Can You Move Your Business to Another State and Keep Your Online Reviews
In the Local SEO world, we cringe every time a business concern possessor tells us they want to relocate their office. There is a lot that could go incorrect when a business concern moves, but Google is slowly getting better at solidifying the process.
Hither is a pace-past-step guide to what you should do if your visitor is relocating.
1. Update Your Website First
Make sure y'all bank check all the places that your accost is listed on your website and update them to list the new accost instead.
- Update your location page. This may be your "contact" or "well-nigh us" page, but every local business owner should have a page that is dedicated to providing data about their office location. (Mike Ramsey did an amazing job of creating a guide for business owners about what should exist listed on this page.)
- Check your website footer and header, and update the address there if listed.
- Check the lawmaking on your website and update the Schema markup. Run the new markup through Google's Rich Snippets Testing Tool to make sure it shows your new address location.
- Add photos (interior and exterior) of your new role location, along with detailed driving directions to your new address. Highlight that you accept moved recently so your customers aren't confused.
two. Find The Listing On Google For The Previous Business And Mark It Airtight
If you are moving to a new function, it's likely that there was a business concern that occupied that location before you. Notice out who that is, and make sure you mark their business organization list as closed. Utilize these steps to find the listing for the other business.
Once you take the listing(s), yous can submit the edit in MapMaker to marking the business closed. It is helpful to include comments in your edit stating that this business has recently closed and a new business is moving in. This volition help the Regional Leads approve your edit faster since it's probable that Google'southward Street View will still show the erstwhile business.
Go on in mind that duplicate listings are common with Google Maps, so the previous concern might have more one listing for you to edit. You also might find several businesses using your new address and suite number. I've seen cases where businesses that left more than than five years ago still had listings on Google Maps that were not marked closed yet.
iii. Update Your Address Within Google My Business organization
Log in to your Google My Concern dashboard and update the address there. Make sure you not but update the address only also look at where the pin marker is.
It does not always automatically motility. Google may ask yous to re-verify your information past sending a new postcard to your new location.
4. Embed A Map Of Your New Office On Your Location Page
Once your address is updated on your Google Plus business page, embed a map of your actual concern location on your website. In addition to providing an accurate location marking, this will enable your visitors to see all the Google reviews nigh your business, too.
5. Update The Major Data Providers & Directories
The data providers are listed as the peak directories on Whitespark'south Top Local Citation list. Update these in the order listed, since the ones closest to the height matter more.
six. Update Your Address On All Records With The Government, Your Phone Visitor, Cable Visitor & Bank
If you take a business license, search for your license on your state's Secretarial assistant of State website and brand sure the accost they list is your new one.
These are often hidden sources of data that the data providers grab data from. If the information is even so wrong offline, it volition eventually make its way back online at some point.
seven. Update All The Niche Directories For Your Industry
If you lot're a dentist, your profile on HealthGrades is extremely of import. If you're a lawyer, your contour on Avvo is important. Although the niche directories concord a lot of weight, people often forget about them considering they aren't on any "acme 50" directories lists.
BrightLocal put together a really great starting list for many common industries. I would still suggest taking it a step further and looking for niche directories that rank on the starting time five pages for either your make name or a search for the keyword you're trying to rank for.
eight. Consider A Google Trusted Photographer
If you're worried near Street View being wrong for your new location, consider hiring a Google trusted photographer to do an inside bout.
When yous have an inside tour for your concern, this replaces Street View when someone searches your business proper noun and sees your knowledge panel. Instead of "see outside" (showing Street View), it volition show "come across inside."
9. Go along Track Of Your Updates
After yous move, in that location are a couple of items you should do monthly for the first few months:
- Check for indistinguishable listings. You lot want to make sure a duplicate didn't popular up for your old accost. It'due south possible that Google could create 1 based on old data, and you'll desire to have this on your radar. If y'all find one, make certain you bargain with it the right way. Keep in heed that when you move, Google unremarkably updates the existing list — it doesn't create a new ane. There are some exceptions, but provided you didn't change cities or move to a new land, your listing and reviews should remain intact.
- Cheque to brand sure your driving directions are right. Google often doesn't properly move the map marker when a business concern moves, which results in users getting routed to your old office. Google can fix it for y'all, merely it'southward best that you lot bank check for it before your customers find the problem first.
Go along in listen that yous might experience a moderate ranking driblet when you move (though I personally don't recall information technology's as desperate whatever more, at present that Google keeps the same folio and reviews for most cases).
I always suggest businesses to go these items done equally quickly as possible after they motion (in the first few weeks) to decrease the likelihood of a ranking drop.
Opinions expressed in this commodity are those of the guest writer and not necessarily Search Engine Country. Staff authors are listed here.
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Nearly The Writer
Joy is the possessor of the Local Search Forum, LocalU, and Sterling Sky, a Local SEO agency in Canada & the U.s.a.. She has been working in the industry since 2006 and enjoys speaking regularly at marketing conferences such every bit MozCon, LocalU, Pubcon, SearchLove, and State of Search. Yous can observe her on Twitter or volunteering as a Product Expert on the Google My Business Forum.
Source: https://searchengineland.com/business-owners-guide-moving-office-234671
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