Business Listings Are Appearing on Google Based on Proximity
Without any announcement, Google is now putting businesses in the Local Search Pack (you know, those three listings that are under the ads, but above the unpaid results) based on the proximity of the business to the location of the searcher. For example, if you own a restaurant and you are close to the searcher…say one of the three closest…your business will be shown. So now the Local Pack will be different every time you search from a different location. This will be especially noticeable on mobile.
What does this mean for your website’s ranking: (1) If it’s now showing in the local pack all the time for any mention of your business in your city, it will not anymore. (2) If you haven’t done any SEO, your site may appear in the Local Pack anyway. (3) If you don’t even have a website for your business, your business may still appear in the Local Pack based on Google Maps. In general, organic ranking on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) is not affected. Thank you to Darren Shaw for his great investigative work.
