Why your excavating company can't be found by its own name

You'd think searching your own excavating company's name would be an easy win. Then you try it. Up pops an old address, a disconnected phone number, or worse, two different listings for the same business. This happens more than most contractors realize.

How duplicate listings happen

Duplicate listings build up over years without anyone noticing. Maybe you switched web companies once and they made a new Google Business Profile instead of updating the old one. Maybe an old directory site made a listing from public records. Maybe you moved your shop from Hartland to Pewaukee and the old address never got updated everywhere it was posted.

Each duplicate splits your reviews, your search visibility, and your trust. Google can also get confused about which listing is the real one. That sometimes causes both to rank worse than a single clean listing would.

• Switching web companies sometimes creates a second listing instead of updating the first.
• Old directories auto-generate listings from outdated public records.
• A moved address that wasn't updated everywhere causes confusion.

Finding every listing out there

Search your business name plus your old addresses if you've moved. Search your phone number by itself too. That often surfaces old directory listings you forgot existed. Check Google, Yelp, Bing, and the Better Business Bureau at least.

Write down every listing you find, along with what's wrong with it. Note a wrong number, wrong address, wrong hours, or a duplicate that needs merging.

• Search your business name and any old addresses.
• Search your phone number alone to catch old directory entries.
• Check Google, Yelp, Bing, and BBB at least.

Fixing a wrong phone number

A wrong number is worse than no listing at all. It sends real customers to a dead end or someone else's phone. If it's your own Google Business Profile, you can edit it directly. For other directories, most have a "claim this business" or "suggest an edit" option. Some make you create an account first before they let you fix it.

This is tedious work, but it's a one-time cleanup. Once it's fixed, it stays fixed unless you move again.

Merging or removing duplicates

For Google specifically, say you find two listings for the same business. You can report the duplicate directly to Google and ask that it be merged or removed. Keep the listing with more reviews and history as the main one when you have a choice.

Sometimes a listing gets suspended entirely. This can happen after a duplicate report or a problem Google flagged on its own. Our guide to fixing a suspended Google Business Profile walks through the exact steps to fix it.

• Report duplicate Google listings for merging.
• Keep the listing with more reviews as the main one.
• Follow the suspension fix guide if your profile gets flagged.

Why this matters more for excavating specifically

Excavating and site work companies often get referred by name. You get word of mouth from a builder or another contractor. When someone hears your name and searches it, a broken or duplicate listing right at that moment can lose the job before you even get the call. It's the digital version of a wrong address on a business card.

Say a general contractor recommends you by name to a homeowner in Oconomowoc. She searches your company. She finds an old number that rings a dead line, and just moves on to the next name on her list. A clean, single listing prevents that entire story.

A once-a-year checkup

Set a reminder once a year to search your own business name and phone number. Do this especially if you've moved, changed numbers, or switched web providers in the past year. It takes maybe 20 minutes and it catches problems before they cost you a job.