After reading this article, you will find out:

A citation is a general term for mentioning a company on the Internet. One example of a NAP business card is a company profile on Google, but it could just as well be an entry in a well-known company directory.

As the name suggests, the NAP business card contains the basic data of the company - name, address and contact information, such as a phone number or e-mail address.

It's worth remembering that NAPs are not links, because links are for the website, while NAPs are for the business profile.

The main reason why a company should put its NAP business cards online is for both potential customers and Google's algorithms. Having a consistent online presence allows your company to reach more potential customers, which is key to building trust and credibility among them.

To put it another way, the more places potential customers can find your company, the more people will come to you. The mechanisms of local SEO work similarly — the more pages Google bots can find consistent information about your company, the higher your company will rank in search results.

That's why it pays to create citations about your company in local directories, even though few customers typically use them. Google's algorithms also reach out to less frequently visited sites and gather information about your business.

As you may already know, you can now add citations using Localo. You can find this feature in our paid plans in your Localo account: 👇

You will find a list of suggested business directories where you can place your citations and also see the entire process of adding and indexing them by Google. The list will show directories where your competitors have entries, along with predefined directories — key for a particular region to have your company mentioned — that we have selected for you after careful research.

Now, let's take a close look on every section!

You can see six sections: 👇

1) All - A list of all business directories.

2)To do - A list of directories where you should add your company.

3) Processing - Directory citations marked by you as done, but yet to be indexed by Google. This may take a few weeks or months. Stay tuned.

4) Active - Directory citations indexed and visible on Google.

5) Lost - Directory citations expired, disappeared, deindexed by Google, or we can't find them again.

6) Ignored - Directories ignored by the user (if you think a particular directory is spam or you don't want to add your citation there, you can ignore it and add it to a so-called blacklist — that way it won't appear on the list again).

You can manage and change the status of a given citation here: 👇

You can change the status of a citation in a given business directory.

When you click on a particular directory, you will be immediately redirected to the registration site — making the adding process much faster and more convenient!

Remember: Each citation must be accepted by Google first and thoroughly verified, so your entry will not immediately be visible and will go to the ''Processing'' section. As soon as it appears on Google, the citation will go to the ''Active'' section.

With Localo, you can follow the whole process step by step thanks to the status history. You won't miss anything, as the data of each status change will be accurately provided for you.

You can also keep track of any citations you have already added. Thanks to a separate section, you can quickly verify the content and data, and check how your company is doing. Just click on the link next to the given directory and you will be immediately taken to the place where your company was mentioned.

You no longer need to waste time searching and verifying the right directories for your business. Localo will provide you with a whole list of the best directories that will be refreshing once a week (on Sunday night). You will have current information and your evey entry will have a huge impact on Google ranking.

You can manage the entire process of adding citations, monitor its progress, and regularly check the data — all in one place.

It’s time you boosted your position in Google — thanks to citations and Localo!

Do you have more questions?

Contact us in the app chat.