Chapter 09 · Citations
Citations and directories
A citation is any listing of your company name, address and phone on another site: map apps, business directories, review sites, industry associations, the local chamber. Get listed where customers in your area actually look, copy your master record into each listing exactly (chapter 4), and fix old or duplicate listings. Google says how well known a business is, including links and reviews across the web, is part of local ranking, and that it builds profiles partly from crawled web content and licensed data (Google Business Profile Help; how Google sources business info).
Kinds of sites worth a listing
| Category | Why it matters for a mover |
|---|---|
| Map and navigation apps from other search engines and device makers | Customers who use a different map app see that app's listing for you, not your Google profile. |
| General business directories and review sites | Customers can read reviews there, and the listings can appear in search results for your company name. |
| Moving-industry associations | Membership listings show you belong to a trade body, and customers can check them. |
| Local organizations | Chambers of commerce, business associations and community groups you actually belong to. |
| Consumer-protection and complaint organizations | Customers can look up movers there before hiring. Keep your listing accurate and answer complaints. |
| Social media pages | Your own profiles count as listings and should match the master record. |
This manual does not recommend specific directories or listing services. Judge each one by whether people who hire movers in your area use it, not by how many listings a service promises.
Copy the master record exactly
Use the same name, address format, phone number and website address on every listing. Watch for small differences: “Ste” on one site and “Suite” on another, an old phone number, “Co.” on one and “Company” on another. Each listing should also:
- use the category closest to “moving company” that the site offers
- list the same service area you use on Google
- hide the street address where the site allows it, if you hide it on Google
- link to your homepage, or to the matching location page if you have several locations
- be claimed under a company email address you control, recorded in your password manager
Find what already exists
Before adding new listings, find the ones already out there:
- Search your company name in quotes, with and without your city.
- Search every old phone number and old address you have used.
- Search previous names if the company was renamed.
- Record every listing you find in a citation sheet: site, link, name shown, address shown, phone shown, login owner, status.
Fix wrong details on listings you can claim. Ask for removal of duplicates. On sites you cannot edit, use the site's own correction or report process.
Paid listings and listing services
Some directories charge for placement, and some services submit your details to many sites at once. Before paying, ask:
- Will customers in my area see this listing?
- Who owns the listing if I stop paying? Does it disappear or revert to old data?
- Can I edit the listing myself later?
- Are links from paid placements marked as sponsored?
Google's spam policies list “low-quality directory or bookmark site links” as an example of link spam, and say paid links are fine for advertising when they carry a rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow" attribute (Google spam policies). Buy a listing for the customers it brings, not for the link.
Lead-selling sites are a different thing
Some sites that look like directories sell the same lead to several movers. Treat them as an advertising channel, measured by booked moves (chapter 8), not as citations. Check that your company details on them are correct either way, because customers may see them when searching your name.
Keep it current
Update the citation sheet whenever the master record changes. Once a quarter, search your name and phone again to catch new listings that other sites create on their own.
Work order
Do these in order
- Start a citation sheetColumns for site, link, name, address, phone, login owner and status.
- Find existing listingsSearch the company name, old names, old phones and old addresses.
- Claim and correctClaim listings with a company email and copy the master record exactly.
- Remove duplicatesUse each site’s duplicate or removal process.
- Add missing core listingsMap apps, main directories, associations and local groups you belong to.
- Review paid offersAsk who owns the listing and whether links are marked sponsored.
- Recheck quarterlySearch name and phone for new or changed listings.
Chapter 09 sign-off
Citations
- Citation sheet lists every known listing and who owns its login.
- Every listing matches the master record exactly.
- Old phone numbers and addresses no longer appear on claimed listings.
- Duplicate listings have been reported or removed.
- Listings use the closest moving category the site offers.
- Street address hidden where the site allows, if hidden on Google.
- Paid placements reviewed for ownership and sponsored link marking.
- Lead-selling sites measured by booked moves, not counted as citations.
- Quarterly name and phone search scheduled.
Every line true for your company · print this page to keep it with the chapter
Sources
- 01Tips to improve your local ranking on Google · Google Business Profile Help
- 02Understand how Google sources & uses info in Business Profiles & local search results · Google Business Profile Help
- 03Spam policies for Google web search · Google Search Central