Why matching info everywhere matters
Google checks your business name, address, and phone number against dozens of other websites before deciding how much to trust your listing in map results. When Yelp has your old phone number or Facebook shows the shop you moved out of two years ago, that trust drops and competitors show up above you. SEO people call these listings citations. You can call them what they are: every place your business info appears online, all needing to say the exact same thing.
This is a one-time cleanup plus light upkeep. The core work takes about 30 minutes. A couple of verifications trickle in over the following days, but nothing else needs you until something about your business changes.
Write down your one official version first
Before you touch any directory, decide the exact format of your info and save it in a note on your phone. Not roughly the same. Character for character the same. 'Badger Plumbing' and 'Badger Plumbing LLC' read as two different businesses to a matching algorithm, and so do 'Ste 120' and 'Suite 120.' Your note needs six lines:
- Name: the name you'll use everywhere, with or without the LLC, picked once
- Address: one format, matching what USPS shows for your address (usps.com has a free 'Look Up a ZIP Code' tool that spits out the standardized version)
- Phone: your real main line, written like (262) 555-0147
- Website: the full address including https://, pointed at your homepage
- Hours: written out, like Mon to Fri 7am to 5pm
- Description: a 750 character version for Google (that's its limit) and a 250 character short version for sites with tighter caps
If you use a call tracking number, don't spread it across directories. Google Business Profile lets you set the tracking number as the primary phone and your real line as an additional phone, so Google can still match your listings. Everywhere else, use the real number.
Claim the six that matter most
Do these in order. Every one of them is free.
- Google Business Profile (google.com/business). If you already have one, sign in, search your business name on Google, and click Edit profile. Check every field against your note, including hours and website. If you don't have one, create it and pick postcard or video verification when asked.
- Apple Business Connect (businessconnect.apple.com). This feeds Apple Maps, which is what every iPhone uses for directions and what Siri reads from. Sign in with an Apple ID, claim your business, paste in your info.
- Bing Places (bingplaces.com). Click 'Import from Google Business Profile' and it pulls your Google listing over and keeps it synced. Two minutes.
- Facebook. Even if you never post, the About tab is a listing Google can see. Open your page, go to About, then Contact and basic info, and match every field to your note.
- Yelp (biz.yelp.com). Claim the free listing and fill it out. Expect sales calls about ads afterward. You can say no forever; the free listing is the part that matters.
- Nextdoor (business.nextdoor.com). Free business page. In Wisconsin suburbs this is where the 'anyone know a good plumber' threads happen, and a claimed page is what neighbors link to.
Add the second tier when you have another half hour
These carry less weight one by one, but they round out the picture and a few send real customers.
- Better Business Bureau (bbb.org). The basic listing is free. Accreditation costs money and is optional; skip it unless your customers ask about it.
- Angi. The free basic listing counts as a citation. You don't have to buy their leads to have one.
- Your chamber of commerce. Most Wisconsin chambers publish a member directory online, and it's one of the more trusted links a small business can get. Membership isn't free, but if you're joining anyway, fill the listing out completely.
- Trade directories. Whatever fits your work: NARI Milwaukee for remodelers, state license lookups, manufacturer 'find a dealer' pages. These are strong precisely because not every competitor can get on them.
- Yellow Pages (yp.com) and Foursquare. Old, but their data feeds other apps and services, so wrong info there spreads.
Skip the random directories that email you offering to 'feature' your business. A listing on a site no human visits does nothing, and some of those sites exist to sell you your own information back.
Hunt down the wrong ones
Now find the listings you didn't create. Open a private or incognito browser window and run three Google searches: your business name plus your city, your phone number in quotes, and your old address or old phone number in quotes if you've ever moved or changed lines. Anything on the first two pages showing wrong info is worth fixing.
Every real directory has a 'claim this business' or 'is this your business?' link. Claim it, correct it, done. If a site has no claim option, look for 'suggest an edit.' For a duplicate Google listing, open the duplicate in Google Maps, tap 'Suggest an edit,' then 'Close or remove,' and mark it as a duplicate of your real listing.
Listing scanners like Moz Local can automate part of this check, but the three manual searches catch most of what matters, including junk listings the scanners don't index.
Keep it current
When your hours, phone, or address change, update everything the same day, in this order: your website first, then Google Business Profile, then the rest of your list. Google compares directories against your own site, so the site is the anchor.
For holidays, set special hours instead of letting Google guess. In the Business Profile manager go to Edit profile, then Hours, then Special hours. Then put a reminder on your calendar twice a year to re-run the three searches from the last section. Ten minutes each time.
If you move, don't delete your Google listing and start a new one. Update the address on the existing profile so your reviews come with you.