, he’s certainly left a curse on his customers!

This, in turn, has led to an onslaught of reviews from those commending his rudeness, and as Stefan says, has turned into a bit of a meme.

The website even details at length, how not to behave and communicate with him. The translation includes “Please do not call us before 9am and after 9pm. Most people know when to call, but there are also those who for some reason think it’s okay to call in the morning at 6am or in the evening after 11pm!?” 

“The terror, which would not end for another twenty-eight years—if it ever did end—began…”

Stephen King, It (1986)

And with that, we close the book on spooky stories, hide the book in a locked box, and keep the locked box well out of sight. Have a great Friday 13th, and remember to avoid breaking mirrors, crossing black cats, or getting your GBP suspended.

Within the local SEO space, there’s plenty of discussion about the importance of business citations for local rankings. And, while this is a core local marketing tactic, it’s vital to consider the people that business information matters to the most: its customers.

In 2021, we released the Business Listings Trust Report, highlighting how consumers interact with business listings to discover and use local businesses.

While the Local Business Discovery and Trust Report 2023 is very much a continuation of this research, we felt that the way consumers discover businesses or look for information about them today has come on leaps and bounds, with social channels doubling as business listings, and the continued power of visuals such as video content or customer photos.

So, how are consumers looking for local businesses online today and how are they discovering new businesses? We asked over 1,000 people what they thought. Let’s get to it.

Where are consumers finding business information online?

In the 2021 Business Listings Trust Report, we asked consumers which platforms they used to find information about local businesses. This time around, we asked which platforms consumers trust to find information about local businesses.

• The top three most trusted websites or platforms consumers use for researching local businesses are Google (66%), Google Maps (45%), and a business’s own website (36%).

It likely won’t surprise anyone that Google comes out on top as the most trusted platform or website that consumers use to research local businesses. As of July 2023, Google’s worldwide market share as a search engine was 83.49%.

A business’s own website is the third most trusted method of finding business information (36%), which suggests that consumers are more likely to trust what Google is telling them—which is interesting, as business information on things like Google Business Profile could well be provided by the business itself, perhaps unknown to the consumer.

However, clicking straight through to a business’s website also suggests that consumers have a high level of intent, in that they may be looking for more detail about specific products or services and trust that a website is the best place for that information.

Facebook sits as the joint fourth most trusted platform for finding information about businesses online, alongside Yelp. Interestingly, the social media platform is so high up the list for business research, considering this year’s Local Consumer Review Survey found that Facebook usage for business research had fallen year-on-year and that a significant percentage were also wary of fake reviews on the platform. In addition, we highlighted dwindling usage stats for Facebook among US adults.

That being said, Facebook listings are prevalent among both search giants Google and Bing, with Bing often pulling the platform’s reviews through to local pack-style cards that highlight key business information.

In what circumstances are consumers looking for businesses online?

When considering why consumers are looking for local business information online, we provided a new option this year to consider proximity.

• The percentage of consumers using business information sites to discover new local businesses has decreased from 66% in 2021 to 61% in 2023.
• The percentage of consumers using business information sites to find businesses they are aware of, but have never used, dropped from 66% in 2021 to 56% in 2023.
• The percentage of consumers using business information sites to find information about known businesses has decreased from 48% in 2021 to 41% in 2023.

Of the three options presented to consumers in both 2021 and 2023, we can see that percentages have decreased across the board.

It’s interesting as there doesn’t appear to be a clear reason. It could be the case that consumers are considering more varied sources when researching businesses online, as opposed to what they might consider ‘typical’ business information sites—later on, we’ll discuss the prevalence of social media for business discovery in more detail, including channels focusing on user-generated content like YouTube.

The Consequences of Incorrect Business Information

When looking up business information like its address, opening hours, and product inventory, the availability of this information is vital to help consumers make a decision. So, what happens when this goes wrong?

• 62% of consumers would avoid using a business if they found incorrect information online in 2023, compared to 63% in 2021.

You’ll see in the chart above that the percentages remain fairly static in 2023, which highlights the continued importance of maintaining correct business information across different listings. 

A huge 62% of consumers would be turned away from using a business if they found incorrect information online, which means that only just over a third of consumers would be willing to give your business the benefit of the doubt if inaccuracies are found!

For something that could be as small as a typo in a business address, email address, or phone number, it risks losing prospective customers to competitors and potentially even damaging your business reputation.

What actions do consumers take upon encountering incorrect information?

Although we know that incorrect business information is enough to stop 62% of consumers from using a business, we asked them what their first reaction would be to finding an incorrect address online.

• 36% of consumers would call the business to confirm the correct address, as opposed to 41% in 2021.
• 28% of consumers would seek an alternative business to meet their needs, a decrease from 33% in 2021.
• 7% of consumers would abandon their search there and then, compared to 3% in 2021.

The percentage of consumers willing to call a business has decreased from 41% in 2021 to 36% in 2023, but we can see that this has been distributed across the new options of messaging the business via their socials or sending an email. It may be that, as more and more local businesses have an active social media presence, consumers see it as an easier option to reach out this way. 

On the whole, it appears that if a customer has already decided to visit your business address, they won’t abandon hope at the first hurdle. 65% of consumers said they would take action, either by contacting the business directly or researching elsewhere to confirm the details.

It’s reassuring to know that the majority of consumers are willing to give businesses another chance, but this should still be seen as a warning sign to check your company details and contact information anywhere that it is listed!

Incorrect Business Information Can Cause Consumers to Lose Trust

• 63% of consumers said seeing mostly negative written reviews would make them lose trust in a business.
• The percentage of consumers who would lose trust in a business after seeing an incorrect address decreased from 60% in 2021 to 46% in 2023.
• The percentage of consumers who would lose trust in a business after encountering an incorrect phone number decreased from 66% in 2021 to 45% in 2023.

It’s important to consider that many business information sites also double as review platforms, or pull in reviews from other sites. When asking consumers about the issues that would make them lose trust in a business, we added considerations around negative reviews, both in terms of written content and review ratings. “Mostly negative written reviews” was the top issue that consumers said would make them mistrustful of a local business, with 66% of consumers highlighting this.

This is a particularly interesting finding and comes hot off the back of some research Near Media has recently completed around searcher behavior. At our recent Local SEO For Good conference, Near Media’s David Mihm, Greg Sterling, and Mike Blumenthal presented some fascinating findings that showed only about 33% of users were actually reading reviews.

They found that users are taking the time to seek out review content and scrolling SERPs to find better-reviewed businesses. Perhaps this suggests that, although they might not be reading them properly, consumers are skim-reading reviews to look for red flags and common themes.

Meanwhile, our findings show that 44% of consumers would lose trust in a business if they saw what they would consider a “low” average review rating. But what’s considered “low”? Well, our Local Consumer Review Survey this year found that 87% of consumers would not consider a business with an average rating below 3 stars, so that feels like a good indicator.

Our findings and the findings from Near Media show that, even if there are platforms where you do not focus on your business’s reputation, the information consumers find can be powerful enough to turn them away.

It’s interesting to see that consumers appear to be more lenient towards the issues we first presented in 2021. The percentage of consumers saying that they would lose trust in a business after spotting inaccurate information such as physical address, contact number, opening hours, and email address, has all decreased since the 2021 report.

The most significant difference is in the results for encountering incorrect phone numbers. In 2021, 66% of consumers said this would make them lose trust in a business, compared to 45% in 2023. Although this still takes a stop in the top three issues that cause consumers to lose trust, it reflects a shift in consumer behavior as to how they prefer to interact with businesses (as a self-confessed phone-avoiding millennial, I can relate).

What business information is most important to consumers?

Does the importance of different types of business information vary by industry?

Although it appears consumers are now feeling a bit more forgiving of businesses when it comes to issues with business information, we did have to wonder how this would vary for businesses in different industries: would you be more forgiving of a retail outlet for a low average review rating, compared to a medical clinic, for example?

N.b. In this section, we’ve chosen to display the results in two separate charts, grouping industries based on the type of consumer need (first, entertainment and pleasure, then emergency and professional services).

• Consumers view correct opening hours as most important for retail businesses (53%), food and drink businesses (51%), and entertainment businesses (47%).
• Correct address information is the second most important factor for retail businesses (48%).
• High average review ratings are seen as more important for hospitality-focused businesses: hotels (42%) and food and drink (41%).

For retail businesses, consumers need to know the most basic—yet most vital—business information: its opening hours (53%), where it is (48%), and how to get in touch (42%). It’s likely that, if a consumer is searching for a particular type of local retailer online, they already have a purchase in mind and are looking to get to that location soon.

Reputation elements appear to be less important to consumers here. This is likely because the quality of the product they’re looking to buy is often not connected to the quality of the service experience.

However, for businesses in which the service experience is the product, for example in hospitality and entertainment, review ratings and the number of positive written reviews are shown to be more important to consumers.

42% of consumers said that a high average review rating was important to them when considering hotels, followed by 41% for food and drink businesses. Similarly, 41% of consumers highlighted that a high number of positive written reviews was most important to them when looking for information about hotels.

While retailers should still view reputation management as important for building trust with potential customers, if a potential customer has a purchase in mind, then the likelihood of them visiting the store regardless of review ratings will remain fairly high.

• 49% of consumers said correct contact information is most important for tradespeople and service area businesses (SABs).
• Knowing the correct physical address is more important to consumers when looking for automotive businesses (46%) and healthcare businesses (42%).

Arguably, the requirement for businesses in the industries listed above sits much more in the realm of necessity and, in some cases, even urgency, compared to those in hospitality, entertainment, and retail. Therefore, we can see that consumers are placing a high level of importance on fundamental business information, like accessing the correct contact information and the correct address.

Being able to find correct contact information is most important to consumers when looking for tradespeople (49%), financial and legal services (46%), and healthcare businesses (44%), suggesting that, when these types of businesses are required, that need is for now.

Out of these industries, consumers think it’s important that tradespeople and SABs are reputable, with two of the top most important factors being a high average review rating (44%) and a high number of positive reviews (43%).

Again, as these types of businesses are often required in a more immediate sense, it follows that consumers expect to see evidence of their reliability. Plus, if you’re inviting a professional into your home for something like a plumbing or electricity emergency, the customer wants to be assured that they are respectful, trustworthy individuals.

How often are consumers encountering issues with business information?

• 56% of consumers are encountering incorrect business information online at least once every few months.
• 23% of consumers are coming across fake business listings at least once a month.
• 28% of consumers are contacting businesses on social media and not receiving a response at least once a month.
• 8% of consumers are calling the incorrect number for a business at least once a week.

Just 13% of consumers say they have never encountered incorrect business information of some sort online, while 35% of consumers are encountering it on at least a monthly basis.

As we know from earlier, 35% of consumers would either find an alternative local business or abandon their search entirely as a result of incorrect information, so that’s a lot of business regularly lost.

And, for those businesses where customers have arrived to find them closed (or not even there!), this oversight in business information will likely be funneling their would-be customers directly to a nearby competitor.

26% of consumers are visiting businesses too early or late due to incorrect opening hours on at least a monthly basis, so you can imagine that if it was for something as convenient as coffee and groceries, or as urgent as car repair, they’re going to go elsewhere instead of waiting for you to open.

Worryingly, more than half of consumers are spotting fake business listings throughout the year—with 23% of consumers coming across them at least once a month! There are several reasons that fake business listings might exist online (such as spam or fraudulent intentions), but in some cases, legitimate businesses may be creating spammy listings in an attempt to outrank their competitors, causing confusion and turning customers off in the process.

The bottom line is that encountering spam or fake listings is incredibly frustrating for consumers in need of a particular product or service, and is also harmful to local businesses in that industry.

How often are consumers searching for and using different types of local business information?

• 40% of consumers search for business opening hours several times a month.
• 36% of consumers are clicking through to websites from URLs found on business information sites several times a month.
• 39% of consumers are searching for business information, such as whether a business is child or dog-friendly, every month.

We also sought to understand the frequency of search behavior for particular business information. This can help to highlight where there may be gaps in your own business information.

For example, 39% of consumers said they are searching for business attributes such as being child or dog-friendly, or wheelchair accessible, on at least a monthly basis.

This means that if you aren’t calling out this information on your business listings, then you may well be losing out to competitors. Consider where you can make this information prominent across your listings: for example, Google Business Profile (GBP) allows you to add specific attributes to your listing that call out things like ‘dog-friendly’ and ‘LGBT-owned’, while you could also consider adding Q&As to your GBP to make it really clear.

Meanwhile, if you aren’t consistently updating changes to your opening hours across listings, or checking the correct URL is being used for your site, that’s a huge amount of people potentially being turned away.

The Role of Social Media in Online Business Discovery

Social media plays a huge role in the discovery of, and interaction with, local businesses. With so many platforms available to create an official business profile, and of course, many consumers taking to the platforms as the first port of call to rave—or rant—about experiences with brands, it makes sense that this is the case.

What social platforms do consumers trust for business discovery?

• Facebook and TikTok are the least trusted social media platforms, with 43% of consumers saying they either do not trust the information at all, or believe it to be somewhat untrustworthy, respectively.
• 42% of consumers believe that the information they see on YouTube is either somewhat or strongly trustworthy.
• Consumers are most ambivalent towards Threads, the newest competitor within the social media environment (at the time of publication)—41% of consumers have no strong opinions about the trustworthiness of the information on the app.

So, at the beginning of the survey, consumers highlighted Facebook as their fourth-most-trusted method of looking for business information online across all websites and platforms. And yet 43% do not believe the information they see on the social media website is entirely trustworthy.

It’s a little bit of a head-scratcher, but as we determined in the Local Consumer Review Survey earlier this year, consumers are generally more wary of misinformation and things like fake reviews today than they have been in previous years. With the sheer quantity of businesses managing Facebook pages, and some using them in place of a website entirely, it does make sense that it remains the most used.

Meanwhile, 42% of consumers believe that the information they see on YouTube is either somewhat or completely trustworthy. While that subject could probably fill many debates, it does show us that it’s a valuable channel for local businesses to consider—particularly considering how YouTube results are integrated into Google search—whether that’s in creating a YouTube channel yourself or considering options such as paid advertising, and influencer reviews.

TikTok is perceived to be untrustworthy by 43% of consumers, the same figure as for Facebook. Despite its reliance on video content, like YouTube, TikTok is known for controversial trends and users going viral, so it’s perhaps not so much in the minds of consumers when it comes to thinking about local businesses.

Our research did not survey US adults under the age of 18, but it is worth noting how Gen Z is using the social platform as a search engine more than Google, so it will be interesting to come back to this topic over time and see how consumer trust in business information on TikTok changes.

How often are consumers using social media for business discovery?

• 30% of consumers use Facebook to find local business information on at least a weekly basis.
• This is closely followed by YouTube, which 27% of consumers say they use to find local business information more than once a week.

Consumers can’t expect every local business to be a TikTok sensation, and even just keeping up with regular social posting can be tricky when you’re a small business. However, understanding how frequently consumers are looking at social media to find businesses shows us that it’s vital to ensure your business’s information is at least discoverable, correct, and consistent across these platforms.

The most obvious platforms that spring to mind for business information are Facebook, which is also considered a business citation site, and Instagram, which has refined the way it shows users business information via its maps functionality. But even TikTok and Snapchat, social platforms used largely by younger demographics, have map functionalities and business information built in, so you never know when user-generated content could even pop up featuring your local business! 

Plus, while the Local Consumer Review Survey found that 20% of consumers were using TikTok for local business discovery as of January 2023, we can see here that 31% of consumers are now using it on at least a monthly basis. That’s a significant jump in less than a year.

The Importance of Photos for Business Discovery and Building Trust

Of course, photos aren’t limited to social platforms. Consumers had long been posting photos to the likes of Tripadvisor before many of today’s platforms came into their own! But in today’s ‘always online’ world, the sheer diversity of visual content creates more choices than ever when it comes to researching and discovering businesses.

Not only do we see the glossy, marketing-quality photos that businesses want you to see across their websites and business listings, but we also get the everyday and behind-the-scenes content they share on social, not forgetting the spontaneous snaps from customers.

• The industries where business-supplied photos are seen as more important than customer photos are entertainment (24%), retail (21%), healthcare (16%), and financial and legal (15%).
• Consumers care most about customer photos in the hotel (32%), food and drink (29%), and beauty and wellbeing (26%) industries.
• Photos of staff and team members within the healthcare industry are seen as important by 17% of consumers.

For service- and experience-centered businesses, consumers want to see accurate reflections of exactly that: the experience. 32% of consumers rated ‘photos taken by customers’ as one of the most important factors affecting their decisions around hotels, followed by 29% for food and drink businesses, and 26% for the beauty and wellbeing industry.

Considering each of these industries can be known for glossy, staged, and over-saturated imagery, it’s not surprising that consumers are looking to each other’s experiences as evidence of what’s ‘real’.

Choosing a hotel is a particular investment of your trust because, for however many nights, a consumer is using this as an alternative to their home. For beauty and wellbeing experiences, a consumer places trust in its professionals, often related to very physical treatments, and therefore wants to be reassured by real customer results beforehand.

The top two industries where consumers rate business-provided photos as more important than those taken by customers were entertainment and retail. As we highlighted when discussing the importance of reflecting fundamental business information for industries such as retail, consumers are likely looking for similar here, including imagery of the business itself to confirm location. For entertainment businesses such as movie theaters or bowling alleys, this could be much more facility-led—namely, does the venue offer what the consumer wants?

Although photos of business team members seem to be lower down on the scale of important decision-making factors, there is a notable percentage of consumers choosing healthcare (17%) and financial and legal businesses (15%) based on the availability of staff photos.

For healthcare, which can involve very personal and sometimes invasive treatments, consumers want an idea of exactly who they will be trusting with their physical or mental health. In financial or legal environments, it’s the same sentiment: consumers are placing trust around sensitive topics in an individual as opposed to a brand, so it’s important that they’re able to see who they will be dealing with.

Essentially, these findings show that being able to display a breadth of photos across your business listings will ultimately provide potential customers with more information up-front to help them make a decision. As well as the high-quality marketing imagery, it’s important to show customers what’s real, so keep this in mind when adding photos to your listings.

Summary

It’s clear that the consequences of inaccurate business information can be vast, ranging from causing confusion and frustration to potentially damaging a business’s reputation or losing out on customers completely.

At the very least, local marketers and business owners should use the insights gathered in this report to get on top of their business listings and check the accuracy of information across various platforms, including social media.

Of course, it can be a big job to source everywhere your business is listed, and setting reminders to review and update information may not always ensure the work gets done—but there are easier ways to manage it! Check out the available services through BrightLocal’s Listings Management tools, which cover everything from building your citations to ensuring your business updates are pushed out to all relevant listings.

Methodology

A representative sample of 1,138 US-based consumers was used to conduct the Local Business Discovery and Trust Survey in September 2023. The survey was distributed to an independent consumer panel via SurveyMonkey, in which age group breakdowns and gender are balanced.

However, SurveyMonkey’s consumer panels only consider participants who identify as male or female and therefore do not consider where participants may identify outside of binary genders. Additionally, no consumers under the age of 18 participated in this survey.

Using Our Data

You are welcome to use the survey findings, charts, and data, provided BrightLocal is credited and linked to via this page’s URL. If you have any questions about this research, please contact the research team.

The previous process was relatively simple. You received an email and filled out a form, which was reviewed by a support technician. Suspensions were typically due to suspicious activity or guideline violations, and denials often provided vague reasons.

Under the old system, you had multiple chances to appeal, allowing for multiple responses, requests for another review, and engagement with the community for additional input.

Source: Sherry Bonelli

The New Process

The new process offers greater transparency by specifying which policy was violated, such as a content violation. However, it doesn’t provide additional information beyond guidance on the violation itself. You now have a single opportunity to apply for reinstatement, which simplifies the process but doesn’t allow for multiple chances to appeal. When you initiate the reinstatement process, you have 60 minutes to provide necessary business proof. 

Here’s how the new process works:

1. You’ll receive an email notifying you of the suspension, along with a hint about which guideline was violated and a link to the relevant section of the guidelines.

2. To begin the process, log in to the profile in question. Make sure you’re using the account that has access to the profile. Agency accounts may take longer to load.

3. Once you select your profile, you’ll move to a crucial screen where you must act swiftly. You have 60 minutes to gather your business proof and upload it. If you miss this window, your proof will not be considered.

Source: Sherry Bonelli

Things to remember:

• You have only one chance to apply for reinstatement, so don’t miss the opportunity.
• There is no timer during the 60-minute window. 
• You can use a zip file to submit multiple proofs.
• You should receive an email notification if your reinstatement is successful.

If your reinstatement is unsuccessful or you don’t receive a response, you can seek assistance from a product expert in the Google Business Profile community. Unfortunately, there is no formal appeal process via support. 

In summary, the new reinstatement process will roll out in the European Union first, with a global rollout expected in the future. It offers improved transparency, it comes with a strict one-time application window and a limited timeframe for assembling necessary evidence. It’s crucial to be prepared and act swiftly if your Google Business Profile faces suspension. 

In this article, we’ll explore the pros and cons of practitioner listings, offering insights into how they can enhance your online presence. Plus, we’ll delve into effective management strategies and show you how BrightLocal’s tools, such as Citation Tracker, can simplify the process. Whether you’re a medical practitioner, legal expert, wellness coach, or beauty professional, this guide will help you harness the power of practitioner listings to reach your target audience more effectively.

What are practitioner listings?

A practitioner listing is an individual Google Business Profile entry designed for public-facing professionals who belong to a larger business but offer independent services, such as lawyers, doctors, and hair stylists. It offers them the opportunity to establish a distinct online presence apart from the main business entity.

Practitioner listings offer a tailored approach to online business directories, enabling individual professionals to highlight their expertise and connect with potential clients seeking specialized services. 

Consider a scenario where your local dentist employs four dental practitioners, each with their own area of expertise. One dentist specializes in teeth whitening, while another excels in Invisalign braces. This is precisely what a practitioner listing is meant for—enabling each dentist to create a personalized listing that highlights their unique expertise and offerings.

What types of businesses are eligible for practitioner listings?

• Medical and Healthcare Professionals: Doctors, dentists, chiropractors, and other healthcare practitioners.
• Therapists and Mental Health Practitioners: Psychologists, counselors, therapists, and mental health professionals.
• Legal Experts: Lawyers, attorneys, and legal consultants.
• Wellness and Fitness Specialists: Yoga instructors, personal trainers, nutritionists, and wellness coaches.
• Beauty and Aesthetic Professionals: Hair stylists, makeup artists, tattoo artists, skincare specialists, and other beauty experts.
• Educational Tutors and Coaches: Academic tutors, life coaches, career advisors, and mentors.

What are the pros and cons of practitioner listings?

Practitioner listings can offer several advantages and disadvantages.

Pros

• Increased Visibility: Practitioner listings can boost the online visibility of individual professionals within a larger business entity.
• Personal Branding: Practitioner listings allow professionals to build and promote their personal brand, which can be essential for establishing trust and credibility among clients. Professionals can also keep this listing in the event that they move businesses/practices, allowing them to maintain their brand independent of their current business. 
• Customization: Each practitioner can customize their listing with unique information, such as hours of operation, services offered, and customer reviews, showcasing their specific expertise and services.
• Local SEO Benefits: Having separate practitioner listings can improve the local SEO for the business, increasing the likelihood of appearing in local search results.

Cons

• Management Complexity: Maintaining multiple practitioner listings can be time-consuming and complex, especially for larger businesses with numerous professionals. Ensuring consistency in information across all listings can be challenging.
• Potential for Confusion: Customers might get confused if there are multiple listings for a single business, each representing a different practitioner. This confusion can lead to misunderstandings or miscommunications.
• Risk of Negative Reviews: Practitioner listings can receive negative reviews, which may impact the overall reputation of the business. Managing and responding to these reviews becomes important.
• Dependency on Individual Practitioners: If a practitioner leaves the business or relocates, their listing may need to be updated or removed, which can be a hassle.

Effective management can help mitigate some of the drawbacks associated with practitioner listings. Let’s look at how some of BrightLocal’s tools can be utilized to efficiently oversee practitioner listings and address certain challenges linked to them.

How to Use BrightLocal to Help Manage Practitioner Listings

Citation Tracker

Citation Tracker can help you by automating the process of finding and auditing your citations, enabling you to quickly see where a business is listed, what data is displayed about the business, and where competitors are listed but your business is not. This is going to help you eliminate the challenge of ensuring consistency in information across all listings.

Start by creating a Citation Tracker report for the business. Once the report is set up, go to the Live Citations tab, and using the Site Type column, filter the Found Citations table to get a list of the niche directories. 

The aim here is to make sure that the most important existing niche listings for the business are correct and up-to-date. You can do this by clicking on the blue arrow in the Actions column which will take you to the citation where you can check that it has the correct information and make any changes. 

Next, go to the Competitors Citations tab and using the Site Type column, filter the table to get a list of the niche directories. 

If you notice that there are citations that your competitors have but you don’t, then it’s a good idea to go after them and level up the playing field. You can do this by clicking on the plus sign button in the Actions column which will take you to the site where you can then claim your listing. 

If you have a lot of citations that need claiming/building you can save yourself some time by ordering a Citation Builder campaign and we’ll do the hard work for you. 

The report should have also identified any existing practitioner listings (i.e. GBPs and niche listings), they will also be in the Live Citations tab. As mentioned earlier, customers might get confused if there are multiple listings for a single business, each representing a different practitioner. 

If there are practitioner listings in the report, now is a good time to see how they could be strengthened and any confusion minimized. 

For example, if the business has many practitioners that specialize in different aspects, then it could be a good idea to strengthen each individual listing, to help the company’s visibility for various search terms.

For example, a law firm might have someone specializing in criminal law and someone else who specializes in family law. Updating their practitioner listings to reflect these specialisms will not only minimize confusion but also help those listings rank for more specific searches. 

If there are several practitioners it might be worth running Citation Tracker reports for each one of them to get a deeper look at what niche citations exist and could be claimed to further enhance search visibility.

Google Business Profile Audit

Setting up a Google Business Profile Audit report for the business will help you to understand what primary categories competitors are using for your chosen search terms. 

You’ll see a tab for each of the search terms/keywords that you entered when setting up the report at the top of the table. The table in each keyword tab shows you the top 10 businesses that rank for each search term and where your business comes in that list. It also shows you the primary business category that each of your competitors is using in their Google Business Profile (GBP). 

If the majority of competitors are using the same category but you have something different and you want to rank for the search term, then you might want to consider updating the primary category on your GBP. 

This is also a good place to see if any individual practitioner GBPs show up in the top 10 local search results and if they might be improved by updating their GBP category as well. Just like you did before, now is a good time to see how they could be strengthened and any confusion minimized. 

For example, updating practitioner GBP categories to reflect their specialisms will not only minimize confusion but also help them rank better for more specific searches. 

Local Search Grid

To dig a little deeper and further enhance the business and practitioners’ GBPs, you can run a Local Search Grid report for each search term and see what secondary categories competitors are using. 

Similar to GBP Audit, look at which primary and secondary categories your competitors are using and see how your business and any practitioners match up. 

Conclusion

Practitioner listings offer a unique opportunity for professionals across various fields to showcase their expertise and connect with potential clients in a personalized way. While they come with both advantages and challenges, effective management can help harness their full potential.

Citation Tracker, Google Business Profile Audit, and Local Search Grid offer powerful solutions to streamline the management of practitioner listings, ensuring accuracy, consistency, and improved visibility in local search results.

By leveraging these tools, you can not only enhance your online presence but also provide a seamless experience for clients seeking specialized services. Practitioner listings are a valuable addition to any professional’s digital marketing strategy, and with the right management approach, they can be a game-changer in reaching a target audience effectively and building a strong online reputation.

How to add a brand new listing

1. Go to https://www.golocal247.com/ and click on the “Get Listed Today” button on the main page.
   

2. You will be directed to the page asking for detailed information about your business. All mandatory fields will be marked with an asterisk. Fill in as much information as you can, then at the end of the page, select the necessary checkboxes and click the “Submit Your Free Listing” button.
   

3. Your submitted listing will then be reviewed by the site’s moderators and published after approval. On average, it should take no more than 24 hours.
   

4. You can manage your listing by logging in via this link: https://www.golocal247.com/user/login.
5. Once logged in, click “My Businesses” from the menu on the right.
   

6. You will see the listing that you have added—just click on the business name.
   

7. You will see the main summary of the business information. Click the “Edit Business Information” button underneath it.
   

8. Upload your logo and double-check the contact person’s name and surname or remove it altogether if you don’t want this to be visible on the listing.
   

9. Once you click “Update,” it will take another 24 hours for the information to be reviewed and published. 

Manually Manage Your Social Media Links in Google Business Profile

Google has now added the ability to proactively add your social media profiles as links to your business profile! 

This is an extremely welcome update, as previously these links were automated for you—sometimes resulting in incorrect links which you didn’t have the ability to change. It would take a lot of effort to match your social media profile links to your GBP through your website, clever schema, and even, well… luck! 

To edit your social media links, simply head to the New Merchant Experience, click ‘Edit Profile’, toggle to ‘Contact’ and scroll to the area to add your social profiles.

You have the space to add your Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, and YouTube profiles. Once saved, your profile edits will go into review for around 10 minutes, before you can see the updates live on your profile. 

This new feature is still in the process of rolling out to users across the globe, so may not be available for you yet. 

Appeal Image or Video Rejection in Google Business Profile with This New Form

The reasons behind the rejection of images and videos on Google Business Profiles have often been shrouded in mystery, with Google’s history even including instances where images were seemingly rejected without clear rationale. These rejections could have been attributed to various technical factors, such as safe search settings, issues with user accounts or account verification, or even potential bugs. However, the explanations were seldom provided.

In a recent update to the Google Business Profiles (GBPs) guidelines, Google has taken steps to shed light on the situation. Alongside technical considerations, the new guidelines explicitly state that content may face rejection if your listing lacks full verification, your personal account is deactivated, your profile encounters suspension, or if the content submitted is found to be duplicative.

To enhance transparency, Google has now introduced a support form that enables you to appeal a decision made against displaying specific content. This fresh avenue will hopefully help people to seek clarity and reconsideration.

Google Now Alerts Business and Reviewer If the Review Was Not Posted

Historically, Google has been a little flimsy with how it flags a review that’s not posted. It generally used ‘published’, ‘pending’ and occasionally ‘rejected’, and only allowed the reviewer to see this.

Now, in Europe only at the moment, there’s a whole new label: ‘Not posted’. This is specifically for European consumers when their reviews get filtered. It can’t be seen by the business, and the review won’t appear on the GBP.

In France (all of Europe?) reviewer GPB reviews now include explicit language in the contribution area that specific reviews were filtered and are not showing. Previously they showed to reviewer and not to the business but carried no alert pic.twitter.com/0wMoYwvST3

— Mike Blumenthal (@mblumenthal) August 10, 2023

The new ‘Not posted’ label is visible to reviewers and was spotted in Europe. In this instance, it’s specifically where a review has potentially not met Google’s review guidelines; it shows that it’s been filtered out and isn’t showing.

Those outside of Europe will be shown the review as it is posted, even when it hasn’t.

Google Tests ‘Manage Photos’ Feature in Google Business Profile

It’s a very small test, but at least a few people have seen a new ‘Manage photos’ option appear in the NMX. This was previously a hidden feature for people managing multiple listings, where you had to click on the image to take you there.

While you apparently can’t actually upload things like cover photos here (you still need to use ‘Add photo’), it’s great to have a place to manage them a little better. Who knows? Maybe this test will stick?

Source: Sohan Jain

Google Tests Local Services Ads List View

Google is currently experimenting with displaying two local service ads in a list view, a departure from its previous format of showcasing three local service ads (LSAs) in a carousel arrangement.

This adjustment marks a shift for Google, as it had transitioned to featuring three LSAs about a year ago, up from its earlier display of two, and is now in the process of testing the viability of reverting back to the presentation of two LSAs again.

Source: Len Raleigh

Our Thoughts

Once again, we’re pretty happy with these updates. They range from innocuous (we’re not going to pretend to have super strong feelings about the update to LSA presentation) to pretty darn impressive (we’re still celebrating the introduction of social media link management.) But, hey, that’s just us. To share your thoughts, head over to our Facebook group, The Local Pack.

What is greenwashing?

Greenwashing refers to the deceptive marketing and communication tactics used by businesses and brands to portray themselves as environmentally friendly and socially responsible, even when their practices and products may not genuinely align with sustainable values. 

It involves misleading claims and exaggerated statements about a company’s eco-friendly initiatives, aiming to create a positive public perception and capitalize on the growing demand for eco-conscious products. 

Essentially, greenwashing is a manipulative strategy that seeks to exploit consumers’ desire to make environmentally responsible choices, making it crucial for individuals to be discerning and informed to avoid falling for false claims.

The Origins of Greenwashing

Do you know where ‘greenwashing’ comes from?

The use of the term started when environmental activist Jay Westerveld was staying in a hotel in Fiji. In the hotel bathroom, he saw a note with a green recycling symbol on it. It said: 

“Save Our Planet: Every day, millions of gallons of water are used to wash towels that have only been used once. You make the choice: A towel on the rack means, “I will use it again.” A towel on the floor means, “Please replace.” Thank you for helping us conserve the Earth’s vital resources.”

Unconvinced by the claim, the idea stuck in Westerveld’s head until 1986, and he ended up writing a critical essay—the first place where the term ‘greenwashing’ was actually used.

However, it was way before this situation and Jay’s essay, that greenwashing had been used as a marketing method.

The Rise of Corporate Greenwashing

Despite Westerveld’s essay in 1986, the general public wasn’t aware of the term until very recently. Many people often feel foolish when they are deceived by corporate greenwashing, but is it really an unsuspecting customer’s fault?

Early offenders in the greenwashing sphere include the following:

BP

Did you know that the term ‘carbon footprint’ stems from a marketing campaign BP ran with the help of Ogilvy? Back in 2005, the polluting giant ran a campaign asking people to calculate their own carbon footprint—pushing the onus on the individual rather than corporations like BP.

Chevron

Another oil company guilty of early-stage greenwashing, Chevron actually won awards for their greenwashing campaigns. In the mid-1980s they ran TV and print ads with the aim to convince the public that they have green intentions as part of their ‘People Do’ campaign.

They continued to greenwash through the years, attempting to repair their public perception with the “We Agree” campaign. The ads didn’t directly address their poor environmental record, nor the billion-dollar lawsuit that they were facing at the time.

Keep America Beautiful

Founded in 1953, Keep America Beautiful was founded by The American Can Co. and the Owens Illinois Glass Company. It was later supported by brands such as Coca-Cola and the Dixie Cup Company. Aired in 1971, their infamous Crying Indian commercial was not only a form of greenwashing, but it was also guilty of being culturally appropriative when it was discovered that the protagonist in the commercial wasn’t played by a Native American person, but instead an Italian-American.

It’s not just campaigns between the 70s and mid-10s that have been guilty of greenwashing. Brands that have recently been guilty of greenwashing include Ryanair, Innocent Drinks, Oatly, Ikea, H&M, Unilever, HSBC, Hyundai, Zalando, Decathlon, Boohoo, Asda, and ASOS.

In 2021, a global review coordinated by The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) found that of the random websites reviewed, 40% were making green claims which could be misleading to customers.

Differentiating Greenwashing from Genuine Sustainability

The key differences between eco-friendly claims and authentic sustainability efforts lie in their genuineness and long-term impact. 

Eco-friendly claims often refer to specific products or actions that are marketed as being environmentally friendly or less harmful to the planet. These claims may have some positive aspects, however, they may not necessarily encompass the entire lifecycle of the product or the overall practices of the brand or its parent company.

In contrast, authentic sustainability efforts involve a holistic approach where businesses integrate environmentally responsible practices into their core values, operations, and supply chains. These efforts extend beyond individual products and focus on reducing the company’s overall environmental footprint.

Authentic sustainability efforts also involve transparency, accountability, and a commitment to continuous improvement, demonstrating a genuine commitment to safeguarding the environment and making a positive impact on the planet in the long run.

The Impact of Greenwashing on the Environment

Greenwashing isn’t just guilty of deception—in fact, it has a negative impact on the environment through this deception. Customers are misled into believing that the products and services they use and consume are more environmentally friendly than they are.

This then leads to a number of different consequences, including:

• Waste generation
• Misuse of resources
• Delays in genuine sustainability efforts
• Natural resource depletion
• Stifling progress

Alongside this, it also contributes to loss of trust, which can have a negative impact on the environment itself due to consumers becoming disillusioned and making less effort due to being let down.

How to Spot Greenwashing

Want to know how to spot greenwashing? It can often be challenging to do so, however, there are clues to look for and questions to ask that can help you to become a more informed consumer—and better marketer, too:

• Check for third-party certifications
• Look for specific claims
• Research the company’s track records
• Scrutinise advertising and packaging
• Look for transparency
• Be cautious of overstated claims
• Consider the entire lifecycle
• Be aware of price and quality
• Dissect marketing language

Greenwashing and the Law: Is Greenwashing Illegal?

In the US, there are the Federal Trade Commission’s ‘Green Guides’. However, these are non-binding and billed as suggestions to businesses “designed to help marketers avoid making environmental claims that mislead consumers,” meaning that there are currently no US laws against greenwashing.

Similarly, in the UK, there are currently no laws or legislation that specifically outlaw greenwashing, however, new powers for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to impose direct civil penalties on companies will include greenwashing.

In September 2021, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published the Green Claims Code, followed by the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and Committee of Broadcast Advertising Practice (BCAP) publishing guidance on environmental claims and social responsibility. Since then, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has refreshed its guidance and issued rulings for misleading environmental claims and social responsibility.

In the EU, the European Commission proposed a regulating directive for ‘Green Claims’, which would complement the 2022 proposals to update EU consumer protection laws to tackle unfair commercial practices that mislead customers into thinking that certain choices are sustainable when they aren’t. There is guidance on what this would entail ensuring that businesses can substantiate their “explicit environmental claims”.

China doesn’t have a specific greenwashing law, but misleading marketing practices are regulated through advertising and consumer protection laws. In Canada, there aren’t specific greenwashing laws, but there are advertising standards codes, consumer protection acts, The Competition Act and the Trademarks Act which can cover misleading claims. Similar to China and Canada, Singapore does not have specific greenwashing guidance yet, but misleading advertising is covered by consumer and advertising acts and practices.

Certifications and Eco-Labels

Did you know that not all green certifications and eco-labels are genuine? You’d be surprised to know that many are greenwashing tactics, devised by brands and collectives to deceive consumers into thinking they are buying into something that’s eco-friendly, when in fact, it’s almost the same as a product without the same label?

Greenpeace released a report in 2021 where they’d undertaken an investigation to assess the effectiveness of certification schemes—it was found that ‘too many certified companies continue to be linked to forest and ecosystem destruction, land disputes and human rights abuses’.

How can you know whether the label you’re looking at is really ecological?

Check to see whether the label:

• Covers the entire product lifecycle, or just one or two stages
• Has been inspected by an independent control body
• Includes specifications with strict, clear criteria

Even then, there might still be greenwashing involved, so make sure to check the brand’s website for support on these claims, or the Labelinfo website, which gives detailed descriptions of various certification labels.

How about carbon offsetting? Will buying trees help?

Carbon offsetting is one of the most popular forms of greenwashing around. Rather than decreasing your own carbon emissions, carbon offsetting is designed to either cut theirs or decrease yours. Offsetting is riddled with flaws, especially since carbon offsetting projects overestimate the amount of carbon saved by their projects. Plus, there is simply not enough land to offset the carbon produced.

Those who offer ‘nature-based solutions’ state that more than 678 million hectares of land (the size of Australia or Brazil) need to be reforested to offset the amount of carbon we produce. Alongside this fact, the space doesn’t exist in the Global North, mainly due to expense (as planting trees will drive land prices up), and the decision to take this to the Global South would exacerbate negative impacts on livelihoods, land rights, food production, and ecosystems. This will lead to huge land grabs, human rights violations, biodiversity loss, and the expansion of large monocultures.

Instead of offsetting, the problem needs to be addressed at its foot; fossil fuels and ecosystem destruction. Pristine ecosystems need to be protected—Indigenous and local communities are already good at this, and they need to be further supported in being the guardians of biodiversity, while the rest of us put pressure on governments and corporations to actually do something, rather than continue with corporate greenwashing.

Best Practices for Businesses

So how can your business avoid greenwashing? Here are some tips:

• Back up all of your environmental claims with data. Make sure that data is kept up-to-date and is easily accessible to consumers and consumer bodies.
• Be honest about how green your band is—and if you have any goals, stick to them.
• Don’t use exaggerated, fluffy language with your environmental claims—ensure they are detailed and specific and use language all consumers understand.
• Check your language—make sure labels are clear, and campaigns and packaging don’t include misleading messages. Don’t use too many buzzwords without evidence to back them up.
• Don’t rely on carbon offsetting, including buying trees. Instead, be proactive in your activities to improve the eco-friendliness of your brand, products, campaigns, and messaging.
• Think about your manufacturing process and whether your products can be recycled and are free of toxic materials.

Greenwashing, and its ever-growing consequences, highlight the need for marketers to be vigilant and aware of greenwashing beyond its definition.

We need to think beyond shallow statements, meaningless certifications, and carbon offsetting.

We need to concentrate more on the data behind and the impact of claims, proactive practices, and authentic sustainability.

The battle against greenwashing is a shared responsibility, advocating ethical choices, and responsible business to prioritize true sustainability.

What is the Google Business Profile Community?

The community (most often referred to as ‘the forum’) is a support message board hosted by Google. It’s a place to ask general and specific questions about Google Business Profiles. It’s also, and this is its most important purpose, the place where concerns may be escalated for manual review by Google. For most, this is the final place to get action on a concern that affects their business.

What types of questions are asked?

Some questions are relatively simple, like where to find an element in a listing, like “where can I find my Business Profile ID?” or how to update categories. Others get more involved, like how something should be done to comply with Google’s guidelines. But the most detailed questions are from those whose listings have been suspended and are seeking reinstatement (“Google is claiming profile is not eligible for display,” or “Kindly remove this suspended tag; we are following your guidelines”).Those threads often require documentation and photos, and may become rather lengthy based on the information needed.

What are the most common topics on the forum?

These are the primary topics I see most often:

• A listing has been suspended, and reinstatement was denied. These can usually be appealed, but sometimes business owners either have questions about the process, or they are told to contact the specialist team.
• Short-term issues based on current problematic elements. At this time, verifications are a hot topic.
• A listing has been negatively affected by an attack, and reporting the situation didn’t get the desired response. 
• Reviews are missing or were never published.

Who answers forum questions?

The forum is staffed by volunteers from around the world. Some log in occasionally to help out as they can, and others do so quite often. Those who give the most time and who demonstrate the widest range of knowledge are designated by Google as Product Experts (PEs). There are four levels, from Silver (new but knowledgeable) to Diamond (have demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the platform). PEs at these Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond levels may escalate issues to the Google team for manual review. 

Forum volunteers have a wide range of knowledge, of both Google resources and their applications, and workarounds to ongoing problems. They are often given access to the newest information from Google on current bugs, as well as hearing about new innovations. As a result, they often have the best solutions to new issues. 

It should be remembered that Product Experts are not Google employees, so they don’t have access to user accounts to make changes, updates, or fix issues. They can, though, help by suggesting solutions or escalating to Google when needed. 

Also, it should be remembered that PEs are volunteers, so being polite and responsive really helps your case. Providing requested documents, photos, and other proof will help get your problem resolved efficiently. Interaction with PEs may save your business, so working with them should be a top priority.

What should users keep in mind before posting?

First make sure you’ve exhausted all efforts on your side. Have you reported that fake review? Have you contacted Support and received their response? Has Google published a resource page, and did you follow their directions? Many issues can be addressed using Google’s resources, so that’s always the best place to start.

On a more personal level, keep in mind that those who respond are volunteers, not Google staffers. Their goal is to help businesses, so the more information you provide, the easier it will be for them to provide accurate responses.

Also, Product Experts cannot access individual account information, so they cannot make edits or reinstate listings. Instead, they help answer user questions, offer guidance, and escalate to Google when there are no other options.

What should be included in the title of a post?

The best way to attract help is to include your specific concern, like ‘My listing was suspended.‘ More helpful is if you mention further details, like ‘Profile has been suspended because it does not meet the eligibility criteria.’ Laying out the details in the title helps Product Experts understand what’s going on before they start working on your situation. 

This post’s title was very specific about their question:

That’s not always the case. This post’s title didn’t offer any clue to what they needed help with, and their message content was a duplicate of the title. Not the best way to request help.

For this post to be answered appropriately, information will be requested, like what they mean by “block,” what listing this affects, and what they hope to achieve by posting.

What details should appear in your first post for an issue?

Be as specific as possible, outlining the problem, explaining what’s been done so far, and the results you’ve seen that were not what you’d expected. Then offer details about your listing, noting the title, the address (even if it doesn’t show on the listing), and the Case IDs of any prior communications with Google. A link to the listing is also helpful. If you’ve applied for a reinstatement, you will also be asked for supporting documentation and photos, so have those ready.

If the listing has suffered a review attack, it’s especially helpful if you offer the suspected cause, and links to proof (like social media posts or news coverage).

What you should not add to your first post

Because those who respond are volunteers, being polite and succinct definitely helps. Also, you want to include details, but only those that pertain to the actual situation; extraneous information may not help, and walls of text are difficult to read. Posting in capital letters isn’t helpful either. 

What happens next? 

In their response, a Product Expert may ask more about the initial situation, request to see your supporting documentation, or may even answer your question right away. Many times they provide a final answer, and that will be the end of that thread. But if they escalate a concern, you must be patient and wait for the response. A smart move is to keep an eye on the listing you mention; you may see action before the PE gets back to you.

If you don’t receive the response you expect, you may want to ask the PE if there’s anything more you can do, or any further documentation you can provide. While Google’s word is final, you may want to offer further proof or circumstances to better illustrate the situation. In the end, though, the PE’s response is usually final.

What happens if I don’t hear back?

Google’s response times vary depending on many factors. If you don’t see a response from the PE within a week, respond to your post asking for an update. Again, you should also be keeping an eye on your listing in case Google takes action before you’re notified.

The Google Business Profile forum can be a wealth of information, whether helping with research, or solving concerns outright. But getting an answer in the forum is not always guaranteed. By posting your question in a concise but detailed manner upfront, replying with additional details or supporting documentation as requested, and being polite toward the volunteer who’s helping you, you’ll strongly increase your chances of getting a response and a resolution to your concern.

With eleven years of insights behind us, we’ve reported throughout some of the biggest and most unprecedented events to shake the industry, and the wider economic environment as a whole. 

The information provided by local marketers enables us to compile the current picture of the industry, from salary averages and overall satisfaction at work to a run-down of how agencies and freelancers are offering and billing for their services. 

So, let’s dive straight into this year’s findings. 

Local Marketers at a Glance

Firstly, who do we mean when we talk about ‘local marketers’? We surveyed 534 representatives with roles in marketing or SEO functions involving a local focus. This included freelance consultants and representatives from agencies, small businesses, and multi-location businesses. 

While you can find the summary of this year’s survey participants within the research methodology in full (at the bottom of this page), it’s important to note that 72% of this year’s respondents identified as local marketers based in the US. The remaining 28% represent the UK (6%), Canada (5%), Australia (3%), and 24 other countries (14%). 

For that reason, salary averages have been converted into US dollars at the current rate, so that we can provide an accurate representation.

Salary averages

We compared the average and median salaries of local marketers in the US to data from our 2022 and 2021 surveys.

As well as a clear upward trend in the average US pre-tax earnings since 2021, we can also see that the increase in 2023 is significantly larger than that seen in 2022. Between 2022 and 2023, the average local marketing salary has increased by 15%, compared to an increase of 5% between 2021 and 2022.

Interestingly, while the median salary range has also increased since 2021, the percentage increase is 6%. Comparing the increase in average salary to the increase in median salary, it tells us that there are outliers weighted much more towards the high-earning end of the scale.

Correspondingly, as we’ll delve further into in a few sections’ time, 71% of survey respondents self-described as being in ‘Senior’ positions within their organizations.

How satisfied are marketers with their salaries?

It’s one thing to measure average earnings within the industry, but how satisfied do marketers feel with their salaries in general?

• The majority of local marketers feel ‘somewhat satisfied’ with their salaries (46%).
• The percentage of local marketers feeling generally unsatisfied with their earnings has increased from 14% in 2022 to 19% in 2023.

Broadly, it appears that most local marketers feel okay about what they’re taking home, and this has not changed from 2022—with 46% of marketers responding as ‘somewhat satisfied’.

However, there also appears to be a trend showing that more local marketers are unsatisfied with their salaries in 2023 compared to 2022. 19% reported feeling unsatisfied in 2023, compared to 14% in 2022, while the percentage of satisfied respondents has decreased from 39% in 2022 to 35% in 2023.

So, while it seems that local marketers are earning more on average in 2023 than in 2022, they’re also feeling less fulfilled by it. There could be several reasons causing this, with the biggest and most obvious external factor being the rising cost of living across so many parts of the globe.

And, although salaries tend to increase annually in line with inflation, it could also be the case that some marketers are not feeling enough of a difference against rising costs elsewhere.

Do job seniority and knowledge levels affect earnings?

We wanted to take a closer look at factors specific to the local SEO industry and how they might affect salary satisfaction. First, we examined the relationship between job seniority and salary satisfaction.

• 42% of senior local marketers are ‘Very’ or ‘Extremely’ satisfied with their salaries, compared to 21% of mid-level marketers and 17% of junior marketers.
• Junior local marketers are the most unsatisfied with their salaries, with 48% reporting being either ‘Not very’ or ‘Not at all’ satisfied with their earnings.

The chart presents a clear picture: senior local marketers are much more likely to be satisfied with their salaries than those working at mid- or junior levels. It makes sense, considering it is generally the case that more senior roles have higher salary bands attached to them.

However, as noted previously, 71% of survey respondents identified as senior-level marketers, including a significant amount of business owners, CEOs, and directors, so you would expect to see these within the high-earning bracket.

So, we analyzed the relationship between salary satisfaction and expertise, first asking: how do local marketers rate their levels of local SEO knowledge?

• 92% of local marketers rate their local SEO knowledge as ‘Good’ or better.
• Just 1% of local marketers believe they hold poor levels of local SEO knowledge.

We can see here that being more senior doesn’t necessarily equate to being an expert—in this case, holding ‘Excellent’ levels of local SEO knowledge. Just over a quarter of respondents rated their expertise as ‘Excellent’.

Generally, though, local marketers rate their knowledge levels as good, with only 8% highlighting ‘Fair’ or ‘Poor’ knowledge levels.

So, with this in mind, would we find a relationship between expertise and better salaries? We took the pre-tax earnings of our US respondents to calculate the average earnings against the level of local SEO knowledge.

The results speak for themselves, but we were still surprised by the jump between salary averages from ‘Very Good’ to ‘Excellent’ knowledge levels. It goes to show: the more you know!

Now, returning to all local marketers and not just the majority earning in USD, we compared salary satisfaction against self-proclaimed knowledge levels.

To quote a certain US sitcom legend, could it be any clearer? Not only are individuals who possess ‘Excellent’ levels of local SEO knowledge earning the most on average, but they’re also the most satisfied with their salary.

The biggest takeaway here for local marketers should be that you don’t necessarily need to reach director levels to become an expert in your work. Honing your expertise within your field and building on your local SEO knowledge will help you to become a subject matter expert and, as it happens, you can put a price on that!

Working in Local SEO

We’ve compiled a snapshot of the individuals working in local marketing, but what’s it like to work on it, day-to-day?

Annual revenue for agencies and freelancers in the local marketing industry

Looking at freelancer revenue alongside marketing agency revenue can be a useful measure for freelancers when considering billing methods and pricing services.

• More than half of freelancers see less than $50,000 in annual revenue.
• 22% of agencies earn between $1mil-$5mil in revenue.

We can see that revenue is fairly evenly distributed across the range for agencies, reflecting the various sizes and types that make up our agency participants. 71% are earning up to $1mil a year in revenue, 22% see between $1mil-$5mil revenue, and 6% earn over $5mil in revenue annually.

For freelancers, however, we can see this is very heavily weighted towards the ‘lower than $50,000’ bracket. 52% of freelance local marketing experts earn less than $50,000 in revenue.

While it should be noted that many of our freelance respondents told us that their consultancies run part-time alongside other employment, this finding still highlights the challenging environment for the self-employed—or those thinking about becoming self-employed.

• The percentage of freelancers earning less than $50,000 in annual revenue has increased from 24% in 2021 to 42% in 2022 and 52% in 2023.
• 94% of freelancers are earning less than $250,000 in annual revenue in 2023.

When we isolate freelancer revenue and compare it to 2022 and 2021, it tells an even clearer story: we can easily see that freelancers are bringing in less revenue each year.

Annual revenue for single and multi-location businesses in the local marketing industry

Looking at annual revenue for single and multi-location businesses, we can see it is more weighted towards the higher end of the revenue brackets.

• 61% of single and multi-location businesses see over $1mil in annual revenue.

This information is useful for freelancers and agencies assessing their service pricing. Freelancers, particularly, may find they are pricing services too low—or perhaps billing in ways that end up disadvantaging themselves—so, it’s always good to see what businesses and brands are bringing in.

What are the most important local SEO metrics for success?

Everyone sees success slightly differently, which of course is why we have metrics in place to measure how we’re doing on the local front. But even key metrics tend to vary from business type to business type.

So, how do those marketing in-house measure local marketing success, compared to agency and freelance local SEOs?

• 45% of businesses highlight Google organic rankings as important for local marketing success.
• 44% of businesses highlight Local Pack rankings as important for local marketing success.
• Google Local Pack rankings is the most important metric for both agencies (54%) and freelancers (50%).
• The top three local SEO metrics for agencies are Local Pack rankings (54%), new leads (45%), and Google organic rankings (39%).
• The top three local SEO metrics for freelancers are Local Pack rankings (50%), phone calls (45%), and new leads (35%).

We can see that businesses across the board are in agreement that Local Pack or Local Finder rankings in Google are one of the most important local SEO metrics. This makes sense, given the hierarchy and visibility these results tend to have within the SERPs. If you’re not displaying in the Local Pack, potential customers are not going to have easy access to key information like your business name, description, address, and phone number.

It is interesting to see that a higher percentage of agency marketers place high importance on new leads (45%) compared to businesses (40%) and that businesses are the most concerned with their organic rankings overall (45%).

Of course, improving (or maintaining) organic rankings have long been a desired goal for businesses of all types in the SEO world. But, with agency marketers highlighting new leads and freelancers highlighting phone calls (45%) as important success metrics, perhaps this goes to show that they are more familiar with the fluctuating tendencies of organic ranking and are more concerned with contributing to their clients’ bottom lines, showing value in doing so.

Generally, SEOs with wider industry experience keep abreast of things like algorithm changes, industry news, and ranking fluctations on behalf of their business clients. So, it makes sense that agency and freelance marketers look outside of organic rankings to secure local SEO success—because we all know unpredictable it can be out there!

Reacting to Changes in Local SEO

Each year, we ask local marketers a variety of questions around core elements of local SEO, namely whether reacting to algorithm updates continues to be a priority for them and their clients, as well as their thoughts on how, or if, key products like Google Business Profile (GBP) have improved.

• 61% of marketers agree that reacting to algorithm changes is an important priority, down from 64% in 2022.

The numbers haven’t changed drastically year on year, but we can see a slight shift in how marketers are perceiving the importance of algorithm changes.

Google can take many months to confirm algorithm changes and, with so many unconfirmed updates throughout the year so far, you can’t blame SEOs for perhaps prioritizing them less than before, perhaps ‘waiting and seeing’ rather than reaction right away.

While fluctuating or disappearing rankings can be confusing and frustrating, it’s fair to say marketers are much savvier to the various different ways local SEO success can be achieved.

• 43% of marketers think GBP has improved in 2023, compared to 57% in 2022.
• 24% of local SEOs feel GBP has not improved in 2023, compared to just 9% in 2022.

It feels like Google Business Profile has changed a lot already in 2023, but it’s interesting to see that local marketers just aren’t loving it this year.

It’s worth noting that 2022’s survey was conducted and published before changes such as the NMX came in, bringing that flurry of bugs and annoyances along with it towards the end of the year. So, while a lot of significant changes have been made to GBP through 2023, it’s quite likely that some marketers are still pretty put out by those events.

Still, the floor is open. We recently reported on some positive new updates to GBP in July, so perhaps attitudes will change. Or could it be a sign that change is on the horizon? Perhaps local marketers are simply spreading their efforts across more local SEO tools and tactics.

A Day in the Life: Agency and Freelance Marketers 

It’s always interesting to gauge how many clients local marketers have. In 2022’s report, local marketing agencies averaged 19 clients, while national marketing agencies averaged 16, and freelancers averaged 14.

How many clients do local marketers have?

• 69% of freelancers have between two and ten clients.
• 33% of agencies have over 51 clients!

The sweet spot for freelancers appears to be having between two and ten clients (69%), but we were pretty shocked to see that a third of all agencies said they had over 51 clients! Even for some of the larger organizations, this seems like a lot.

Of course, all clients are different. You may have a variety of clients on retainer while working on one-off projects at the same time, and clients may come to you for very different services. Yet, seeing the polarizing results for freelancers and agencies here, it feels like a similar pattern to what we saw in annual revenue; freelancers way down at the lower end and agencies at the opposite side of the scale.

While freelancers don’t have the luxury of multiple colleagues on hand compared with agencies, it does raise the question of whether freelancers might simply be offering their small sets of clients too much in terms of services or output. If this is the case, time could easily be eaten up by a small number of clients, making it a challenge to find time for new client acquisition.

Average Client Lifespan 

It’s interesting to consider the average lifecycle of a client partnership: if you have five clients that you’ve worked with for several years, that could be a highly valuable relationship. But if your two to five clients are turning over every six months or so, you may find yourself scrambling to pull together pitches for new business.

• 25% of freelancers have clients with an average lifespan of 12 months or less, compared to 12% of agencies.
• 23% of agencies and 22% of freelancers have been working with clients for five years or more.

On the whole, it looks like agencies and freelancers are doing well at maintaining some lengthy client relationships. 96% of agencies work with clients for at least a month, although this is lower for freelancers at 75%.

It got us thinking, though: does a turnover of clients affect revenue? Would working in shorter cycles be more costly to the marketer overall, or would long-term partnerships end up benefitting a client more? What would be the ‘sweet spot’? 

We took US revenue ($) and calculated the average for each client lifespan bracket.

There’s clear evidence to show that local marketers should be aiming for anything over 12 months for a more fruitful partnership. Meanwhile, the Goldilocks duration appears to be between two and three years. But don’t take that as a sign for binning off any of your long-standing clients! You obviously know what works for you, but it’s a really useful indicator to bear in mind.

What local SEO services do agencies and freelancers offer?

Seeing what local marketing services are—or aren’t—widely available is a great way to understand opportunities to expand the services you offer.

The graph above highlights the top five most commonly offered SEO services, and charts the changes year-on-year since 2021. These areas have largely held steady across the years, highlighting how they remain fundamental local SEO services.

As for a full run-down of services, let’s take a look at who’s offering what to their clients:

It’s no surprise to see that all of the ‘core’ local SEO services such as GBP management, content creation, auditing, analytics, and citation management are high up there for both agencies and freelancers. Although, there are some notable discrepancies:

• 72% of agencies offer reporting and analytics, compared to 56% of freelancers.
• 76% of agencies offer technical SEO, compared to 53% of freelancers.
• 64% of agencies offer PPC, compared to 33% of freelancers.

As agencies tend to have a variety of different experts in a team, it makes sense that they can offer such a breadth of local SEO services. However, as we discussed earlier, around the value of becoming a subject-matter expert, the lower figures for services provided by freelancers highlight some niche areas that could be very lucrative for clients. As we’ll come to below, clients do place value in some of the more niche marketing specialisms. 

As well as technical specialisms like analytics, PPC, and technical SEO, there is a huge gap in the percentage of freelancers offering video (17%) or influencer marketing (5%).

Despite being low down among the services offered, we can also see, however, the growth for video marketing and influencer marketing since 2022. With the introduction of video content to GBP profiles and Google Perspectives now rolling out and incorporating user generated content (UGC), it seems some local marketers have already switched onto the opportunities to offer services in these areas.

Moreover, the Local Consumer Review Survey 2023 found that 20% of US adults are using TikTok for new business discovery. Whether inciting influencers to create video content or encouraging local businesses to get on the platform themselves, it’s a lucrative area for local marketers to get involved in.

What local SEO services are considered the most valuable?

You know how it is. You’re proposing a strategy based around several key tactics, and a client chimes in with something like “oh, but I saw this thing on TikTok and…”

It’s always interesting to see which services marketers feel are the most valuable for their clients. However, this year, we also asked them what they think their clients believe are the most valuable.

• The top three local SEO services that marketers see as most valuable are: GBP management (76%), content creation (53%), and citation management (43%).
• The top three local SEO services that clients see as most valuable are: GBP management (52%), content creation (39%) and website design (34%).
• 29% of clients see PPC as one of the most valuable local SEO services, compared to 23% of local marketers.

It’s encouraging to see that clients are fairly aligned with marketers in terms of priorities, which hopefully makes collaborating on strategy or getting buy-in from other stakeholders a little easier. However, it’s clear with services like website design, PPC, and social media that clients place importance in services that involve very immediate or visual changes.

It makes sense, in many ways: clients like seeing where their money is spent—or, even better, where the return on investment is coming from—but it can make pushing the case for more technical and behind-the-scenes elements like technical SEO a challenge.

You’ll note that citation management is not seen as a priority for clients, with less than a fifth of agencies and freelancers saying that their clients (18%) would highlight it as one of the most important services. As you may already be aware, citation management can be a tricky service to explain, and clients may not always understand the full scope of it as a service.

Local Listings Management Explained: Google Maps, Apple Maps, Facebook, and Bing

Learn more

How are agencies and freelancers billing their clients?

It’s always useful to see what other people are doing, particularly if you are a freelancer or starting out as one. How should you bill your clients? There are a variety of methods by which agencies and freelancers prefer to bill, so we summarised the findings:

It’s interesting to see that very few marketers are working on day rates, whether freelance or agency-based. It appears the general way to go is charging clients a monthly fee based on the deliverables they receive, with 61% of agencies and 53% of freelancers opting for this method. 

However, 43% of freelancers are still billing at an hourly rate. Of course, it always comes down to preference, but hours can be a tricky figure to quote for some local SEO services—particularly in more creative areas such as copywriting and content creation or social media management, where tasks can end up taking a lot longer than you’d planned (or hoped).

Local Marketer Learning and Development

This year, we wanted to introduce the theme of learning and development, to find out not only where local marketers are seeking expertise, but whether they’re afforded the benefit of professional development as part of their employment.

As we know from the findings above, the more knowledgeable employees are the most satisfied with their salaries, so it should make sense that businesses want their employees to continue developing. But, how many local marketers have the opportunity?

Do local marketers have personal training budgets?

• Just 39% of local marketers are certain they have a personal training budget in their role.
• More than half of local marketers do not have a personal training budget.

It’s quite a sorry picture, with 54% of marketers not given a personal training allowance. Meanwhile, 7% of marketers were unsure, which suggests their organizations either do not offer the benefit or do not communicate them well enough. It’s a familiar sight to see vague mentions of ‘professional development’ and training within job specifications, but it’s very different for businesses to actively encourage their people to learn.

Despite this finding, local marketers are undeterred. A whopping 98% of marketers are putting time aside to learn within their roles, budget or none, with nearly two-fifths of those spending two hours or more learning. We love to see it!

Where are local marketers seeking expertise?

• 81% of local marketers are spending time researching to build their local SEO knowledge.
• 66% of marketers learn via webinars.

Unsurprisingly, the top methods of learning on the job (considering so few marketers have access to dedicated budgets) rely on the do-it-yourself approach. Research, webinars, YouTube, and industry news are generally all free—albeit timely—methods of learning, and it’s very encouraging to see there is a strong level of commitment in the industry.

Looking to the Future: New Tech, Optimism, and Hiring Trends

We’ve got a clear picture of how marketers are doing in local SEO right now, but what about next year—and beyond? With much of 2023 already dominated by discussion around developments in generative AI, competitor brands, and changes to SERPs, how do marketers feel about achieving local success in 2023?

There has been a decrease in the percentage of marketers feeling optimistic about achieving local SEO success in the next year, from 23% in 2022 to 19% in 2023.

Alongside this, we can see a corresponding increase in the percentage of marketers feeling pessimistic about their chances of local marketing success, from 36% in 2022 to 46% in 2023. 

As well as the aforementioned developments in generative AI that have hit marketers thick and fast so far this year, there have been other significant changes within the industry that could contribute to feelings of apprehension about 2024.

Despite this fast-growing innovation, the start of 2023 saw plenty of turbulence with lay-offs affecting some of the world’s biggest tech companies. Not to mention the chaos at Twitter, now X, which impacted businesses of all sizes as marketers grappled with the potential loss—and still ever-changing nature—of this important marketing channel.

Moreover, with Google’s new generative AI-led search functionality, Search Generative Experience (SGE), likely coming at some point in 2024, this adds another key component to marketers’ growing lists of things to master.

POLL: Are Local Marketers Ready for SGE?

Spoiler alert: No, not really. Read on to discover who feels confident about the imminent roll-out of Search Generative Experience (SGE), and how marketers feel it will affect local search results.

Read

Will marketers be hiring in the near future?

With a sense of apprehension around achieving success in the industry, how does this leave marketers feeling about growing their businesses with new hires? 

• 44% of marketers will not be hiring this year, compared to 36% in 2022 and 30% in 2021.

The chart shows a clear trend in business hiring activities, with decreases in the percentage of marketers looking to hire since 2021. The most significant drop comes under the ‘definite’ statement, from 21% in 2022 to just 14% in 2023.

Although there is evidence to suggest that inflation is easing in the US, the cost of hiring and retaining employees is often the biggest outgoing for businesses, so it’s a decision that can’t be taken lightly.

Generative AI in Local Marketing

Meanwhile, local marketers are feeling hopeful about developments in generative AI and what it could mean for business.

While our recent generative AI case study highlighted that 73% of US adults have not used generative AI tools, it’s a very different story within the local SEO niche. Just 7% of marketers have not used generative AI to experiment within their roles. Of the 93% that have, these are the tools they’ve used:

And it seems, for the most part, local marketers are impressed by what they’ve seen so far. We presented several statements around the use of generative AI within local marketing, whether for their roles or wider businesses as a whole.

• 83% of marketers are actively looking to incorporate generative AI into their roles.
• 73% of marketers are actively looking to incorporate generative AI into their business.

• 75% of local marketers feel that generative AI will bring new business opportunities.
• 75% of marketers expect potential tech partners or new tools to be actively incorporating generative AI into products.

So, while we’re not saying you absolutely should be jumping on the bandwagon, it’s good to keep in mind what your peers and competitors are doing with generative AI. With 75% of marketers agreeing that generative AI will bring new opportunities, it might be worth carving out some time to discover what these might be for yourself.

Moreover, for digital marketing or web design agencies and marketing software organizations, the finding that 75% of local marketers expect tech partners and tools to be actively incorporating generative AI into their products definitely cannot be overlooked!

Generative AI in Local Search: A Case Study About Pizza

Read case study

Share your thoughts with us

Thanks for reading this year’s Local Search Industry Survey report, and we’d like to say an enormous thank you again to the local marketers who participated in the survey!

We hope you found these benchmarks useful. Does the information ring true for your experience in local search, or do you have any differing experiences you’d like to share? Please consider joining the conversation with our community of over 2,000 local SEOs over on The Local Pack, drop us a tweet, or mention us on LinkedIn.

About the Local Search Industry Survey 2023

Local marketing audience data

The Local Search Industry Survey was conducted via SurveyMonkey and received a total of 534 responses through our subscriber channels, customer base, social media, and peers within the community.

Although SurveyMonkey only asks participants for binary gender information and therefore doesn’t provide a wholly accurate representation of our audience, 37% of respondents identified as female, 60% identified as male, and the remaining 12% preferred not to disclose their gender.

We surveyed local SEO and marketing representatives from the following business types: 

72% of this year’s respondents identified as local marketers based in the US. The remaining 28% represent the UK (6%), Canada (5%), Australia (3%), and 24 other countries (14%). 

Publishers are welcome to use the charts and data outlined within this report, crediting BrightLocal and linking to this article’s URL. If you have any questions about the report, please contact sammy.paget@brightlocal.com or research@brightlocal.com.

So, how does one optimize an Apple Business Connect (ABC)? The process is not entirely straightforward, but it is fairly easy compared to verifying a listing on Google Maps. Once verified you might be asking yourself questions like:

• Just how much effort should you be putting into optimizing your Apple listing? 
• What do you do when you can’t edit the information on an Apple listing? 
• Does Apple Maps even matter compared to Google Maps?!

Well, wonder no more… let’s dive into it!

Before You Start, You Need to Get an Apple Maps Listing

If you are not already integrated with Apple culture and don’t have an Apple ID, you will need to create one. Then use that to proceed with claiming your Apple Maps listing or to create a brand new listing.

Once you have the Apple ID, go to businessconnect.apple.com and login. From this dashboard, go to “Locations” in the side menu, then click “Add” in the top right, then search for your business by name and follow the prompts to put in all your business information (name, address, phone number.) From here you can either select an existing listing or create a new one.

How to Add or Claim an Apple Maps Listing

Claim Your Listing

You can also claim a listing right from Apple Maps by clicking “claim this place” on the top or bottom of the listing, then following the instructions on the web page that opens. 

Once you have the listing created you will then need to verify it. Verifying an Apple business listing is pretty easy. They give you two options:

• Verify via phone call (instant)
• Verify via official document review (takes up to 5 days)

Typically verifying via phone is the fastest way to verify, but this only works when you are claiming a listing. If you created a new listing, you must verify via document review. The types of documents Apple asks for are utility bills, phone bills, insurance policies, etc.

How To Optimize Your Apple Maps Listing

Optimizing an Apple business connect listing is a lot like optimizing a Google Business Profile or Bing Places listing. All of the following fields are available to edit in the dashboard:

• Name
• Address
• Phone number
• Business Categories
• Open hours
• Logo (1024 X 1024px) and banner image (1600 x 1040px)
• “About” description (max 500 characters)

Pay very close attention to your business category and make sure it’s the most appropriate one, as that has a clear impact on the types of searches you will show up for on Apple Maps.

Where do reviews on Apple Maps come from?

Unlike Google, users are not able to leave reviews directly on an Apple listing. Instead, Apple pulls reviews from third-party websites including Facebook and Yelp. Sometimes they attribute the source, and sometimes they aggregate it and show an overall rating. Either way, to optimize your Apple Maps listing fully, you need to get reviews on other websites to improve your review score on Apple Maps. 

Once you verify your listing, check it out on an iPhone/iPad or via the Maps App on Mac to see where Apple is pulling reviews from. That will let you know which platform you need to focus your review efforts on.

Check for Duplicate Listings on Apple Maps

One of the reasons Apple created Business Connect is to allow business owners to take control of their own listings, but also take some of the burden off Apple to clean up their results. Apple has a serious problem with spam and fake listings—I mean, how many variations of “Chicago locksmith” can actually exist in one city?

With spam listings, comes the risk of duplicate listings for your business you may not even know about, that are just floating out there in the Apple Maps ether. These listings get automatically created by Apple or added to Maps by user suggestion. Either way, identifying and removing these is critical to making sure your customers see the right information for your business.

Using Apple Maps on an iPhone or via DuckDuckGo.com, do a search for your business and then search for other versions of that name that could possibly be on Maps.

For example, if your business is “Elizabeth’s Law Firm”, do additional searches for names like “Elizabeth’s Law Firm LLC”, “Elizabeth’s Law Firm New York”, and “Lizzy’s Law Firm” (the old name of the business). Then search all phone numbers and addresses associated with your business. It’s important to check old phone numbers and old addresses in case outdated listings still exist.

If you identify any duplicates, you will need to claim those duplicates and then contact Apple Maps support to get the old listings removed. You can contact support right in the dashboard—click your initials in the bottom left corner then click “contact support”.

Does Apple Maps really matter?

Google has a clear monopoly on the search market, dominating a stark 92% of all searches, according to the search engine market share counter. This popularity spreads to Google Maps, as studies show around 67% of all smartphone users use Google Maps over any other maps app; this includes iPhone users. 

Recent reports, including one put out by Business Insider, are citing a shift in public opinion when it comes to Apple Maps. People are starting to use Apple Maps more than ever before as they see the value Apple has been adding to the tool in recent years. The maps app itself is preferred by tons of people; for example, this Twitter user raves about how the UX/UI is so much better compared to Google and over 4.8 million people saw it. 

Beyond this shift, there are millions of people in the world who only use native iPhone apps, so they have been using Apple Maps since day one, and stuck with it during its awkward teenage years. Plus, those who use Siri and other Apple-connected products, are going to be served local results based on information from Apple Maps. 

Poll: Are Businesses Using Apple Business Connect?

Read More

So, if you are wondering if Apple Maps is worth optimizing, just ask yourself if iPhone and Apple customers are worth optimizing for. (Don’t think too hard—the answer is yes!)

Apple Maps Protects User Privacy More Than Google

More people are switching to Apple Maps every day due to the advanced privacy the app boasts. Apple has done a lot to convince the public they care about protecting the privacy of its users on Maps, including using end‑to-end encryption, obscuring the user’s location when searching, and not retaining a history of user locations. This is why search engines like DuckDuckGo use Apple Map results instead of Google, especially considering Google has been called out for getting way too granular with user location data.

Google seems to ask for more and more personal information every time I sign in, and incognito mode seems to know where I am located no matter how many times I deny access to my location. Online privacy is a hot-button topic these days, and Apple is ahead of the game when it comes to protecting users’ data (or at least seeming like they are).

Is Apple Maps the way of the future? 

Beyond privacy, Apple is pumping money into new features on maps too, in order to compete with Google. Cnet reports “The iPhone is getting offline maps for its Maps app this year. That means you’ll be able to access any map you’ve downloaded, even if you don’t have Wi-Fi or a cell signal.” New features like this will help Apple maps stay trending up in usage. Even if they won’t surpass Google anytime soon, they can take a bite out of that market share over time. 

Despite the fact that tens of millions of people are using Apple maps, and more are switching every single day, BrightLocal reports that 58% of businesses have not claimed their Apple Maps listing!

58% of businesses have not claimed their Apple Maps listing

Could they be missing a trick?

5 months after Apple Business Connect relaunched, we've delved into how both businesses and consumers are using Apple Maps. https://t.co/YbH6mzIu00

— BrightLocal (@brightlocal) June 1, 2023

You really have no excuse to ignore Apple Maps. Millions of people are already using it, it’s continuing to grow in popularity, and you need to control the information Apple is showing about your business (or your client’s business) to the world.