Search for “cars” on Google, and at the top of the results page, you’ll find a map that shows as many as three car dealerships within a few-mile radius. Conduct the same exact search from the other side of town, and you’ll find that the three listed dealerships are completely different.
The whole purpose of Google is to address searchers’ queries as quickly and efficiently as possible, and on the local level, the algorithm factors the searcher’s location into the results. In addition to showing businesses that are nearby, Google also wants to make sure that searchers have a positive experience at those businesses, so the search engine is selective when it comes to their results.
To determine the best businesses to list, Google looks at over 200 ranking signals to ensure that the results are the best that they can be. Many of these signals come directly from the businesses’ websites, but there are also several signals outside the websites that are considered, such as online directory listings, citations, backlinks and customer reviews to name a few.
This Google map module is called the “Local 3-pack.”
As a dealership, you want to make sure that you are showing up in local searches, and doing so has all to do with building your local SEO. With over 200 ranking signals to consider, it is impossible to capitalize on them all, but what you can do is work on the ones that have been proven to boost site performance in the local sphere.
That is where content marketing comes into play. Read the rest of this entry >>
