Installation
$npx skills add garrettjsmith/localseoskills --skill local-citationsSummary
When the agent needs to build citations, fix NAP inconsistencies, audit citation presence across directories, or manage business listings, it can execute a structured citation audit, prioritize fixes by directory tier, and produce a remediation roadmap. Invoke this when the user mentions citations, NAP consistency, listing management, or citation cleanup.
SKILL.MD
Local Citations
Default data tool: LocalSEOData (
localseodata-tool). Usecitation_auditto check NAP consistency across 20 directories in one call (5 credits). For citation building/submission, use Whitespark or BrightLocal.
You are an expert in local citation strategy. Your goal is to build a consistent, authoritative citation profile that reinforces NAP data across the web and supports local ranking signals.
What is a Citation?
A citation is any online mention of a business's Name, Address, and Phone number (NAP). Two types:
- Structured citations: Directory listings (Yelp, BBB, industry directories) with formatted NAP fields
- Unstructured citations: Mentions on blogs, news sites, or other pages where NAP appears in text
NAP Consistency Rules
Name: Character-for-character match. "Smith's Plumbing" ≠ "Smiths Plumbing" ≠ "Smith Plumbing LLC" Address: Exact formatting. "123 Main St Ste 200" everywhere — not "Suite" on some and "Ste" on others Phone: Same primary number everywhere. If using a tracking number, it must also appear on your website
Common Inconsistencies
- Old addresses from a previous location
- DBA vs. legal name variations
- Suite/unit number present on some, missing on others
- Toll-free vs. local number
- Different phone from call tracking implementations
- Abbreviation mismatches (St/Street, Ave/Avenue)
Citation Building Priority
Tier 1: Essential (Do First)
- Google Business Profile
- Apple Maps / Apple Business Connect
- Bing Places for Business
- Facebook Business Page
- Yelp
Tier 2: Data Aggregators
These feed data to hundreds of smaller directories:
- Data Axle (formerly Infogroup)
- Neustar/Localeze
- Foursquare
Tier 3: Major Directories
- BBB (Better Business Bureau)
- Yellow Pages / YP.com
- Angi (Angie's List)
- Thumbtack
- MapQuest
- Superpages
- Manta
- Citysearch
Tier 4: Industry-Specific
Examples by vertical:
- Healthcare: Healthgrades, Vitals, WebMD, Zocdoc
- Legal: Avvo, FindLaw, Justia, Martindale
- Home services: HomeAdvisor, Porch, Houzz
- Restaurants: OpenTable, TripAdvisor, Zomato
- Real estate: Zillow, Realtor.com, Redfin
- Auto: CarFax, Cars.com, AutoTrader
Tier 5: Local & Niche
- Local Chamber of Commerce
- Local business associations
- City/town business directories
- State professional association directories
- Niche industry directories
Citation Audit Process
- Search
"business name" "phone number"to find existing citations - Search
"business name" "address"for additional mentions - Check major directories manually
- Use citation audit tools (BrightLocal, Whitespark, Moz Local)
- Document every listing: URL, current NAP, accuracy status
- Prioritize fixes: wrong info on high-authority sites first
Citation Cleanup
Fix Priority Order
- Tier 1 directories (Google, Apple, Bing, Yelp, Facebook)
- Data aggregators (Data Axle, Neustar, Foursquare)
- High-authority directories with wrong information
- Duplicate listings on any directory
- Industry-specific directories
- Lower-authority directories
How to Fix
- Claim and update: Most directories allow you to claim the listing
- Submit corrections: Use the directory's correction/update form
- Data aggregator updates: Fix at the source — changes propagate downstream
- Duplicate suppression: Merge or mark duplicates on each platform
Citation Building for Multi-Location
At Scale
- Use data aggregator submissions to cascade to smaller directories
- Bulk submit to Tier 1-3 directories
- Prioritize industry-specific directories by location
- Maintain a master spreadsheet of all citations per location
Per-Location Tracking
Track per location:
- Total citations
- Percentage accurate
- Missing from which Tier 1 directories
- Industry-specific directory coverage
Output Format
Citation Audit Report
- Total citations found
- Accuracy rate (% consistent NAP)
- Tier-by-tier coverage
- Specific listings needing correction
- Missing directory opportunities
- Prioritized action plan
Task-Specific Questions
- What is the exact NAP (as it should appear everywhere)?
- Has the business moved, changed names, or changed phone numbers?
- Single location or multi-location?
- What industry? (determines industry-specific directories)
- Has any citation work been done previously?
What to Do Next
| What You Found | Next Action | Skill |
|---|---|---|
| Citations are clean but GBP isn't optimized | GBP is the #1 citation — optimize it first | gbp-optimization |
| Found NAP inconsistencies during audit | Fix citations as part of the broader audit action plan | local-seo-audit |
| Website schema doesn't match citation data | Align schema with corrected NAP | local-schema |
| Managing citations for multiple locations | Build a citation management system per-location | multi-location-seo |
| Citations are clean but still not ranking | Citations alone won't fix ranking — run a geogrid scan to diagnose | geogrid-analysis |
Default next step: After citation cleanup, wait 4-8 weeks for changes to propagate through aggregators and downstream directories, then re-audit to verify.
Tools for This Skill
See docs/tool-routing to pick based on what's connected.
- Citation audit (find listings, check accuracy) → citation tools (multiple options)
- Citation building (submit to directories) → citation tools (multiple options — quality varies)