NAP stands for Name, Address, and Phone number. And if your NAP information is inconsistent across the internet, Google quietly penalizes your local ranking — often without any obvious signal that something is wrong.
Why NAP matters
Google cross-references your business information across hundreds of directories, review sites, and data aggregators to verify that you are who you say you are. When it finds conflicting information — your business name spelled differently on Yelp, a different phone number on Yellow Pages, an old address on a local chamber website — it loses confidence in your listing.
That loss of confidence translates directly into lower ranking.
Common NAP problems
- Business name listed as 'Mike's Plumbing LLC' in some places and 'Mikes Plumbing' in others
- Old phone number still live on directories from before you changed numbers
- Old address still appearing on sites after you moved
- Suite number included on some listings but not others
How to audit your NAP
Search your exact business name in Google. Look at every listing that appears — Yelp, Facebook, Yellow Pages, BBB, Angi, HomeAdvisor, your local Chamber. Copy the name, address, and phone as they appear on each. Compare them to your Google Business Profile. Any discrepancy is a problem.
How to fix it
Claim your listing on each major directory and update it to match your GBP exactly — same name, same address format, same phone number. Prioritize the big ones: Yelp, Facebook, BBB, Bing Places, Apple Maps, and Angi.
Free tool: Moz Local (free version) or BrightLocal's citation audit tool can scan your listings automatically and flag inconsistencies. Worth running once.
NAP consistency isn't glamorous work. But it's foundational. Fix it once and it continues paying dividends in your ranking for years.