Google Business location requirements Even if your business doesn't want to show an address in the ad, Google requires a mailing address for the business. When you search on Google with “local intent”, meaning that you're looking for something nearby or in a specific area, the Local Package is one of the first search results you'll see. This is one of the many reasons why it's important for your small business to have a Google business profile and update it regularly. As small business owners, this algorithm update certainly has benefits for us, but I think it's important to understand that Google made this update largely for the sake of its users.
With Google Maps and Google Local Pack, Google aims to help Google users find relevant products, services and resources near them. It sounds suspicious or someone who might have a special partnership status with Google My Business (they can automatically verify a company through a special portal). This means that you'll want to use your Google business profile to include your address (assuming you're comfortable doing so) and your service areas. A Google My Business (GMB) account is a tool for companies to create their own presence on Google Maps.
Take a deep breath, because if you've ever searched for a nearby company or service, you've already seen this Google search feature. However, now, although you can still see the Google Map listings within the local package, Google also shows listings from other companies in the same service area that don't have publicly listed addresses. Until recently, for your website to appear in the local package, your address had to appear publicly on the Internet, since the local package only showed information consistent with Google Maps, meaning that it only showed companies with physical addresses. In addition, the happier you make Google and the better you serve Google users, the higher your website will rank, which in theory means more business you'll get.
With that in mind, in this episode of Priority Pursuit, I want to discuss whether or not you should consider making your address public in your Google business profile based on your personal needs, your business model and the way you serve your customers. From an SEO point of view, ranking well in the Google Local Pack can be very rewarding, since it is one of the first search results that Google users see, which increases the chances of a Google user visiting your website and taking action. As a result, Google doesn't want to share small business addresses where customers can't visit them during business hours, because “inaccurate information is frustrating and confusing for Google users.” Second, Google recommends publishing only service areas that are two hours from where your company is located, not remote areas where you dream of working one day.
