1. Google Maps SEO
Google Local SEO or
Google local marketing is
the art and science of
ranking higher on Google
Maps, Yahoo Maps and
Bing Local Maps.
Citations
Citations: Are the number
1 thing you MUST do to
get a coveted A-Z balloon
for your local area.
Citations are local directories that "cite" your business name along with its address.
Despite what others say you do NOT need to be in the Axciom or infoUSA database to achieve high
rankings, although I do suggest that you at least submit your business listing to these companies for
further "proof" of your business' physical location.
Axciom and infoUSA are considered by many to be "the" trusted sources for business' physical locations,
but typically take at least 6 months for them to verify and pass your information along to Google.
That being said though, there are allot of local directories that you must use Acxiom and infoUSA for to
get into, so take the time to submit to both of these data providers as it is well worth the wait.
Here is a list of places that I have been using for local citations:
(add a dot to the below links)
yellowikis.wikia.com
angieslist.com
insiderpages.com
merchantcircle.com
cityslick.net
aboutus.org
citysquares.com
google.com/profiles/
getfave.com
fastpitchnetworking.com
superpages.com
facebook.com

2. brownbook.net
local.yahoo.com
wikimapia.org
tjoos.com
squidoo.com
yellowpages.lycos.com
kudzu.com
crunchbase.com
naymz.com
gomylocal.com
ibegin.com
hotfrog.com
ezlocal.com
businessdirectory.bizjournals.com
busiverse.com
many local yellow page type sites, e.g. search Google for <cityname> business directories or <cityname>
business directory
Some, but not all of these sites also allow you to drop links back to your site as well.
Reviews
Reviews are the juice that propels your site higher in the local rankings with all other things being equal.
Good reviews as well as negative reviews (at this time) can currently give you that little edge to push
you into the top spots for Google maps.
Complete Profile
A complete profile helps in the sense that there is literally nothing more you can add to your profile to
make it any better.
Backlinks with local specific anchor text
I have not confirmed this yet, but I suspect that backlinks with local specific anchor text to your website
can help.
As an example "city keyword" or "keyword city" to your home page from a quality trusted external
source.