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Is Rank Tracking by Zip Codes Still Relevant?

Zip Code Tracking: Summary

  • Google uses proximity to deliver local results and does not use zip codes.
  • All searches are affected by the proximity factor, but businesses with more dense competition will be affected the most.
  • Organic results are affected by proximity but much less than Google Maps rankings.
  • Checking rankings by zip code center does not always provide a complete or meaningful picture to base optimization decisions on.

 

Rank tracking has gotten more complex and more granular over the last few years. In the “olden days”, before the Google algorithm incorporated a local ranking component, we’d track rankings with a simple line graph of what position your website was found for a particular keyword. And this was sufficient.

Basic Rank Checker Line Graph

We still rely on this type of graph today, however over time the Google algorithm has changed and now delivers different results based on the location of the searcher. This required us to start telling our rank trackers to check rankings from specific cities. Eventually, as Google’s system became more mature, rank trackers adapted and we were able to tell our rank trackers to check the SERPs from specific zip codes.

Tracking by zip code became the new normal for many years….

..until that is, Google introduced ‘Proximity’ as a local rank factor into Google Maps and Google My Business. Now, finding local businesses became much easier because Google automatically factored into its results the location of the searcher and how close they were to the businesses.

The thing is, SEO’s were so used to inputting zip codes into their rank trackers that we somehow got the notion that zip codes mattered to Google. In fact, they only matter to our rank trackers and Google does not use zip codes for determining Google Maps results. 

In most cases, Google is using your exact GPS location or a good approximate through other methods.

Proximity as a Ranking Factor

This is not news anymore, it’s been a few years now that proximity, or distance is being used as a ranking factor.

Google actually states this directly:

Google Proximity Ranking Explanation

https://support.google.com/business/answer/7091?hl=en

Notice how there is no mention of zip codes.

Rank Tracking for Local SEO is Difficult

To those doing local SEO, this proximity factor was making it difficult to get an accurate reading on rankings. Two search results could be completely different depending on where a searcher was, even within the same zip code. This is especially true in industries where there are many competitors within a small area, like restaurants.

Let’s simulate a search for ‘pizza restaurant’ from these two points that are half a mile away from each other but still within the same zip code of 11220 (area highlighted by red border).

Google search within one zip code

Google pizza restaurant search 1

Google pizza restaurant search 2

The results in the three pack have completely changed and we are still inside the same zip code.

When you track by zip code, the rank tracker will be checking from the center of zip code. In this case, the center of the zip code is here:

Zip code 11220 map center

Checking from the zip code center, the search results are again, all different:

Google pizza restaurant search 3

Three searches, all within the same zip code with three completely different results.

Now this is an extreme example, because there are a lot of pizza restaurants in Brooklyn, but it highlights the fact that if your rank tracker is choosing only one spot inside the zip code, you are getting only a tiny picture of what is going on ranking wise.

This type of result difference takes place with every type of business. Here is a comparison of two ‘dentist near me’ searches from 1/2 mile apart.

dentist near me search comparison

Basically, Google could care less about what zip code you are in when performing a search, it only cares about distances when it comes to local businesses.

Enter the Geo Coordinate Rank Trackers

In order to deal with this distance factor, rank trackers have adapted and are now scanning with many points instead of one. A grid is laid out according to distance and each point reflects a different result.

This gives a much better picture of what the rankings look like around a business as it takes into account the granularity that the algorithm actually produces.

Dentist Near Me Local Falcon Search Grid
Dentist Near Me Local Falcon Search Result

These types of scans helps you visualize the ranking differences that take place over an entire area around a business by checking many spots.

This is invaluable data which helps you determine which keywords need better optimization, and when an area is so far out of reach for ranking well that a PPC campaign would be a good option.

The tools we recommend that offer this type of report are Local Falcon & Places Scout.

What about Local Organic Results?

Organic Google search results are less affected by proximity than Google Maps results.

We have written about that in a previous article:

How Proximity Impacts Localized Google Organic Results

Sites like Yelp, HomeAdvisor, and other strong directory sites (depending on the industry) will tend to push individual business websites down the list and so the effect of locality will be less evident.

Organic Search Proximity Result

The only time Google will factor zip code into a search is if you specifically enter the zip code in your search: “Dentist near me 11219”. In which case you are telling Google to return results for dentists in that zip. Otherwise, the algorithm will use your location and give you results based off of distance.

The tool we recommend that offer this type of report for organic results is Places Scout.

 

 

Yan Gilbert

Yan has been creating websites since 2008 and now enjoys helping others grow their businesses through SEO. Initially a freelance Toronto based local SEO consultant, he was recruited to join the team at SterlingSky. He is certified in many digital marketing products including Google Analytics, Google Mobile sites and Inbound Marketing through Hubspot Academy. Armed with a psychology degree from McGill University, Yan is adept at finding ways to help businesses achieve great ROI from their marketing efforts. Read Yan's full bio here.

This Post Has 14 Comments

  1. Whats the best way then to compete in an area that a lot of competition in a small area within one zip code? Especially with very little differentiating the businesses (similar amount of reviews, similar review score, optimized GMB, optimized landing pages etc). I don’t know of any tool that shows search volume at street level. But even with that information how would you optimize your GMB or website for those searchers when the GMB location is 3 miles north or south?

    1. Jorge,

      We listed the 2 we use for this in the article. Look under the section “Enter the Geo Coordinate Rank Trackers”.

      1. Joy. Thanks for the commment! We currently use Local Falcon and its great for showing where and how we rank in areas but we’re having trouble figuring out what needs to be done to rank better closer to the downtown area. Our location is just outside of downtown and we are ranking locally 7th on average. Location is the only thing that separates us from the competitors ranking 1-3. Besides telling them to get another staffed office downtown to get a verified GMB we’re not sure how to overcome this hurdle. We have a city page with unique content, local niche specific backlinks and everything listed in the previous comment. Just not sure what to do at this point in tackling the proximity issue.

        1. There’s only so much you can extend the reach of a GMB listing, especially if there are lots of competitors. Once you get past the large factors like category and business name, all other optimization adds smaller incremental improvements. In a way, we are fighting against what the algorithm wants to do, that is, it wants to show relevant local (close) businesses. So there are no tricks. It’s just a combination of associated website improvements, reporting GMB competitors that shouldn’t be there, completing all the GMB fields possible, using GMB features like adding images, creating Posts and Q&A, etc…

        2. Thank you for this article. We are targeting more than one location but I am not getting rank in local search . So could you please let me know how can i improve local ranking in GMB(Google my business).

  2. Great article and great comments. I am seeing Prominence being a HUGE factor for my roofing contractor clients. To determine Prominence it looks like Google is putting a huge emphasis on domain age, too. The businesses that rank they best are almost in perfect order of domain age. Also seeing a lot of their corresponding GMB listings pulling awesome rankings with very little GMB optimization – no reviews, no website (or websites with no content), no GMB posts or services listed or anything at all. It can be frustrating, but then again there is some truth that a company that has been around for 20 years is probably a decent company and a good service provider just by virtue of their age. So I guess it makes sense!

    1. What do you think about buying up domains with the zipcode in the name? For instance my business is located in 33462 but I can buy businessname33461 to artificially show up closer in that region

      1. No, I would not suggest having multiple domains. Having a domain that just forwards to another site won’t impact ranking and if you did build completely different sites you’d need links to them to rank anywhere worthwhile.

  3. So what’s best practice if you have a rank tracker that can either use city or ZIP code? (and are unable, for now, to move over to Local Falcon or Places Scout) I’ve been using ZIPs, knowing that the information is relative to wherever Google decides the center of 90210 is.

    1. Hey Liz,

      Zip code tracking is perfectly fine for some industries. If you work with an industry like dentists or restaurants that have a high density of competition in a small radius, zip code tracking will be very inaccurate. I’d suggest scanning some manually in Incognito mode using this Chrome extension to see if there is much variance within the same zip code. https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/gs-location-changer/blpgcfdpnimjdojecbpagkllfnkajglp

  4. Is there a tracker for organic results that will allow you do a geo coordinates search over a defined area for a keyword like Local Falcon of Local Viking does for maps rankings?

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