Customers are overwhelmingly turning to the Internet to find local businesses. A recent Birdeye survey conducted among over 150,000 satisfied customers revealed a powerful trend: 64% of businesses have verified their Google Business Profiles (GBPs): 

  • On average, verified businesses rake in an impressive 1,803 monthly views
  • Each verified profile generates about 200 clicks/interactions and 66 monthly direction requests.
  • Each such business receives roughly 50 calls monthly from their verified profiles, amounting to a remarkable 595 calls annually. 

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. To maximize the potential of your local SEO strategy, you need a strong foundation of local citations. 

Local citations are online mentions of your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) across various directories and websites. A local citation builder can help you efficiently manage your NAP consistency across these platforms, ensuring your business information is accurate and up-to-date.

In this blog, we’ll discuss in detail how to optimize your GBP and create a strong base of local citations, which will drive sales and forge stronger customer relationships.

Be Found Everywhere People Search

Want to see the impact of Birdeye on your business? Watch the Free Demo Now.

See Pricing FREE DEMO

Table of contents

What are local citations?

Image of basic layout of a local citation builder

A local citation is an online mention of your business’s name, address, and phone number (NAP). This can help increase your business’s visibility and improve your search engine ranking for keywords. 

Read our article on how to format your NAP to get found faster.

There are several types of local citations. The most common include directory listings and local business listings. Directory listings are created when you submit your business information to online directories like:

Local business listings are similar to directory listings, but they also often include additional information about your business, like:

  • Business hours
  • Website URL
  • Payment methods
  • Products/services information 

While local citations can benefit local SEO, listing consistent or correct business details can help those efforts. We recommend regularly checking your local citations to ensure all your information is correct. This is especially important for businesses with multiple locations.

How do you create local citations?

Before you create local citations, you must: 

  • Gather your business information
  • Analyze the keywords you’ll use in your citations
  • Use consistent NAP information
Birdeye image of basic layout of a local citation builder.

There are primarily 2 ways you can create local citations: 

Manually

One way to create local citations is to do it manually. This means finding local directories and business listings that allow you to submit your business information. However, this can be a time-consuming process, and if you’re running a business, it might not be the best use of time.

Use a local citation builder

You can also use a local citation builder to create citations more efficiently. A local citation builder is a software that makes it easy to update your business details across several listing sites using automation technology. 

Once you’ve entered your business details, the local citation builder will send that information to your chosen listing sites. 

If your business details change, like your address or phone number, you’ll only need to update your local citation builder with the new information. 

After you save your work, the software will automatically update each business listing site you’ve selected. It’s important to note that each local citation builder connects with different listing sites, so choose a citation builder that makes sense for your business needs.

5 Benefits of using a local citation builder

Local citation builders can help list your business information on local directories online. They can also help your business track its local SEO performance and identify opportunities to improve visibility in search results. Some local citation builders can perform competitive analysis, which can help your business stay ahead of current trends and better understand what your competitors are doing.

Using a local citation builder offers several advantages:

  1. Ensures accurate and up-to-date information
  2. Saves time
  3. Improves local SEO
  4. Allows you to track progress
  5. Boosts website traffic

Let’s understand these in detail: 

Ensures accurate and up-to-date information

Using a single platform to share your business details helps guarantee all of your business information is correct.

Saves time

Manually listing your business on local directories can be a slow process. A local citation builder can automate this process and save you precious time. 

Improves local SEO

We talked about this already, but it’s worth mentioning again. Local citations can improve your business’s local SEO ranking. Why? Because local citations signal to search engines that your business is relevant and popular in your area. 

Allows you to track progress

Most citation builders can track and measure results. Having detailed reports gives you valuable insights into your citation-building progress.

Boosts website traffic

Local citations can also help drive traffic to your website. Being easy to locate online turns potential customers into quality leads.

We can’t stress this enough: Whether you manually enter your local citations or work with a local citation builder, double-check your citations for accuracy. This will guarantee your local citations are up-to-date and in a structured citation format. 

Read our article on how to do better business listing management 
Birdeye image of basic layout of a local citation builder.

Best listing directories for local businesses 

There are many listing directories out there, and the right one for your business will depend on your goals and industry. 

Here are some of the best listing directories for local businesses. Most popular listing directories are based on user reviews and ratings:

  1. Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is a listing directory integrated with Google Maps. It helps businesses to manage their listing information and get discovered on the most popular search engine in the world.
  2. Facebook is the largest social media platform, with over two billion monthly users. You can claim your Facebook Business Page listing to help potential customers find you. 
  3. Bing Places for Business is a listing directory that helps businesses manage their listing information and get discovered by potential customers.
  4. Better Business Bureau (BBB) focuses on businesses that have been accredited by the BBB. This is a great option for businesses wanting to build customer trust and credibility.

There are also several industry-specific listing directories where you can get listed, like:

  1. HealthGrades is a listing directory with information on healthcare providers, such as doctors, dentists, and hospitals. Before deciding on a provider, you can read reviews and ratings from other patients. 
Check out our blog post to learn more about why HealthGrades listings are so important.
  1. Zillow is a listing directory for real estate businesses where users can search for homes, check prices, and even get pre-qualified for a mortgage.
  2. Autotrader is a directory for businesses that sell vehicles. Shoppers can search for cars, compare prices, and look into financing.
Check out these top 41 powerful eCommerce review sites where you get your local business cited.

What are some tips for finding local citations?

Some additional tips for finding local citations:

Use keywords in your search queries. This will help you find citations that are more likely helpful for your SEO reputation management. 

Building a strong portfolio of local citations takes time. Expect to see results after a while. Submit your business information to directories, and eventually, your rankings will improve.

Use consistent NAP information. This will help search engines verify your business and improve local search rankings.

Birdeye image of basic layout of a local citation builder.

Frequently asked questions about local citation builder

Is a local citation the same as a business listing?

Yes. They share business details like your name, address, and phone number all over the internet. The terms are interchangeable.

Are local citations free?

Yes. Most listing services are offered for free. However, some listing sites offer a paid option to boost listing to the top of search results pages.

What is the difference between structured citations and unstructured citations?

Structured citations are those that include your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) in a standardized format. Unstructured citations are those that don’t include all three of these elements or don’t have them formatted consistently.

How do I find local citations?

– Use a citation finder tool. Some popular tools are: Whitespark’s Local Citation Finder, Moz’s Local Citation Finder, and Semrush’s Local Citation Finder. 
– Check your competitors’ citations. Use a citation finder tool to do this. 
– Look for online directories. Some popular online directories include Yelp, Google Business Profile, Bing Places for Business, Yellow Pages, and Superpages.
– Contact local businesses. 

What is local citation software?

A local citation builder is a software that helps businesses create and manage their online listings (citations) across various directories, platforms, and websites. It automates the process of submitting and updating business information such as name, address, phone number, website, hours of operation, etc.

Why do businesses need a local citation builder?

Managing local citations manually can be time-consuming and prone to errors, especially for businesses with multiple locations. A local citation builder ensures consistent and accurate business information across different online sources, which is crucial for local SEO and making it easier for customers to find the business.

How does a local citation builder work?

A local citation builder requires you to input your business information once. The tool then distributes and syncs that data across a network of directories and listing sites. Any subsequent changes can be made in the citation builder, which then automatically updates all the connected listings.

Is using a local citation builder better than manually creating citations?

In most cases, yes. Manual citation building is an incredibly time-consuming and error-prone process, especially for businesses with multiple locations or those that need to update their information frequently. A local citation builder automates and streamlines this process, saving time and ensuring data accuracy across different platforms.

How long does it take to see results from using a local citation builder?

The time it takes to see improvements in local search visibility and rankings can vary depending on factors like your industry, competition, and how well-optimized your online presence was initially. However, most businesses can expect to see positive results within a few months of consistently using a local citation builder and keeping their listings accurate and up-to-date.

Boost your presence with Birdeye Listings: A reliable local citation builder

People use online directories to learn more about local businesses, so information about your business needs to be accurate across the internet. With Birdeye Listings, you can create and manage comprehensive, accurate, and eye-catching listings on countless directories including: 

While manually creating and managing citations can be a daunting task, using a powerful local citation builder like Birdeye Listings can streamline the process and save you valuable time and effort as it: 

  • Access an extensive database of over 150 listing sites, directories, and data aggregators from a single dashboard. 
  • Seamless integration with Birdeye’s all-in-one customer experience platform allows you to manage your online reputation, reviews, and more from a single dashboard.
  • Real-time listing reports on performance analytics. 
  • Support for multi-location businesses with centralized listing management. 
  • Customize listing information with options for adding photos, videos, special offers, and enhanced business descriptions.
  • Use AI to write SEO-friendly descriptions. 

Get your free online listings report today if you’d like to see how your business listings currently appear on directory sites.