Why Your Business Can Benefit From Citations
Simply, a citation is anytime your business is mentioned on the web, whether a link is attached or not. There are many different ways your business can be mentioned; some examples of citations are noted below:
- Company name on its own
- Company name and phone #
- Company name, phone #, and address
- Company name, phone #, address, and link to your website
A few citations are automatically created by directories looking to increase their listings. These directories will not always give you a complete citation. When you enter your business we recommend entering a complete citation. We have defined a complete citation for your reference.
Complete citation includes your company name, address, and phone number. Any citation lacking one of those 3 pieces of information is an incomplete citation.
How Will Citations Increase My Revenue?
When it comes to local search rankings, citations are a key factor. Getting ranked on the top of the first page of Google leads to more exposures, which leads to more people landing on your website, more phone calls, more consultations/estimates, more paying clients.
Structured Citations
Think of the directories that most people frequent, business listing sites like yellowpages.com, yelp.com, goldbook.com, etc. These are known as structured citations.
Unstructured Citations
Any mention of your business on the web is considered a citation, unstructured citations can be found on blogs, newspaper sites, event listings, government websites. The more traffic the sites have that mention you, the more reputable it will be when a search engine considers who should be ranking first. For example, getting a mention on The Globe And Mail website is significant because they have a massive readership base, this will in turn benefit your ranking significantly! Therefore, you can see how these unstructured citations can be extremely valuable to your local search rankings.
Where To Find Both Structured And Unstructured Citations?
The structured citations are the most apparent and if you haven’t claimed the free listing you should do so NOW! The thing that will get you ahead of your competitors is finding and getting your business listed on the unstructured citations. This can be tricky but if you have a good network of websites, blogs, directories, or know people that do you should engage them to mention your business. Request for a complete citation (business name, address, & phone number) but any type of citation (complete or incomplete) will help.
Not All Citations Are Created Equal
The old saying “quality over quantity” holds true for citations. There is a huge spectrum between high quality citations and spammy citations (which can have a negative effect on your ranking). Reference back to the example under unstructured citations, a mention in The Globe And Mail is much more valuable than a mention on a blog who has 3 viewers or even worse a spammy directory which was created simply for link building, albeit low quality link building.
If you have any questions about citations or how to get your business on the front page of any search engine feel free to reach out to any one of our certified consultants – 1-888-986-7475.