Moving Offices? How it Impacts Your Local SEO

Moving your office can significantly impact your local SEO and Google Maps presence. A key factor Google considers is proximity – how close your business is to your ideal customers. The distance to your target households needs to be carefully considered when moving or updating your office address, as it directly influences your visibility in local search results.

Here's a more detailed breakdown:

How Moving Impacts Local SEO

Changing your business address can impact your local SEO and Google Maps presence and can also cause some volatility in ranks during the address update process. Google considers your business address a key factor in local search results. Moving changes this factor, potentially affecting your visibility.

How much depends on where you move.

Scenarios and Their Impact:

Scenario 1: Moving from the edge of your territory to the center, closer to ideal customers:

Impact: Positive impact. This move could significantly improve your local search visibility, as you're now closer to the heart of your target market. This can lead to higher rankings for relevant local searches.

Example: Your HVAC business currently operates from an office on the edge of your service area. You move to a more central location, closer to the majority of your customer base in a densely populated area.

Scenario 2: Moving within your service area (but further from the city center):

Impact: Minimal to moderate impact. You might see a slight drop in rankings for searches on the outskirts of your service area, but potentially a boost in rankings for searches within the more populated central area.

Example: Your plumbing business is currently on the outskirts of Naperville, IL. You move your office to downtown Naperville.


Scenario 3: Moving close to another city:

Impact: Moderate impact. Google may start showing your business for searches in the bordering city, even if you don't service that area. This could dilute your relevance for searches in your primary service area and attract irrelevant leads.

Example: Your landscaping business moves from Aurora, IL to the far west side near Naperville, bordering another city, but you primarily service Aurora, IL.


Scenario 4: Moving to a different city (far from your main city):

Impact: Significant impact. You'll likely see a substantial drop in rankings for searches in your original city unless you continue serving that area. Your Google Business Profile will need to be updated to reflect your new service area, which will take time to build up authority in the new city.

Example: Your appliance repair business moves from Chicago to Milwaukee.


Scenario 5: Moving from a physical address to a virtual office or co-working space:

Recommendation: This practice isn't in line with Google's guidelines and is generally not recommended. Using a virtual office as your primary business address when you don't have a customer-facing location there can lead to suspension of your Google Business Profile.

Example: Your HVAC business previously operated from a storefront in Schaumburg, IL, but now uses a virtual office in Chicago for mail and administrative purposes, while technicians continue to operate from their homes.


Scenario 6: Moving within the same building:

Impact: Minimal impact, but still important to update. While the change seems minor, updating your suite number in your Google Business Profile and other online directories ensures consistency and avoids confusion.

Example: Your electrical business moves from Suite 200 to Suite 500 within the same building.


Scenario 7: Service Area Business (SAB) going hybrid (adding a physical storefront):

Impact: Positive impact. Adding a physical storefront can strengthen your local presence and provide more opportunities for customers to find you. Ensure your Google Business Profile reflects both your service area and the physical address. You might also consider creating separate Google Business Profiles for the mobile and storefront aspects of your business if they operate under different names or offer different services. Consult with a local SEO expert to determine the best strategy.

Example: You're a mobile electrician operating throughout DuPage County. You decide to open a physical storefront in Wheaton, IL, in addition to your mobile services.

Scenario 8: Switching from a Storefront to a Service Area Business (SAB):

Impact: Moderate impact. This requires a significant change to your Google Business Profile. You'll need to remove your physical address and specify your service area. This can cause fluctuations in your local rankings as Google adjusts to the change. It's crucial to accurately define your service area and optimize your website and Google Business Profile content to reflect your mobile services.

Example: You have a plumbing storefront in Arlington Heights, but decide to transition to a mobile-only business serving the surrounding suburbs. You close your physical location.

Key Considerations After a Move:

  • Google Business Profile: Update your address immediately upon moving. Ensure your service area accurately reflects where you do business.
  • Website: Update your address on your website's contact page and any location pages.
  • Business Listings/Citations: Ensure your business address is consistent across online directories (Yelp, Yellow Pages, etc.). Inconsistent information can confuse Google and harm your rankings.
  • Redirect: If you change your website address, implement a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new one to preserve your existing SEO value. Note: We generally discourage changing website URLs due to their potential SEO impact.
  • Internal Links: Update internal links on your website to reflect any address or URL changes. Ensure anchor text is also updated accordingly.
  • Local Keywords: If your service area changes, adjust your website content and Google Business Profile description to reflect the new locations you target.
  • Monitor and Track: Keep a close eye on your Google Business Profile insights, Google Search Console, and ranking positions for relevant keywords to see how the move impacts your online visibility. Adjust your strategy as needed.

Moving can be a complex process. Please review the verification process and also contact the Digital Shift team and send us your proposed new business address before making any updates so we can review it and perform some analysis to assist with your decision.