Local pack
Also called Map pack, Local 3-pack, Google map results.
The local pack is the block of Google Maps results that appears in Google Search for local searches like "HVAC repair near me", usually a small map with a short list of businesses under it. Each entry comes from a Google Business Profile. It is often the first thing a searcher sees, above the regular website results.
Doug's Field Guide · Updated
Who gets into the local pack?
Google says local results are based mainly on three things: relevance, distance and prominence. They apply to the local pack the same way they apply to Google Maps.
Relevance is how well your Business Profile matches what the person searched. A profile with the category "Emergency locksmith", listed services and a description that says what you do gives Google a clear match for "locked out of my car".
Distance is how far you are from the person searching. If they don't share where they are, Google uses what it knows about their location. You can't change where a customer is standing, which is why the same search shows different businesses two miles apart.
Prominence is how well known your business is. Google names how many reviews you have, your ratings and how many websites link to your business as part of it. A med spa with 300 reviews and mentions in local news tends to beat one with 12 reviews and nothing else.
There is no paid way into the organic local pack. Google states there's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking.
What moves you up?
Start with what Google lists in its own tips: verify your profile, keep every detail complete and current, reply to reviews, and add real photos. Those are the levers you fully control.
Then work on prominence, which takes longer. Ask every happy customer for a review, and keep asking so new ones keep arriving. Get your business listed with the same name, address and phone number on the directories people in your trade use. Earn links and mentions from local sources: the chamber of commerce, a supplier's dealer locator, a sponsorship page for the Little League team.
Your website helps too. Links to your site count toward prominence, and a site with a clear page for each service and each town you serve gives customers and Google something specific to match, like a page for "water heater replacement in Mesa".
See where you stand in the local pack
- Search your top three services plus your town, like "AC repair Tempe", on your phone with location on, and write down who shows in the map results.
- Compare your review count and rating to the three businesses that beat you.
- Check that your primary category matches the category those businesses use.
- Ask five recent customers for a Google review with your direct review link.
Common mistakes
- Checking rankings only from your own office, where distance makes you look better than you do across town.
- Buying a service that promises a paid spot in the organic map results, which Google says doesn't exist.
- Ignoring links and mentions from other websites, which Google names as part of prominence.
How Doug does it
Doug checks every week how you show up on Google and Google Maps for the searches that bring you work. He builds a fix queue with the pages, Google profile fixes, directory listings and review replies drafted, and after a booking he can ask the customer for a Google review if you turn that on.
Terms on this page
- Distance
- One of Google's three local ranking factors: how far a business is from the person searching. Often called proximity.
- Map pack
- Another name for the local pack: the Google Maps results with a short list of businesses shown in Google Search for local searches.
- Prominence
- One of Google's three local ranking factors: how well known a business is, including how many reviews it has, its ratings and how many websites link to it.
- Relevance
- One of Google's three local ranking factors: how well a Business Profile matches what someone searched for. Complete, accurate profile details improve it.
Keep exploring
- Google Business ProfileYour free listing on Google Search and Maps, and the first thing a local customer sees.
- Google reviewsThe star ratings and comments on your Google profile, and how to earn more.
- Service area pagesOne page per town you really serve, with something on it that is only true there.
- The weekly visibility checkEach week he asks the assistants your customers' questions and counts your mentions.
Sources
Written by Doug's team from these sources and our own work with local businesses. Search engines change their rules, so check the source before a big decision.
