What To Do With Two Business Having The Same Name?
-
Hi friends,
We have a client who is in a peculiar predicament... essentially his business and his biggest competitor share the same name. Officially on their business licenses they are differentiated by the year they were each established, but in all their marketing, on their website, and in the community they are both known by the exact same name. When the company name is searched for, the competitor shows up #1 organically with the map pin as well as in the knowledge graph, and our site shows up number 2 without any any map pin or Google+ page site link or anything.
We thought we could differentiate ourselves by changing his Google+ page name to his official business name (with the date) and building a bunch of really good citations with that official business name, but we still haven't made a dent for his branded keyword, and our Google+ page site links aren't even showing up.
Has anyone run into a situation like this and any suggestions?
-
Hi Samuel,
I see ... thank you for explaining what you meant about the dates. You're right, no one is going to search for the business name/year. Good luck with the citation building!
-
Hi Miriam,
Thanks for the response!
So the only way the two business officially differentiate themselves is by the year they were established on their business licenses. For example, we're "ABC Company 1983 Ltd." and they are "ABC Company 1995 Ltd.". We tried changing the Google+ page to "ABC Company 1983 Ltd." and building citations with that name, but the problem is people only search for "ABC Company" and we're pretty behind compared to them in citations, anchor text links, etc. I guess the only thing we can do is keep our name without the date, and just out-build them. Thanks!
-
Hi Samuel!
That is an unusual situation (and kudos to Ryan for surfacing the Burger King story!). If, in your geography, Google is only showing one local result for a branded search (not a keyword search) then the client may be stuck. In some geographies, a branded search will show a pack of all nearby locations of that brand, but it sounds like in your client's scenario, Google is showing a local one-box or something like that. Unless the customer wants to re-brand, he is likely going to be stuck with this situation unless:
-
Google starts showing multiple results for the brand
-
He manages to completely surpass the competitor so that he becomes the #1 result
Right now, Google is likely thinking that both businesses are the same entity. I'm not quite sure what you mean about adding a date to the business name - please feel free to clarify that. If the client can't re-brand then the second option is really the only active thing he can pursue. You might like to check out the How To tab of this tutorial for using our Check Listing tool to identify weaker competitors:
-
-
It's definitely an odd situation! Any sort of differentiation you could use would help though: logo, tagline, business format (LLC, Inc, Canadian equivalent)... Personally a year wouldn't mean much to me if I was on the consumer side trying to figure out which one was which.
-
I'm not that Burger King... but maybe if I can get this figured out I'll reach out to them
So when our agency came aboard, we were definitely behind as far social media profiles, popular local citations, etc when compared to the competitor. And the majority of the profiles for the competitor have the name in its simplest (and most searched for) form. When we started we wanted to differentiate ourselves so we added the year established to all our citations, but I think we might just have to use the more common business name even if it conflicts with the competitor. Since we're not showing up in maps anyway, it's not like our local listing can get any worse...
-
You're not running Burger King in Matoon are ya? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burger_King_(Mattoon,_Illinois) -- a pretty good read about how the US has two Burger Kings...
That's definitely a tricky spot. Has the competitor already registered social media accounts in the company name as well? Is their domain a better match for the brand than your client's? Is the competitor active on social media matching the company name? Are both companies thoroughly listed on the sites you'd find in Moz Local (Yelp, YP, Foursquare, Google and Bing Local Business, etc.)? To get the map pin you'll really want to focus on the Name, Address, and Phone lining up on each service and ensure that Google has the verified business address as well. If there are big gaps in any of those things between your client and the competitor catching up should help move the needle.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
I want to remove my business from Google Local Listing Completely
I deleted my business from Google my business (GMB) but it's still showing on Google Local Listing. Kindly, tell me how can I removed completely. I need help?
Local Listings | | Sabar-din1 -
Has anyone tried using AMP links in Google Business Listings?
We have a client with multiple locations, and Google Business listings for each location. We've also created AMP pages for each of those location landing pages, and they're ranking on page one of their main queries, just below the local pack. We're wondering if anyone has tried pointing a GMB website listing at an AMP page, or if there are considerations to keep in mind before testing it out. So far, we've discussed whether to use the AMP url (amp.domain.com) or the Google viewer url (google.com/amp/s/amp.domain.com), and potential concerns for desktop users.
Local Listings | | WompM0 -
Local Optimization for Multiple Businesses Issues/Strategy
Hello Everyone, So we have a client with a geo-focused ‘sports’ site but they also have a second site they are using to promote the seasonal camps they run. Local demographics and traffic would be a priority and main source of traffic. We know it would be ideal to have all of it consolidated but in this case a separate site was needed. The camp site would be under a different Name but they do not really have a different physical location from the primary site. Assuming we can’t find a discernable different location we could use; from a local optimization perspective we have two questions: Does that mean that we shouldn’t venture into local listings that need an address and trying to rank for map results and instead shift focus to other local strategies (i.e. geo-relevant content, link acquisition….etc.)? – We don’t want to dilute or devalue the primary site at all but if possible would like to be able to come up for both. Should we avoid listing the address on the camp site as text for similar reasons? We know the same business could be listed for multiple locations but any suggestions on the opposite approach or input would be very appreciated. Please let us know if there is anything we could provide details for that might help. Looking forward to hearing from all of you! Thank you in advance. Best,
Local Listings | | Ben-R0 -
Google My Business for a Multi-Business Showroom
We are considering signing up for a multi-business showroom co-op concept in our area. Basically this space (1 address) has 10+ businesses that have their products represented at the location. There is one person working that passes along the leads to the individual companies when someone visits the showroom and shows interest in a product. I know at least 5 of the businesses are using this address for a Google My Business profile, and we would like to also. I am looking for some advice on best practices and strategy to ensure were not violating any of Google's policies. Here is a link to the showroom: http://www.brookfieldhomeandideacenter.com/
Local Listings | | JohnWeb120 -
Using same business number on different websites
Hello, I have number of websites in different locations with different business name and address with verified listings. However, I am thinking to use the same phone number on all the websites as it is difficult for me to keep track of all the numbers. So, is it okay to use the same phone number on different websites with different business name and address? Waiting for your thoughts. Brian
Local Listings | | BrianBotts.0 -
Brand Name Pulling Into Search Results Incorrectly
Hi Moz Community! I have a client, Acme Stove Co., whose branded search results are pulling in the wrong name. A Google search for "Acme Stove Co" returns pages with the title "Acme Stove & Video." Really not sure where this "& Video" part is pulling from - there is no mention of videos on the pages that are ranking with these terms, and Google is definitely using a title tag other than the one that we have worked to optimize. It appears to be happening on the homepage and our store location pages. Screen shot of search results is attached. The company definitely does not offer any sort of video services whatsoever, so we're really stumped as to where this may be coming from. Any insight would be greatly appreciated!! 8bNOWeF.png
Local Listings | | TriMarkDigital0 -
Local SEO Brand Name Question
I have a franchisee client where the standard practice is to list their brand name as (ex: "[Brand] of San Diego, CA") on their website. I don't think that's the legal business name of the company, just how corporate chooses to organize the franchisees. The client often uses this name in the offline world so it seems to fall within Google's guidelines for creating a listing on Google My Business. https://support.google.com/business/answer/3038177?hl=en&ref_topic=4540086 I've heard conflicting answers from Google Places reps on whether to use brand + location or just brand. I've also seen articles that state if your business name is greater than 40 characters it can often be shortened if directories choose to pull your business data from a different source and that would make the listing name inconsistent. I'd like the added benefit of keeping the location in but I know large franchises like Subway don't bother adding location though. Anyone have any experience with this?
Local Listings | | GSO0 -
How to remove a former business location from Google Places?
I've received a strange response from Google Places on local listings for a home builder. Google's rep suggested that we not list the new home sales center (a model home) since at some point it will change from being a business listing to a residential listing. That is just wrong. It will be a place of business for the next 3 years and then will flip to being a private residence. These days it is uncommon, but not that rare to turn over ownership from public to private or vice versa (A residence becoming a law or other commercial establishment. Or a whole office building becoming condos.) The issue is, when it does happen, how do we get Google and others to recognize that a business is no longer a business location? I've had trouble bringing down the address of former former model home sales centers on Google Places much to the chagrin of the residents.
Local Listings | | BlairKuhnen0