How To Build Local Citations

What are local citations?

A local citation is any reference to your business online that includes your basic contact information: particularly your business name, website, address, and phone number (NAP). Because this information is often included in online directories, local citations are also referred to as local SEO citations, local listings, or simply, listings. In most cases, your NAP is the minimum info needed to create a listing in a directory. However, on many websites, you can include a lot more, such as:

• Business descriptions
• Industries or categories served
• Social media platforms
• User ratings and reviews
• Photos of your business or products

That said, local search citations can be created by anybody, not just the business owner. Additionally, citation sources aren’t limited to directories or data aggregators. Any mention of your business—including a blog post—could be considered a citation if it includes your business name and contact information. 

As a result, if not actively managed, your business information can sometimes be inconsistent or outdated between sites. This can cause confusion for potential customers and even impact your SEO. That’s where local citation building, or listings management, comes in.

How can local citations help with SEO?

When people in your community search for a local business, local citations help Google deliver them the most relevant results in local search. That’s because Google cross-checks business information across a variety of sources before showing it to users. It looks at:

• Your Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business)
• Google Maps
• Your website
• Business directories and other third-party sources
• User-contributed content

The more consistent your business information is across all these sources, the more trustworthy it appears to be. This can help you increase your local ranking, because Google can display your business in the results with confidence.

• Business descriptions
• Industries or categories served
• Social media platforms
• User ratings and reviews
• Photos of your business or products

What is local citation building?

Local citation building is the practice of distributing and maintaining a business’s information across the internet. This is also referred to as listings management.

Building citations involves:

• Identifying all of your business’s existing citations across the web
• Claiming your local business listings (where possible) to gain control over them
• Updating outdated or incorrect information on your site and in citations
• Adding new information where necessary
• Removing duplicate or fraudulent business listings
• Creating new business listings in important online directories

Because this can be time-consuming, many businesses opt to use automated local citation services (like Semrush Local’s Listings Management tool) to make the job easier.