MyLocal Explains What is NAP and Why it is Important

MyLocal, based in Norfolk, UK, previously announced that owner Thomas Olesen had planned a blog post series to update his book, Local Search Optimisation. Thomas Olesen had published the book titled, Local Search Optimisation which is currently still available on Amazon. This book was published in 2017 and therefore, it is somewhat outdated in view of the fast developments in Local SEO. Rather than rewrite the book, Thomas Olesen has started to provide updates through a series of blog posts. This was previously announced in a press release issued by MyLocal.

This seventh blog post in the series focuses on defining the acronym NAP and why it is important to Local SEO.

Thomas Olesen explains, “Most people associate NAP with having a short sleep so it is important not to use that term without explaining what it means. It is used by people knowledgeable about Local SEO to describe “Name, Address, Phone”, where “Phone” is itself an abbreviation. It is important because each element is used by search engines to help identify unique businesses or “entities”. Unless all three elements are the same when found, it is more difficult for search engines to be certain that they are looking at the same business. If they are uncertain then there is “entity ambiguity” and it is much more difficult for a business to rank under those circumstances.”

As described in previous blogs (chapters), the more places a local business is listed online (known as citations) the more chance it has of being found. Citations use NAP as the main way to identify the business. If the NAP is the same wherever it is used then that will make it easy for search engines to know they are dealing with the same business. Trust that is built with Google and other search engines by being widely listed in a consistent way.

If one has a website, it can be linked to the listing in these citations and found via local online searches. MyLocal collaborates with the client’s website designer to enhance the ability of the website to be found in these local search queries. They specialise in local SEO and most of their work is done off-site, meaning that they don't modify the website itself. But MyLocal advises webmasters to ensure that onsite and off-site setups complement each other.

Thomas Olesen goes on to explain the difference between on-site and off-site. The former refers to work on a website which is usually undertaken by the webmaster and the latter refers to anything done elsewhere online. An example of on-site work might be a blog post on a website whereas a social post referring to the blog would be an example of off-site activity.

MyLocal provides advice to businesses who want to establish or improve their online presence, specifically providing local SEO, online visibility and online credibility services. Online visibility has to do with making the business widely available in online local searches. It should be pointed out that if the only online presence of a business is in the form of a website, the chances are that search engines will not consider the business to be important and the site will find it hard to rank in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages).

The situation would be different if the business is listed correctly in various places, such as directories, maps, industry niche sites, review sites, social media sites, local sites, video sites. This would get the attention of Google and other search engines, helping the site to rank higher in the search results.

Meanwhile, online credibility is what people think when they find one's business online, wherever that happens to be. It is quite likely to be a third-party listing like Apple Maps and so it is important to claim all such listings so that they can be optimised and made to look impressive. Also, third party reviews can help boost online credibility. Some businesses are concerned about poor online reviews, which is why some companies use reputation management systems of the type offered by MyLocal.

And, of course, MyLocal also offers local SEO services, the subject of this blog series and book. The idea is to help local businesses to be found online even if they don’t have a website. If they do, it is far more cost-effective to rank in local search results than to rank a website in organic search results.

People who are interested in local SEO services may want to check out the MyLocal website, or contact them on the telephone, or through email. They may also want to check out their Google My Business post. They are open from Monday to Friday, from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm in temporary self-isolation during the COVID-19 lockdown.