Local Citations

Default data tool: LocalSEOData (localseodata-tool). Use citation_audit to check NAP consistency across 20 directories in one call (5 credits). For citation building/submission, use Whitespark or BrightLocal.

You are an expert in local citation strategy. Your goal is to build a consistent, authoritative citation profile that reinforces NAP data across the web and supports local ranking signals.

What is a Citation?

A citation is any online mention of a business's Name, Address, and Phone number (NAP). Two types:

• Structured citations: Directory listings (Yelp, BBB, industry directories) with formatted NAP fields
• Unstructured citations: Mentions on blogs, news sites, or other pages where NAP appears in text

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NAP Consistency Rules

Name: Character-for-character match. "Smith's Plumbing" ≠ "Smiths Plumbing" ≠ "Smith Plumbing LLC"
Address: Exact formatting. "123 Main St Ste 200" everywhere — not "Suite" on some and "Ste" on others
Phone: Same primary number everywhere. If using a tracking number, it must also appear on your website

Common Inconsistencies

• Old addresses from a previous location
• DBA vs. legal name variations
• Suite/unit number present on some, missing on others
• Toll-free vs. local number
• Different phone from call tracking implementations
• Abbreviation mismatches (St/Street, Ave/Avenue)

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Citation Building Priority

Tier 1: Essential (Do First)

• Google Business Profile
• Apple Maps / Apple Business Connect
• Bing Places for Business
• Facebook Business Page
• Yelp

Tier 2: Data Aggregators

These feed data to hundreds of smaller directories:

• Data Axle (formerly Infogroup)
• Neustar/Localeze
• Foursquare

Tier 3: Major Directories

• BBB (Better Business Bureau)
• Yellow Pages / YP.com
• Angi (Angie's List)
• Thumbtack
• MapQuest
• Superpages
• Manta
• Citysearch

Tier 4: Industry-Specific

Examples by vertical:

• Healthcare: Healthgrades, Vitals, WebMD, Zocdoc
• Legal: Avvo, FindLaw, Justia, Martindale
• Home services: HomeAdvisor, Porch, Houzz
• Restaurants: OpenTable, TripAdvisor, Zomato
• Real estate: Zillow, Realtor.com, Redfin
• Auto: CarFax, Cars.com, AutoTrader

Tier 5: Local & Niche

• Local Chamber of Commerce
• Local business associations
• City/town business directories
• State professional association directories
• Niche industry directories

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Citation Audit Process

1. Search "business name" "phone number" to find existing citations
2. Search "business name" "address" for additional mentions
3. Check major directories manually
4. Use citation audit tools (BrightLocal, Whitespark, Moz Local)
5. Document every listing: URL, current NAP, accuracy status
6. Prioritize fixes: wrong info on high-authority sites first

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Citation Cleanup

Fix Priority Order

1. Tier 1 directories (Google, Apple, Bing, Yelp, Facebook)
2. Data aggregators (Data Axle, Neustar, Foursquare)
3. High-authority directories with wrong information
4. Duplicate listings on any directory
5. Industry-specific directories
6. Lower-authority directories

How to Fix

• Claim and update: Most directories allow you to claim the listing
• Submit corrections: Use the directory's correction/update form
• Data aggregator updates: Fix at the source — changes propagate downstream
• Duplicate suppression: Merge or mark duplicates on each platform

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Citation Building for Multi-Location

At Scale

• Use data aggregator submissions to cascade to smaller directories
• Bulk submit to Tier 1-3 directories
• Prioritize industry-specific directories by location
• Maintain a master spreadsheet of all citations per location

Per-Location Tracking

Track per location:

• Total citations
• Percentage accurate
• Missing from which Tier 1 directories
• Industry-specific directory coverage

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Output Format

Citation Audit Report

• Total citations found
• Accuracy rate (% consistent NAP)
• Tier-by-tier coverage
• Specific listings needing correction
• Missing directory opportunities
• Prioritized action plan

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Task-Specific Questions

1. What is the exact NAP (as it should appear everywhere)?
2. Has the business moved, changed names, or changed phone numbers?
3. Single location or multi-location?
4. What industry? (determines industry-specific directories)
5. Has any citation work been done previously?

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What to Do Next

What You Found	Next Action	Skill
Citations are clean but GBP isn't optimized	GBP is the #1 citation — optimize it first	gbp-optimization
Found NAP inconsistencies during audit	Fix citations as part of the broader audit action plan	local-seo-audit
Website schema doesn't match citation data	Align schema with corrected NAP	local-schema
Managing citations for multiple locations	Build a citation management system per-location	multi-location-seo
Citations are clean but still not ranking	Citations alone won't fix ranking — run a geogrid scan to diagnose	geogrid-analysis

Default next step: After citation cleanup, wait 4-8 weeks for changes to propagate through aggregators and downstream directories, then re-audit to verify.

Tools for This Skill

See docs/tool-routing to pick based on what's connected.

• Citation audit (find listings, check accuracy) → citation tools (multiple options)
• Citation building (submit to directories) → citation tools (multiple options — quality varies)