This case study explores the impact of creating a Google Business Profile (GBP) website on clients’ domain ratings and local/organic search rankings. Analyzing three clients’ websites and keyword rankings, the study found no significant positive or negative effects after creating GBP sites. While the hypothesis suggested potential improvements in rankings and domain authority, the data showed no consistent patterns across the test clients.

Overview

This case study analyzed 3 different clients websites and keyword rankings to test if creating a GBP website with backlinks to the clients site would have a positive or negative impact. A GBP website refers to a website created within a Google Business Profile. The GBP site is largely auto populated with information from the GBP profile and provides limited customization options. We analyzed clients’ domain ratings, 3-pack ranking, organic ranking, and geogrid data before the GBP site was created, 24 hours after the creation of the GBP site, and 1 week after the creation of the GBP site. The study did not find any significant positive or negative impact on any of the data collected.

Purpose

The purpose of this case study is to determine if creating a GBP website has an effect on domain rating and local and/or organic rankings for clients GBP and website.

Hypothesis

If we create a Google Business Profile website for our clients, then this will improve the client’s main websites organic and local search rankings, as well as improve domain authority of the main website.

Data

Data Set 1 – Client 1

Ahrefs Ranks

4/12/22

4/15/22 (24 hours)

4/21/22 (1 week)

Geogrids

Data Set 2 – Client 2

3-Pack/Organic Search Results Data

3-Pack

Organic

3-Pack

Organic

Ahrefs Ranks

Before (5/18/22)

24 Hours After (5/19/22)

1 Week Later (5/25/22)

Geogrids

Data Set 3 – Client 3

3-Pack/Organic Search Results Data

3-Pack

Organic

3-Pack

Organic

Ahrefs Ranks

Before (5/10/22)

24 Hours After (5/13/22)

1 Week Later (5/20/22)

Geogrids

Analysis

Analysis of Data Set 1

Overall there was no noticeable change or benefit to the clients rankings or main site due to publishing a GBP site. We measured 3-pack rankings, organic rankings, domain rating, and geogrids all before the site was published, 24 hours after the site was published, and 1 week after the site was published. 3-pack rankings had no long-term change for any of the 5 keywords measured. Organic rankings saw a mix of positive and negative changes for some of the keywords, most notably ‘Car Accident Lawyer’ moved from 10th to 5th after 1 week. Domain rating increased from 29 to 30 after just 24 hours and remained at 30 after 1 week. GEO grid data was inconclusive, though, it was common for many keywords to see negative effects after 24 hours and then return to the baseline after 1 week. Based on this study, publishing a GBP site did not have a noticeable positive or negative effect on the client’s rankings. It is recommended that we continue to test further with more clients.

Analysis of Data Set 2

One noticeable change for Client 2 was organic rankings for “Estate Planning Lawyer.”. Rankings for this specific keyword improved from 8th to 7th after 1 week, and the geogrid rank saw one small improvement as well. However, organic rankings for 3 out of the 6 geod terms declined by 1-2 ranks. This change was not apparent in the geogrids. The domain rating remained the same after 24 hours but dropped from 36 to 35 after 1 week, contradicting the domain rating improvements we saw for the client in Data Set 1.

Analysis of Data Set 3

Client 3 saw a major improvement in their 3-pack ranking for the keyword “Truck Accident Lawyer” moving from 12th to 3rd. However organic rankings for “Truck Accident Lawyer” saw no improvements. The same is true for the geod keyword “DC Truck Accident Lawyer”: 3-pack results improved largely, while organic results were stagnant. Geogirds showed similar results, the only keywords with noticeable improvement were “Truck Accident Lawyer” and “DC Truck Accident Lawyer.” The domain rating for Price Benowitz saw no change after 24 hours, but improved from 49 to 50 after 1 week.

Conclusion

After analyzing three different test clients and their data sets, there seem to be no major changes that can be directly attributed to creating a GBP website. The data often contradicted itself, showing an improvement in one area for one client then a decrease in a similar area for a different client. Since there were no major changes, either positive or negative, I would not recommend any action items. The question becomes “Do our clients expect this from us?” This case study came from a client asking us why we have not added a GBP site for them. The client had read about GBP sites from an outside source and believed it to be an important aspect of rankings. While this study shows that creating a GBP site did not prove to be an important factor in ranking, it also did not cause any negative ranking effects. Therefore, it may be worth adding for our clients to show that we are proactively managing their GBPs.

Action Items

For Agency

For Links Department

For Coordinators