Ranking in the Google Maps 3-Pack is only half the battle. Once you appear, your profile has about 2 seconds to earn the click over your competitors. Here's exactly what makes a GBP listing more clickable, and how to optimize each element.
Most local businesses pour everything into ranking in the Google Maps 3-Pack. Here's what that advice leaves out: ranking gets you seen, not chosen. Once you're in the pack, you're sitting next to two competitors, and your listing has about two seconds to win the click before the searcher taps one of them instead.
That second battle, clickability, is where a lot of "we rank but the phone isn't ringing" problems actually live. You can be position one and still lose the customer to the position-three listing with a better rating, fresher photos, and a snippet that names exactly what they searched for. The good news: every element that earns the click is something you control.
Here's exactly what makes a Google Business Profile more clickable, and how to optimize each piece. If you're still working on visibility itself, pair this with how to rank higher on Google Maps; this guide is about converting that ranking into calls.
Appearing in the 3-Pack only matters if your listing earns the tap, because two competitors are always one tap away. Clickability, your listing's ability to win the click against neighbors, is what turns visibility into calls, direction requests, and website visits.
Think about your own behavior. When you search "coffee shop near me," you don't methodically evaluate position one through three. You scan ratings, glance at a photo, read one review snippet, and tap. The whole decision takes seconds, and ranking order is only one input. Reviews, photos, and category clarity often override it.
This is one of the most underused local SEO opportunities there is, because most competitors optimize for ranking and stop. Optimizing for the click is wide-open ground.
🛠️ Action Step: Search your main keyword on Google Maps and look at your listing beside your top two competitors. If you didn't know your business, which would you tap? That honest answer is your to-do list.
The fastest way to audit clickability is what we call the Flento Click Test, the five things a searcher scans in the two seconds before they tap. Score your listing against a competitor on each, and the gaps are your priorities.
Win four of five and you'll out-click higher-ranked competitors regularly. The sections below cover each test in order.
💡 Pro Tip: Run the Click Test from your phone, not your desktop. The mobile pack shows fewer details and crops photos differently, and that's where most local searches actually happen.
Your star rating is the single most-scanned element, and searchers eliminate listings under 4.0 almost instantly. It's the first filter, before anyone reads a word.
The practical benchmarks:
If you're below 4.0, ranking gains will underperform until the rating climbs, because searchers filter you out before position even registers. The fastest fix is fresh positive reviews, see how to increase Google reviews fast.
📊 Flento Data: The rating shown in the local pack is weighted toward recent reviews, so a surge of positive reviews in the last 90 days can lift your displayed rating even when your all-time average is lower.
After the rating, searchers check the review count, because volume is what makes a rating look statistically real rather than three friends. Between two 4.6-star listings, the one with 143 reviews beats the one with 12 nearly every time.
A credible threshold varies by industry, but 50+ reviews generally signals an established business. Below about 15, even a perfect rating reads as unproven. The goal isn't a vanity number, it's enough volume that the rating carries weight at a glance.
A dental practice in Mesa, AZ with a 4.9 rating but only 9 reviews was losing clicks to a 4.5 competitor with 200, until it built its count past 60 and the clicks shifted. The full system is in how to get more Google reviews.
🛠️ Action Step: Compare your review count to the highest in your local pack. If you're under half theirs, building volume is your top clickability project.
Your cover photo and first images decide the visual half of the click, and listings with strong, current photos get far more direction requests and website clicks. At thumbnail size, the photo is doing as much persuading as the text.
What works:
📊 Flento Data: Profiles updated with new photos in the last 30 days receive 35% more profile views than profiles with photos older than six months. For the full approach, see GBP photos that rank.
⚠️ Common Mistake: A dark, blurry, or stock cover photo. It's the first thing a searcher sees, and a bad one quietly hands the click to a competitor before they read anything.
Your category label and review snippet tell a high-intent searcher in a glance whether you're the right fit, so both need to mirror exactly what they typed. A near-match gets skipped by someone with specific intent.
Two levers here:
A law firm in Charlotte, NC that nudged clients to mention "estate planning" in reviews started showing snippets with that exact phrase, and its click rate on estate-planning searches climbed.
💡 Pro Tip: When you ask for a review, suggest a specific detail to mention. It's the only realistic way to influence which snippet Google surfaces in the pack.
Beyond the big five, accurate hours and an action button convert appearance into action, especially for urgent and high-intent searches. These are the elements that turn a scan into a tap.
The ones that move the needle:
🔥 Quick Win: Add or fix your booking button this week. For appointment and reservation businesses, it's frequently the highest-converting clickable element on the entire listing.
Flento keeps every clickability lever tuned from one place. The Google Business Profile optimizer flags a weak cover photo, stale images, an over-broad category, or missing hours, the exact gaps the Click Test exposes. The Google review management software builds the rating and review count that win the first two seconds, and helps you steer reviewers toward the specifics that shape your snippet.
That Mesa dental practice that was losing clicks despite a 4.9 rating? Closing the review-count gap was the whole fix, and the automated requests that did it ran on their own.
✅ Done? Let Flento monitor and optimize every clickability signal → Get started free
How do I make my Google Business Profile more clickable? Optimize the five things searchers scan in two seconds: your star rating, review count, cover photo, category label, and review snippet. A listing with a 4.3+ rating, 50+ reviews, a bright current photo, an exact-match category, and a relevant snippet will out-click higher-ranked competitors. Ranking gets you seen; these get you chosen.
Does ranking in the 3-Pack guarantee more customers? No. Ranking gets you into the pack, but searchers still choose between you and two competitors based on rating, reviews, and photos. A position-three listing with better signals routinely beats a position-one listing with a low rating or stale photos. Clickability is the second, separate battle.
What's the most important element for GBP click-through? Your star rating, because searchers use it as the first filter and eliminate listings under 4.0 almost instantly. Review count is a close second, since it makes the rating believable. Below a 4.0 rating, even strong rankings underperform.
How many reviews do I need to look credible in the local pack? Generally 50+ makes a business look established, though it varies by industry. The key is relative: compare your count to the others in your local pack. If you're under half the highest, your rating looks less trustworthy at a glance even if it's higher.
Can I control which review shows as my snippet? Not directly, but you can influence it. Snippets usually come from recent reviews, so encouraging reviewers to mention specific services and your differentiators makes those phrases more likely to appear, especially when they match what the searcher typed.
Do photos really affect clicks on Google Maps? Yes. The cover photo and first images are the visual half of the click, and listings with bright, current photos get significantly more direction requests and website visits. Fresh photos also signal an active business, which helps both clicks and ranking.
Ranking and clickability are two different jobs, and most of your competitors only do the first. Run the Click Test on your listing today, fix the weakest of the five signals, and you'll convert more of the visibility you already have. The listing that wins the tap wins the customer, regardless of who's technically in position one.
Make your Google Business Profile more clickable with Flento →
