Boost Your Google Maps Listings: Why Experts Perform Better Than Generalists

Listing generalists—better known as aggregators—make it easy to send your business information to dozens of platforms at once, including social media. With tools like Yext, you can update sites like Facebook, Yelp, and Apple in one quick step. Sounds great, right? Well, here's the catch.

Aggregators only work with the information those platforms have in common. In the listings world, that usually means the basics: Name, Address, and Phone Number (NAP).

While most directories accept the basics, updating more detailed information isn't always as straightforward. Certain fields, like special hours or custom links, may not transfer cleanly across platforms, and sometimes the options to adjust them are limited.

Google is smart enough to recognize details like "happy hour" from your menu, website, or even customer reviews. But when you use the More hours feature to list your happy hour specifically, two important things happen:

It confirms for Google (and your customers) that happy hour is a real offering.

It clearly shows the exact days and times it's available.

This not only builds trust but also increases the chances of your business appearing in search results for "happy hour" during those specific times.

Apple handles business hours a bit differently. You can set Standard Hours to show your regular opening and closing times, but there's no "More hours" option like Google offers.

Instead, Apple provides Special Hours, which let you adjust for exceptions—like staying open later one evening or closing for a holiday. Both Google and Apple share this feature, helping you keep customers informed about changes from your usual schedule.

Google gives businesses flexibility by allowing you to add more than one type of URL to your profile—such as for appointments, reservations, menus, or online orders.

The URLs you can include depend on your primary business category, and you can even set a preferred link so Google knows which option to display most prominently to customers.

Apple takes a simpler approach, allowing you to include just one website link on your listing.

For restaurants or businesses that accept online orders, you don't have the option to choose your preferred link directly through Apple's interface.

Aggregators, sometimes referred to as listing generalists, enable you to submit your company data to"All-in-One" Aggregators' Boundaries

Listing aggregators frequently compromise flexibility in their pursuit of cross-platform compatibility. They must compromise because of their "one-size-fits-all" approach, which limits them to the qualities that all platforms have in common.

This leads to a desire to follow the crowd, which is called the conformity effect. Because the system can only manage what is common across all platforms, it implies that special possibilities on one platform are missed.

Updates become restricted and standardized as a result. Features that may distinguish your company and spur expansion are disregarded, as is anything that deviates from those strict guidelines.