Google is testing a new colored pin within the map that displays in Google’s local 3-pack. The test shows one of the icons blue, while the remaining are marked in the usual red.
Here is how it looks:
The reason seems to be that Google is showing blue for the result with the higher relevancy for the first result listed in the local 3-pack. It is hard to know whether the blue map icon would actually make a user think it is the best result though – a green icon might be a better one to show for what Google sees as the top local result in it.
Here are some more examples:
This seems to be a limited test as I was unable to replicate it.
Thank you to Sergey Alakov for sending the screenshots to The SEM Post.
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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.
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