Using a virtual business address or PO Box in Google My Business is against Google’s guidelines. Should I use a virtual business address for local SEO? It would still be a good idea to have a central “location” or professional business address to provide to clients. For example, maybe a company is made up of employees that all work remotely. There are many reasons why a company might want to set up a virtual business address. While some companies use PO Boxes, there are companies that provide virtual business addresses and phone numbers, which make it appear like your business has an official location. If you’re uncomfortable with sharing your home address, which is understandable, then you might be inclined to provide a virtual address. If you want to show up in the local 3-pack, you usually need to provide an address. Google also recommends providing hours of operation, website, primary category, photos, and much more. In order to set up a Google My Business listing, you need to provide your business’ name, address, and phone number. will determine your position in this type of ranking. The way your business’ website is set up, its content, how many links it has, etc. The other type of listing, here called a “normal local listing,” is just a search engine result that’s relevant for a local query. Google’s local 3-pack sources information from multiple places, including from searchers, but primarily the information comes from Google My Business. For businesses without a physical location, you can see where the challenge comes in. Other types of businesses will display a link to the business’ website or directions to their location. ” The local 3-pack generally displays a map with pinned locations, 3 listings with business name, star rating, and address.įor some businesses, like restaurants, you’ll see a picture. This includes queries containing “near me” or “in. Google’s local 3-pack displays at the top of the page for most local search terms. What is the difference between a local 3-pack and a normal local listing? That’s where the virtual business address comes in. However, the two types of listings work a little differently and have slightly different requirements. To get the most out of local SEO, you want your business to show up prominently in both places. In addition to the normal list of results, Google will also typically display what’s called a local 3-pack. This way, when you execute a search on Google or use a voice assistant, they can provide results that are relevant and helpful to you, wherever you are. When you search, search engines typically customize the results you see on the search engine results page (SERP) using the information associated with your signed in account, your IP address, and other factors. To understand which option is best, it’s helpful to understand a little context about local SEO. Small business owners who want to take advantage of the traffic and revenue afforded to them by local SEO have a few options. Many people are wisely concerned about submitting their home address to the general public. Despite this, search engines – Google especially – typically require an address to prove that your business is a “real” business, which can put some small business owners in a bind. There are a lot of kinds of businesses that don’t need and don’t have a physical location. But what if your business is run out of your home? For small businesses with a storefront, office, or other kind of physical location, there’s usually no problem. One of the major roadblocks for many small businesses looking to develop and implement an effective local SEO strategy is their address. By focusing on local SEO, small businesses can drive qualified local traffic, leads, and build a loyal and reliable customer base. The truth is that small businesses have just as much to gain from an effective SEO strategy as large corporations. However, if you have a small, local business and you don’t have a marketing degree, you might think SEO strategies are just for big companies with a lot of resources, large offices, or multiple storefront locations who are competing with one another for highly valuable keywords. These days, most marketers know that no business is successful without a thoughtful and effective search engine optimization strategy. Using a Virtual Business Address for Local SEO You can be penalized for using a virtual address in Google My Business. Local searches in Google require real physical addresses.Some online-only businesses use virtual addresses for official purposes and wonder if this is a good solution when trying to rank in local searches.Not all businesses have or need a physical address, especially small businesses.
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