Citation

A citation is your core contact details (name, address, phone, and often website and hours) listed somewhere on the web: a directory like Yelp or TripAdvisor, a delivery app, a chamber-of-commerce page, a "best brunch in town" roundup. Search engines cross-check these mentions to gauge how confident they are that your restaurant exists, where it is, and that it is legitimate. The more consistent citations point to you, the stronger that confidence.

Citations only help if they agree, which is the whole reason NAP consistency matters. An old phone number on one directory, or a "Street" where another says "St.," can read as conflicting or duplicate businesses and dilute the trust that decides whether you make the Map pack (local pack). The stakes are concrete: unclaimed and inconsistent listings averaged -$72,000/yr less in annual revenue, and 62% of consumers find restaurants through Google in the first place.

You build citations by claiming the major listings first (Google, Yelp, Apple, the big directories) and keeping the details identical, then correcting drift as things change. Tools like Yext, Uberall, and Marqii push one clean record to many directories at once, and AI can watch for new or inaccurate listings before they compound. It is a foundational piece of Local SEO. See local SEO.