A new study finds that Reviews on Google are the 2nd overall ranking factor inside the coveted Map Pack!
The study found that the top 3 ranking factors are:
- Google My Business Profile Optimization
- Reviews
- On-page optimization of the targeted website
- Backlinks
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What we don’t exactly know is WHY reviews are a ranking factor.
Google’s original intent when they first went live was user satisfaction with their search query.
Many systems, software, and people have attempted to manipulate the search results by artificially inflating the number of people clicking on their website listing (CTR manipulation), and studies have shown their rankings improve.
There’s no arguing the power of Google Reviews, and its importance in the algorithm.
The question is: Why?
Is it an actual ranking factor, or is it because listings with good reviews get more clicks than their competitor’s listings.