Adding Service Areas in GBP

[Matt Chauhan]

We understand that including service areas in the GBP listing doesn't affect rankings and we should aim to optimize it for the best representation of target areas on Google Maps. What would be the best practice to make the most of the 20 areas we can add? Should we prioritize adding the top 20 nearest locations to the business address for the vicinity update, or are there other strategies we should consider?

 

[ElizabethRule]

I would add enough locations to make the service out outline in maps reflect what your actual service area is, so I wouldn't necessarily add the closest locations but instead ones that make the outline encompass the entire area you service. Sometimes for larger service areas this can be better accomplished by adding counties, but don't make the service area TOO big because Google doesn't think businesses should add locations over 2 hours drive away from a businesses physical location.