How to Rank High in Google My Business in 2020

Erin McDonald — January 8, 2020

We’ve already discussed why Google My Business is such a valuable tool. Remember, 86% of consumers rely on the internet to find a local business. That’s why it’s integral to be seen on a search. Here are the essentials on how to rank high in Google My Business.

How Does Google My Business Work?

Google My Business is a free tool that makes your company’s information easily obtainable to searchers. Customizable contact information, location, websites, and hours are all displayed in an organized fashion to potential customers.

Google My Business ranks businesses on based on three factors-relevance, distance, and prominence. Relevance refers to how well a business lines up with what a searcher is looking for. Distance is how far it is from the searcher. Finally, prominence applies to how well known a business is.

Prominence is our focus, since its really the only one a business has control over. Prominence can stand for the status of a listing, like if its a famous landmark or a well known chain like Target or Walmart. For a normal local business, it takes into account web information, like links, articles, and directories.

Employ Link Building

Learning how to rank high in Google My Business involves multiple factors. One thing Google analyzes are backlinks. Backlinks are links from other websites back to your website. Backlinking can be tricky and some strategies can actually hurt your ranking, so start out with these safer options.

Homepage Links

One way to embrace link building is to contribute to HARO, or Help A Reporter Out. You can gain credibility by becoming a source for an upcoming story. Doing this also positions your company as trustworthy. HARO is good for amateurs in SEO, because it relies on your knowledge over your website’s standings.

Another way to build credibility is to get involved with a podcast or news source. By finding a show topic that is related to your company, you can facilitate a relationship and add value as a guest speaker. By doing this, you expose your business to a whole new audience. Looking for other ways to build credibility? Check out some tips in one of our previous articles.

Learn more about the people involved by checking out the backlinks pertaining to the podcasters or news sources. You may find that they often work on multiple shows or platforms, which may be helpful to your business.

Page Specific Links

Your business is an expert in something, it’s how you set foot into the industry! Use this to your advantage. Acknowledge a speciality and reach out to research pages that focus on it.

For instance, if fitness is your field, search “inurl:resources.html intitle:fitness”. Once you find one that’s applicable, ask to be included on the list.

Create Quality Content

When studying how to rank high in Google My Business, it’s vital not to overlook your business’s content. Setting up your company as an avenue for information can build credibility. One way to do this is to have a news or blog section on your website. Here, you can create articles about industry details or other helpful material.

Businesses can also contribute information to other sites. Find a page that has high traffic and write something that improves upon their content. Reach out and let them know you are going to link them to your content. By starting out with this gesture, you can then ask if they’d be open to linking back to your site. This is known as Skyscraper Link Building.

Another strategy involves looking into these same high traffic pages. Go through their articles or content and see if it contains any broken links. Computer Hope defines a broken link as a hyperlink on a web page that no longer works because:

An incorrect URL was entered for the link.
The destination website or web page was moved or no longer exists.
The website owner linked to a site that is behind a firewall that does not allow outside access.

Create content that fills the void of the vacant space left by a broken link. Then, connect with the site and let them know you’ve noticed some broken links, but have no fear, you have content available to be linked!

Social media is another way you can make quality content. Posting consistently on social media accounts can engage current customers while attracting new audiences. For more information, check out our article that discusses social media at length.