What is geo-grid rank tracking, and how to read a grid

Why does one Google Maps rank number mislead?

Google ranks local results from where the searcher is standing. Someone outside your shop sees one list. Someone two miles away sees another, with different businesses on top. So there is no single "your rank". There is a rank at each place a customer might be.

Search for yourself on your phone and you see your best case, because the phone is at your shop. The result feels good and tells you almost nothing about the customers across town. You can be first outside your door and missing from the top three two miles away.

Google lists distance as one of its three named ranking factors, next to relevance and prominence, on its page about local ranking. Distance is measured from the searcher, so your rank has to change as the searcher moves. A grid measures that change.

What is geo-grid rank tracking?

A geo grid is a set of points spread evenly across an area, like the squares of a chessboard laid over a map. Each point is a separate search location. For each one, a tool asks Google Maps what it would show to someone standing there, for the same keyword, and notes where your business appears.

The result is a map with a number on every point. That number is your grid rank at that point: the position you hold there, for that keyword, on that day. Together the numbers show your reach. Where you rank first, second or third you are visible. Where the number is high or blank, customers do not see you.

Geo grid rank tracking just means doing this repeatedly, so you can see whether the map improves after you change something. The better your map pack position at more points, the more customers see you when they search nearby.

How does a grid check actually work?

You choose a business, a keyword such as "emergency plumber", a grid size and a spacing. The tool places the center of the grid on your business, spreads the other points around it, and searches from each one in turn. It records your position and the businesses above you.

A good grid also tells you who is winning each point. If a competitor takes the north side of your area every time, you can look at why: more reviews, a better category, a shop that is simply closer.

Keep the keyword, the grid size and the spacing the same between runs. If you change any of them, the runs are not comparable. A grid for "plumber" and a grid for "water heater repair" can look completely different for the same business, because they are different searches.

How do I read a geo grid?

Start with the squares where you are in the top three. These are the places the map pack shows you. Then look at the edges, where the numbers climb. The distance from your center to the point where you drop out is your effective reach for that keyword.

Then look for patterns. A lopsided grid, strong on one side and weak on the other, usually means a strong competitor sits on the weak side. A grid that is weak everywhere, even at your own door, points at relevance or prominence: your category, your profile or your reviews. A grid that is strong at the center and fades fast points at distance doing most of the work.

Here is a made-up example to practice on. A dentist in Halifax runs a 3x3 grid for "dentist", with spacing of 2 miles. The numbers below are the dentist's rank at each point. A dash means not in the top 20.

• The center point is the dentist's own address, rank 1. That is the number an owner sees by searching from the office.
• The north-east point is also rank 1, and the east is rank 3. The dentist is visible on the eastern side.
• The south-west point is blank. Two miles south-west, customers do not see this practice in the top 20.
• Read it as a story: strong at home, strong to the north-east, weak to the south and west. Check who holds those squares.

The next move depends on the cause. If one competitor holds the south-west squares with far more reviews, a push for reviews is the obvious fix. If the dentist's category is vaguer than the competitor's, that is where to start.

What grid size and spacing should I pick?

Match the grid to how far your customers really travel. A 3x3 grid has 9 points and gives a quick read. A 5x5 grid has 25 points and shows more detail, so you can see the exact edge of your reach. Reputant grids come in these two sizes, with spacing from 1 to 10 miles.

Spacing is the distance between neighboring points. Tight spacing, 1 to 2 miles, suits a dense city where customers will choose among many nearby options. Wide spacing, 5 to 10 miles, suits a small town, a rural area or a service-area business that drives to customers.

A useful rule is to cover the area you actually serve and no more. A grid that spreads far outside your service area fills with empty squares that tell you nothing. A grid that is too small hides the edge, which is the part you are trying to find.

These are starting points, not rules. Start with a 3x3 grid to get the shape, then use a 5x5 once you know where the interesting edge is.

Can I see a grid for my business now?

Yes. The checker below tests three points around your business for one keyword, takes about 30 seconds and needs no account. It is a small version of a grid, enough to show whether your rank changes from place to place.

It will not show the whole map, but it often shows the problem. If your rank at the other two points is much worse than at your address, a full grid is worth running.

How often should I run a grid, and what do I do with it?

In Reputant, grids run when you click. They do not run on a schedule yet, so you choose when to take a reading. Run one before you make a change, and another a few weeks later. Rankings drift for reasons you do not control, so one run says less than two compared.

Keep the same keyword, size and spacing, then compare the maps square by square. Squares that turned from blank to a number, or from a number to a lower one, show what moved. Ask what you changed in between, and what the competitor changed.

Our guide on how to rank higher on Google Maps covers what to change. The local ranking factors guide explains where the experts think the weight sits, and the Google Business Profile checklist is a good first fix when the whole grid is weak.

What can a grid not tell me?

A grid is a snapshot from a simulated location, not a record of every real search. Real customers search from their own phones, with their own history and settings, so results can differ a little. The grid shows the shape of your visibility. It does not promise what any one customer saw.

It also cannot guarantee a better position. Nobody can. What it does is show where you stand and what changed, so you can make decisions with something other than a hunch.