Does Citation Building Matter in Local SEO?

Research has reported that businesses listed on high-quality citation sites are 18X more visible. Citation buildings are often overlooked. It is a cool way to enhance your rankings and online visibility impact. 

What are citations?

Mentions of business on the internet are referred to as citations. It is the details about a business location like website URL, name, address, and contact details posted on several online platforms like –

• Local search engines
• Map services
• Local business directories
• Review sites
• Data aggregators
• Social media channels

Why does citation building matter in local SEO?

Business needs customers, so brands employ promotional tools to get discovered. Citations make it easy for the hunters to find. Citation building resembles link building. Therefore when you list business it is essential to have accurate NAP details consistently across the different platforms. It positively influences your ranking in the local searches.

Search engines like Google prefer consistent data to validate your business as legitimate. Inconsistent data creates confusion and the search crawlers doubt the location’s credibility. They ignore your business and index your competitors. Even if the search is branded, your competitor with the same yet consistent NAP details will outrank you. 

Citations management if ignored can be an issue for consumers and search engines. Incorrect and outdated listing badly affects user experience. If you have changed your phone number or migrated then conflicting information will linger in the old citations. Even if your business NAP is the same there possibly is a tiny error like missing apostrophe or misplaced letter that can cause incorrect citation. 

Besides, citations can appear on different directories because citations don’t work in isolation. The information flows across data aggregators, search engines, review sites, directories, GPS mapping solutions, and social channels.

Several citations are created from the directories that partner with data aggregators or other sources. Therefore there is a possibility that the data is incorrect. It can confuse your consumers and they will lose trust in your brand. The scenario worsens if they post a bad review. Correct and relevant citations are crucial for local SEO to help build brand credibility and online presence. 

Submit your business to the free online directory with a high domain authority rating. Bleen is an online directory that helps businesses to add their website URL that helps to enhance their search traffic. Google bots regularly crawl across the high-ranking local directory, which means you will be picked quickly. 

Citation management options 

• Manual
• Semi-automated
• Automated

Choose a preferred option because each one has its pros and cons. However, citation management needs to be an ongoing process even if you are a single location business without any plans to change operation hours, address, or phone number. Public and competitors can edit local business listings and you need to be active to identify them. Inaccurate data naturally spreads, so catch it before the flow and fix it. 

BusyFox is a blogging platform that offers the latest online business news and publishes press releases, promotion news, and even allows article posting. You can share interesting business articles or news with the world.