Why Can’t I Find My Business Website on Google?

If you’re a busy owner, you’ve probably been told by customers they’ve found you on Google before. That’s actually pretty common. However, have you ever wondered why you can’t find your business on Google? Many business owners ask us this on a regular cadence. After all, if other people can find your website on Google and other search engines, surely you should be able to, right?

Well, digital marketing is a little more complicated than that. While Google makes it simple, a lot goes on behind the scenes that many search users never see. Today, we will shed some light on those uncontemplated Google realities.

Business Location

It’s important to note that location is a highly relevant factor in any search query. Your location could likely be the culprit if you’re a business owner who can’t find their business on Google. Let’s say you live in Grand Rapids, MI, but own an ice cream shop in Grandville, MI.

If you ask Google for an “ice cream shop near me,” Google will always default to showing you what it considers to be the most relevant answer. That will usually be the closest businesses. Even asking Google for “ice cream shop in Grandville” will not be a conclusive search. Google will always tailor results to location, so if you’re not on the front page of Google, if you search from Grand Rapids, don’t fret. The results, if searched within Grandville, will likely be different.

Search Term

Search terms are the building blocks of search engine marketing. The queries people input into Google and other search engines are the cornerstones of website development. See, the individual search terms you might input into Google all fall under a keyword. So,  if you’re looking for a carpenter, you might consider dropping terms like “carpenter near my house,” carpenter hear Buda, TX, and “Carpenter near me free consultation.” Those might fall under the keyword “carpenter near me” in Google’s eyes.

Now, it’s important to keep this in mind because different websites can rank better or worse for individual search terms. Your website might be centered on “carpenter near me” as a keyword, and the site may even rank well on that keyword, but it might not rank well for “carpenters in DFW.” If you can’t find yourself on Google, the specific search term you input into the search engine may be to blame.

Business Competition

Did you ever play a sport and think you were a phenom until you became a bigger and stronger kid? The experience can be humbling, but it reminds us of an important reality of digital marketing: competition is everything. Like football, basketball, or volleyball, digital marketing is all about who you’re competing with; sometimes, the bigger guy has an advantage.

Let’s say you’re a small dentist in Dallas-Ft. Worth, who just opened a practice. You’ve recently unveiled a shiny new website with all the bells and whistles, and are excited to see where this website takes your business. However, when you try to find your business on Google, you are surprised to see that the nearby dental practice is ahead of you on Google. Why is that?

Well, let’s return to the idea of competition. In this example, let’s say your local competitor has been in the area for years. Even if their site isn’t as strong as yours, the fact that they’ve been in the area for years physically and digitally can be a huge ranking factor boost. Even if your competing practice isn’t more established, being a larger business could give your rival an edge. A larger business might mean more budget for website promotion tactics like Google Ads, paid social campaigns, and email marketing, tactics that could make it easier to find that site.

This isn’t to say that, in our theoretical example, the smaller dentist is just resigned to always being the last business on Google. Far from it. With the right audit, strategy, and marketing agency, a smaller business with a smaller budget can climb to the top of Google. It is, however, important to remember that your competition is likely no small part of why you cannot find your business on Google. That’s OK; knowing who your competitors are and their advantages is the first step to triumphing over them in marketing.

Should You Search For Your Business On Google?

By now, you know why you cannot find your business on Google. But we need to return to a critical point: it’s likely not worth it to keep searching for your business on Google.

Why? Well, there are a few reasons why we don’t recommend checking via Google itself.

• SEO Ding: Google always aims to show relevant search results. After all, the Google business model depends on showing the best results when people input search terms into its search engine. Inaccurate or irrelevant results damage Google’s credibility, so it will always use user data to craft the best results. A consequence is that you might be harming your business if you constantly Google yourself. If you see your website on search results but don’t click, you’re telling Google that you are not interested in this result, and Google might conclude that your website isn’t a good result to show.

• Hyper Customization: Google has a myriad of signals it uses to customize search results to any given user. This allows Google to show different results to different people for the exact search term based on the location, search history, data signals, and behavior of the unique individuals involved. This means that knowing where you are on Google on your devices is a pretty useless exercise. After all, just because your business isn’t number 1 on Google for your IP address doesn’t mean you aren’t number 1 on another user’s results.

• Lack of Clear Data: Comparing your ranking on Google to a competitor via your own search results is a very unscientific way of analyzing your ranking. Search engine optimization and website development is a very data-intensive discipline; eyeballing where you are on Google excludes many necessary data signals that can help better performance. A good SEO agency will have tools like Google Analytics, SemRush, and Google Trends to monitor and analyze your website’s ranking. These tools will allow you to see how your website performs without having to Google yourself every other day.

If you can’t find your business on Google, turn to JSL Marketing & Web Design! We’ve been helping businesses climb on Google for years and are ready to help take you to the next level! Contact us for…

• SEO

• Web Design

• Content Strategy

• & More!