After much messing around I’ve finally got BC’s Google Places listing to the top when you search for ‘seo in leeds’ (Places doesn’t show up for just ‘seo leeds’). A few things to take away from my experience are:
- Use the full LTD company name
- Don’t be restricted by Google’s suggested categories
- Fill in as much as you can including images and video
- Get reviews
- Use getlisted.org to source citations – they’re a pain in the ass as everyone of them will call you trying to up-sell a service
- Keep your description short
- Add in your logo
I also hit a load of local directories etc whilst on the train to London last week which i think have helped however none of the citations are showing up in the Places page just yet.
Fingers crossed I retain it :)
I will most certainly second the advice to not be restricted by the categories suggested by Google. I have had great success in writing my own categories (except the mandatory one from the Google selection). In low-competition niches a category alone can take a site to the top without more info, citations and all the other parts of Places optimization. (At least in a low-competition country as Denmark).