Can GMB Listings Strengthen Organic Results?

[JMathematical]

The idea of organic results (web pages) influencing GMB listings and 3 Pack Rankings has been discussed. For example, a strong homepage with quality links and good ranking is believed to strengthen a GMB listing and its ability to show up on the Map Pack. But what about vice versa? Can a GMB listing with hundreds of reviews and high engagement rates strengthen a website page (organic result) if it links to it within the GMB website field?

 

[Tim Kahlert]

Hi!

Google determines organic rankings based on engagement of link placements across the web. There is obviously no evidence but I can imagine that the ranking evaluation process is depending on the "backlink"+engagement inside the GMB profile. So if the website gets a lot of traffic through the GMB (through a good rating), this should improve organic SEO, not only because of the traffic. In addition to that, brand mentions without linking improves organic SEO as well. So if there are brand mentions inside reviews, I think there is a chance that organic SEO can take advantage of it.
But anyway, since Google shows organic local rankings for local search terms, there is no doubt at least those rankings are influenced by the local SEO efforts.

 

[djbaxter]

Is Brand a Google Ranking Factor? - Whiteboard Friday

We often hear SEOs questioning whether or not a company's branding is a direct ranking factor in Google's algorithm. In today's Whiteboard Friday, Rand explains the nuances of the answer to that question.

moz.com

May 29th, 2015

Is brand or branding a ranking factor in Google search engine?

Look, I think, to be fair, to be honest, that the technical answer to this question is no. However, I think when people say brand is powerful for SEO, that is a true statement. We're going to try and reconcile these two things. How can brand not be a ranking factor and yet be a powerful influencer of higher rankings in SEO? What's going to go on there?

What is a ranking factor, anyway?
Well, I'll tell you. So when folks say ranking factor, they're referring to something very technical, very specific, and that is an algorithmic input that Google measures directly and uses to determine rank position in their algorithm.

Okay, guess what? Brand almost certainly is not this. ....

So when you see sites that have done a great job of branding and also have good SEO best practices on them, you'll notice kind of a correlation, like boy, it sure does seem like the brands have been performing better and better in Google's rankings over the last four, five, or six years. I think this is due to two trends. One of those trends is that Google's algorithmic inputs have started favoring things that brands are better at and that what I'd call generic sites or non-branded sites, or businesses that have not invested in brand affinity have not done well.