Google Local 3-Packs Are Wider & With Detailed Business Info

When Google began launching their wider search results, one of the sections of the search results to also get wider was the local 3-pack.  But in addition to the new width, they are also the more detailed style of local packs, something Google has been going back and forth between over the past year or so.

First, for all the details about Google changing the width of the search results, read Google Increases Width of Main Search Results Column.  This is a major change for how Google’s entire search results are changed.

Here is the comparison between the new wider local 3-pack, and the one we usually see.

Here is another example.  This one has less features, and it really gives the local map pack a clean look.

This could reduce the height of some of the local 3-packs as well, depending on the content displayed.  So some local businesses who don’t make it into the local 3-pack but have one of the top organic spots might end up with their listings above the fold.

But worth noting is that now, even when you view the old narrow style search results (right now, I can only still see them using Chrome Canary incognito), they have now switched over to more detailed local 3-packs.  For the past year, Google has been switching up the info that appears in the local 3-packs, so businesses should be happy to see that this new wider version does show all the details available.  So even if Google does revert back to the narrower search results, the 3-packs should retain the added information.

There is also a thread about the changes on the Local Search Forum.

The following two tabs change content below.

• Bio
• Latest Posts

Jennifer Slegg

Founder & Editor at The SEM Post

Jennifer Slegg is a longtime speaker and expert in search engine marketing, working in the industry for almost 20 years. When she isn't sitting at her desk writing and working, she can be found grabbing a latte at her local Starbucks or planning her next trip to Disneyland. She regularly speaks at Pubcon, SMX, State of Search, Brighton SEO and more, and has been presenting at conferences for over a decade.

Latest posts by Jennifer Slegg (see all)

• Google Slows Crawling With 5xx Server Errors - July 13, 2018
• Google: H Tags as a Ranking Factor - July 13, 2018
• Using Redirects Can Impact Google AdWords Quality Score - July 12, 2018
• Bing Testing Feature to Open Search Results in New Tab - July 12, 2018
• Google: Don’t Rely on Google Tag Manager for Structured Data - July 12, 2018