Local Pack: How Google Chooses Local Results

The three factors

• Relevance: Does your listing match the search? Categories, services, description and content are what count.
• Distance: How close is your location to the searcher or to the place searched for? You cannot influence this.
• Prominence: How well known and trustworthy are you? Reviews, mentions and links to you count.

What you can do

1. Keep your profile complete and accurate
2. Choose the right primary category
3. Win reviews regularly and reply to them
4. Make sure your details are consistent across the web
5. State your services and region clearly on your website

Example: why the competitor three streets away ranks higher

Suppose a beauty salon in Stuttgart-Ost is puzzled that, for the search “beauty salon”, it appears behind a competitor on the map, even though its own reviews are better. Possible reasons: the searcher happens to be closer to the other salon. The competitor has chosen a more fitting primary category. Or its website names the service and the district more clearly. The order also changes with the searcher’s location, which is why a single look from your own office tells you little.

What is often assumed

• Ads as a shortcut: Paid ads are a separate area and do not change the organic order.
• The sheer number of reviews: The number, recency and content of reviews all play a part, but a high count alone does not make up for weak relevance.
• Profile name with keywords: Additions such as “Dentist Stuttgart cheap” in the name breach the guidelines and can lead to the profile being suspended.

Common mistakes

• Choosing a primary category that is too general. The most precise matching category is usually better than a broad one.
• Not entering services in the profile because they are on the website anyway. Profile and website are read separately.
• Descriptions with no reference to the region or to the actual offering.
• Leaving out photos. Current, genuine pictures help prospects decide, even though a direct ranking effect has not been demonstrated.
• Entering the service area incorrectly: if you have no shop that customers visit, you should hide the address and choose a service area.

Steps to check your own situation

1. Search for your three most important terms on your phone, at different places in your catchment area, and note the order.
2. Compare your profile with the three results above you: category, services, reviews, description.
3. Check whether your website names the service and the region in the headings and the text.
4. Check that your details are consistent, see NAP consistency.

Deciding where the effort pays off

If you mainly win walk-in customers or appointments in the surrounding area, you benefit greatly from the local pack. If you work nationwide or get jobs through referrals, you should size the effort according to how enquiries actually reach you. Ask new customers how they found you, and evaluate the answers over a few months before you invest heavily. For more on the profile, see Google Business Profile.

Example of a profile description

Compare two texts: “We are your competent partner for all your needs” says nothing. “Beauty salon in Stuttgart-Ost: facials, eyelash extensions and manicures, appointments by arrangement” names the service, the place and the kind of offering. The second text helps people and Google alike to classify you. Write it in your own words and check it against the details on your website.

Realistic expectations

Not everyone can be at the top in every place, because distance has a strong effect. The aim is to show up for the searches that matter to you. Basics are covered in Local SEO step by step.