What Actually Affects Your Google Business Ranking
The genuine ranking factors, without the myths.
There's a lot of guesswork around what actually moves your Google Business ranking — here's what genuinely matters.
The Real Factors
- Relevance — how well your profile matches the search
- Distance — how close you are to the searcher
- Prominence — reviews, website authority, general online presence
What You Can Actually Influence
You can't change your location, but relevance and prominence are both very much within your control — through accurate categorisation, complete information, and steady review growth.
Common Myths
Posting constantly doesn't guarantee ranking on its own, and neither does simply having more reviews than a competitor — quality, relevance and consistency matter more than raw volume.
FAQs
Not directly, but you can ensure you're not missing from searches you should reasonably appear in.
Not alone — relevance and accuracy matter just as much as review volume.
Regularly — an active, accurate, well-maintained profile performs better than a neglected one.