The above image is a screenshot from a Dallas, TX law firm, Bailey & Galyen Attorneys at Law, that ranks well in local searches. On their Dallas, TX location page, you will notice that they have included a map to their Google Business Profile listing and their business name, address & phone number (NAP) information.
Besides the obvious benefits to the customers of being able to click on the map and see directions to the business, including a Google Map on your local business website helps search engines associate the business with the business address; it adds relevance to your business for your city, which is extremely important in local SEO.
Also, just as an aside, whenever we include a Google map on our website, we should list our NAP information on the same page. Always list your NAP information the same wherever you list it across the web.
In this article, we will talk about what Google Map to include (yes, it does matter) and go into the SEO benefits of having the Google Map in more detail. See also our article “Using NAP Info Correctly on Local Business Websites!“
What Google Map to Include
If you look at the above image, the business’s name is listed in red next to the location pin. This means this is a map to their Google Business Profile listing. This is the Google Map you want to embed on your business website.
If the map just lists the address in red next to the pin, it is just a map to the business’s address rather than to the Google Business Profile listing. This is not the Google Map you want to use.
Since our goal is to help the search engines associate our business name and website with our city, embedding a map to our Google Business Profile listing does a much better job than embedding a map to the business’s address. If this is confusing at all, please re-read the above couple of paragraphs until it makes sense.
Why a Google Map Benefits Your Customers
If a potential customer lands on your website and wants to stop in at your business location, it is much easier for them to use their Google GPS to find your business if you have a Google Map embedded on your website’s location page.
Then, all they have to do is click on the map to open it up, and from there, they can easily have their phone’s GPS lead them to the business location. Or if they do not want to go to your business now, they can still open it up to see where your business is located for future reference.
Why a Google Map Benefits In Local SEO
Whenever people say “Local SEO,” they mainly are talking about how well your business ranks in the Google Maps 3-pack (see above image). They also are talking about how well you rank just below the 3-pack in the regular organic search, but this is secondary. Most of the traffic from a local search goes to the websites shown in the Google Maps 3-pack.
Since most local business customers come through the Google Maps 3-pack, and since Google Maps is heavily focused on location, your business’s relevance to your neighborhood and city is paramount. So, it only stands to reason that embedding a map to your business location helps show your business’s relevance to your neighborhood and city.
If you look at the above image, it gives you the 2023 Local SEO ranking breakdown from Whitespark.ca. On-page (or website) signals make up almost 20% of the algorithm. One-fifth of how relevant Google feels our business is to our city comes from the information we provide them on our business website.
What could be a more important part of showing Google that our business is relevant to our city than having a Google Map to our Google Business Profile listing embedded on our website? It may not be everything, but it is an obvious must.
Final Thoughts
Including a Google Map in your Google Business Profile has become something that search engines now expect to see on a local business website. Hopefully, in this article, I have done a good job explaining how it helps make your website relevant to your city, which helps you rank better in the Google Maps 3-pack.
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