How to Rank on Google Maps: Getting Into the Top 3 in Melbourne
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The short list of businesses Google shows with a map, often called the "top 3" or "local pack", is decided by three things: relevance, distance and prominence. You can improve relevance and prominence. You can't change how far you are from the person searching, which is why no honest provider can promise you a top-three spot across all of Melbourne. A useful profile foundation is to choose the right business categories for your main services.
Google is clear on this: there is no way to request or pay for a better local ranking (Google Business Profile Help). What you can do is give Google the strongest possible reasons to show you near your base.
How Google picks the map results
Factor | What Google says it means | What you can do |
Relevance | How well a profile matches what someone searched for | Accurate categories, services, description and website content |
Distance | How far each result is from the searcher, or the location in the search | Little, beyond setting your address or service area correctly |
Prominence | How well known a business is, including reviews and information across the web | Reviews, consistent listings, genuine local mentions and links |
Source: Google Business Profile Help.
Why Melbourne makes distance matter
Melbourne is spread out. A plumber in Hoppers Crossing and a plumber in Box Hill are effectively competing in different markets for map results. Someone searching from Footscray will usually see businesses near Footscray first.
So "top 3 in Melbourne" really means "top 3 near the people I want to reach". Check where you appear by searching from your customers' suburbs, not only from your own address, because the results change with location.
Step 1: get the profile foundations right
Verify the profile and fix any suspension or duplicate issues first.
Use your real business name. Google's guidelines don't allow unnecessary information in the name (guidelines).
Choose the most specific primary category, and use as few categories as possible to describe your core business.
Set your address or service area correctly. Service-area businesses should hide their address.
Fill in services, hours, description and photos completely and accurately.
Step 2: make your website support your profile
Google uses information across the web, including your website, to understand what you do. Give each main service its own page, mention the areas you serve, and show the same business name, phone number and address or service area as your profile.
If you want to reach suburbs beyond your base, genuinely local suburb pages on your website help you appear in the ordinary search results, even where the map results favour closer competitors.
Step 3: build prominence over time
Reviews. Ask every satisfied customer for a Google review soon after the job. Don't offer incentives or ask only happy customers: Google's policies prohibit both (Google Maps content policy).
Replies. Respond to reviews politely and specifically.
Consistent listings. Keep your details the same on reputable directories and industry associations.
Genuine local mentions. Suppliers, local groups and sponsorships can mention or link to your business.
Step 4: track the right numbers
Rankings move with every search location, so judge progress by results:
Calls, website clicks and direction requests in your Google Business Profile performance data
Enquiries and jobs that came from Google
Where you appear when you search from the suburbs you want work in
What to avoid
Keyword-stuffed business names
Fake addresses or virtual offices to appear in more suburbs; Google's guidelines say virtual offices aren't eligible unless staffed during business hours
Buying reviews, or swapping reviews with other businesses
Anyone guaranteeing a top-three position
Next step
If you would rather have the foundations set up and kept active for you, see Morphic's Google Business Profile set-up and management, or get a free quote.
Related services: Google Business Profile optimisation in Ardeer and local SEO for Melbourne businesses.
Related reading: Why Isn't My Business Showing on Google Maps? 12 Causes and Fixes, Suburb Pages Done Right: How to Target Nearby Suburbs Without Thin Copy and How to Get More Google Reviews (Without Breaking ACCC or Google Rules).
Key Takeaways
Google picks map results using relevance, distance and prominence, and says you can't pay for a better local ranking.
Distance is a core factor, so map visibility is strongest near your base, not across all of Melbourne.
Get the profile basics right: real business name, specific category, correct address or service area and complete details.
Build prominence with genuine reviews from every customer and consistent listings across the web.
Judge progress by calls, clicks and enquiries, and be wary of anyone guaranteeing a top-three spot.
Emon Datta
Founder, Morphic Agency
Morphic Agency is a Melbourne-based UX design agency. We've shipped 50+ products across 15+ countries.
