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NAP Consistency - What is it and Why is it Important?

If you're a small business owner, then you know that maintaining a consistent online presence across your small business website, social media profiles and local listings is key to your success.

There's one piece of business information where consistency is critical, and that's your NAP (name, address and phone number). Your NAP needs appear the exact same way across all of your online platforms.

In this blog post, we will discuss what NAP consistency is, and why it's so important for small businesses.

What is NAP Consistency?

NAP consistency is the practice of making sure your name, address and phone number are identical across all of your online platforms. This includes your small business website, social media profiles and local listings.

And when I say “identical,” I mean everything needs to be exactly the same down to the last detail. If you use “St.” on your website, you should use it everywhere, not “street” or even “st.”

5 reasons why NAP consistency is important for small businesses

#1. Your small business website will rank higher in local search results

If you don't have consistent NAP information across your small business website and social media profiles, then it will be hard to build trust with Google.

Without that trust, it's highly unlikely that you'll appear on the first page of a person's local search results when they're looking for a small business like yours.

In fact, you may not appear in the search results at all.

But, if your NAP is consistent across all of your online platforms, Google will trust you more and you'll have a better chance of ranking higher in local search results.

#2. People will be able to find your small business more easily

If someone is looking for a small business like yours, they're going to use a search engine to find it.

And if your NAP information isn't consistent across all of your online platforms, it's going to be difficult for people to find you.

But, if your small business website and local listings have the same NAP information, then you'll rank higher. This means that when people are searching for a small business like yours, they'll be able to find you more easily.

The result? More traffic to your small business website and social media profiles!

#3. People will be more likely to trust your small business

When someone sees the same name, address and phone number listed on multiple platforms, they're going to trust your small business more.

This is because they'll know that you care about your online presence and that you take it seriously enough to make sure all of your information is consistent.

When people trust your small business, they're more likely to do business with you.

#4. Avoid missing out on leads

If someone finds your business on a search engine, a local listing or social media, it's important that the correct business information is listed. The last thing you want is to lose out on a lead because the phone number listed is no longer in use.

When your small business website, social media profiles and local listings all have consistent NAP information, people will know that the phone number listed is legitimate and up-to-date.

This means you won't miss out on important leads!

#5. Your small business will appear more professional

With a consistent NAP across your small business website and social media profiles, you'll come off as more professional. This is because people will know that you take your online presence seriously enough to make sure everything is accurate and up-to-date.

And when people see how much effort you're putting into your online presence, they'll be more likely to do business with you.

As a small business owner, it's important to make sure your NAP is consistent across all of your online platforms. This will help you rank higher in local search results, appear more easily to potential customers and come off as more professional.

Originally published on 2/10/22