Why Local Business Owners Need to Use Citation Directories

Aren’t citations what a person receives when driving a vehicle outside of the established legal guidelines for a given area?

Well, yes, but not for the local business owner.

At least not as it relates to their marketing their local business on the Internet.  The scope of this article will be targeted to gaining a clear understanding of citation directories as they relate to the local business professionals initiatives.

HOT TIP:  Along with understanding what citation directories are and how they fit into your local ranking efforts for your business there is a surprise section waiting for you.  Be sure not to miss it.

How Citations Integrate With Local Google Organic Rankings

These citations are actually what you want to secure if you are going to find yourself at the top of Google in the section known as Google’s snack pack.

Have you heard of Yelp before?

If not, it is a directory where you can list your local business so that more people find out about you.  There is a right and a wrong way to go about this process.  If you choose the wrong way you can find your work actually working against you instead of for you.

Yelp is what is known as a citation directory.  While it is popular, it is just one of a labyrinth of possibilities that local business owners need to consider using because it adds momentum to your being able to rank your business at the top of Google’s results.

40+ Citation Directories You Might Want To Know About

For those reviewing this list which is within the US, the following List of 40 US citation directories is a goldmine for building your online business foundation Click To Tweet of your citation efforts for your US business.

The above list is courtesy of Bright Local.

2 Paths to Securing & Managing Citation Directories

According to Local MOZ (a well-known information source about local marketing), citation directories are an important part of your local SEO marketing strategy in 2018 and beyond.

Knowing where to be ranked and how to correctly setup each and every individual directory is critical to your overall success.  There are two strategies you can take to make this happen.

OPTION 1

You can take the DIY approach wherein you find yourself managing all these different citation directories on your own.  Given that most business owners should be focused on doing their business this option is typically not desired by most.

OPTION 2

You can secure services from a local SEO consultant who knows how to take care of these matters for you.  This path leaves you free to do what you do best which is your local business.

It is important to note that setting up citation directories is not as easy as it might sound.  If you get your NAP details incorrect in any way in the eyes of the Google gods, you lose.

That means you’re associated invested time and effort is for not.

That means your rankings on Google will be diminished.

But most of all that means your competitors will likely be taking clients and customers that should belong to you if only you had outranked their results on the search engines.

BONUS SECTION

Citation Hacks from 4 Local SEO Experts

This following section is pure gold for business owners wanting to uncover additional details about citation directories.  Here you will be able to get firsthand tidbits from industry leaders that I respect and follow.  To read everything that they share their thoughts you can review the entire article at Synup.com.  It includes not 4 but 15 leading experts within the local SEO arena.

Don’t spend your time worrying about obscure directories. Click To Tweet – @MikeRamsey from Nifty Marketing

Use Andrew Shotland’s NAP Hunter extension for auditing citations. Click To Tweet – @philrozek from Local Visibility System

Check the major citation sites for wherever you are. Click To Tweet – @NickRink from Smart Local Marketing

Look beyond your typical local business directory citations. Click To Tweet – @AdamGSteele from Loganix

Concluding Thoughts about Citation Directories

While I’ve done my best to provide a very thorough review of exactly what citations are to the local business professional Click To Tweet I’m sure I’ve left some points out.  With that in mind, what questions remain in your mind about building citations?  How have you seen citations affecting the success of your own marketing efforts?

What is working for you?

What isn’t?

Please feel free to leave your questions, thoughts, and concerns about citations in the comments below.

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Guy Siverson

Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at ViralTNTeam

My mission is to deliver high quality online marketing information that you can easily grow your business by. Please use the comments below to ask about points I missed, provide further thoughts of wisdom or request new topics for me to cover. Thanks in advance. I look forward to being your one stop shop for all things related to the online marketing niche.

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