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Naver Place: the listing every local customer sees first
Naver Place (네이버 플레이스) is Naver's map and shop directory, and it is where a Korean customer looks before visiting a physical shop. If you have a store, a showroom, a clinic or a restaurant in Korea, this listing matters more than your website. It is free, and Naver has published what it ranks on.
Registration takes about twenty minutes
You need three things: a Korean business registration certificate (사업자등록증), a Naver account, and one representative photo of the premises. Search "스마트플레이스" on Naver, choose new registration, pick a business type, enter the shop name, address and phone number, and upload the certificate. Approval usually takes a few days.
The name, address and phone number must match the certificate character for character. From then on, use exactly that spelling everywhere: Place, blog, Instagram, everything. Inconsistent spellings can be treated as different businesses.
| If you see | Do this |
|---|---|
| "This business is already registered" | A previous owner registered it or it was auto-created. Request ownership. Do not create a duplicate; reviews will split. |
| Approval refused | The name or address differs from the certificate. Match it exactly, including spaces, and resubmit. |
The four ranking factors Naver names
From Naver's document "Place SEO and abuse operating principles". These are Naver's words, not industry folklore. A
| Factor | What it measures | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Similarity | Does the shop match the query | Your description and your reviews are the raw material |
| Popularity | Do people look for it | Mentions, image count, clicks. This can outrank distance |
| Distance | Is it near the user | Nothing |
| Completeness | Is the information accurate and full | Fill every field. Naver calls this the owner's duty |
Naver, "Place SEO and abuse operating principles"플레이스 업체 설명과 리뷰를 분석하여 의미 기반 매칭을 하고 있기 때문에 플레이스와 관련된 리뷰가 풍부할수록 다양한 검색 결과에 노출될 수 있습니다.
Our rendering: "Because we match on meaning by analysing the shop description and reviews, a shop with richer reviews can appear for more varied searches."
This is the sentence to remember. Review text is used to match queries. When a customer writes "easy parking" in a review, your listing can surface for someone searching that phrase. Asking for five stars adds stars; letting customers write in their own words adds search terms.
Same document해당 업체의 언급수, 이미지수, 클릭수 등 다양한 요소로 결정됩니다. 이에 따라, 인기도가 높다면 사용자 위치와 더 먼 거리여도 검색결과 상단에 우선 노출될 수 있습니다.
Our rendering: "Popularity is determined by mentions, image count, clicks and other factors. A highly popular shop can rank at the top even when it is farther from the user."
Naver's recommended method is short: keep the listing current and fill every field, from business type and hours to prices, photos, directions and representative keywords. There is no trick beyond that in the document.
The abuse rules are public
Same document, first abuse criterion다수의 계정으로 접속, 불법 프로그램, 검색 광고 마케팅 업체나 앱 등을 통해 허위 클릭을 과다하게 유발하는 경우
Our rendering: "Generating excessive false clicks through multiple accounts, illegal programs, or search-advertising marketing agencies or apps."
Marketing agencies are named in the first criterion. Traffic-boosting services sold by local agencies are, by Naver's definition, abuse. The other three criteria cover fake bookings followed by cancellations, abnormal search patterns, and any other act that degrades search quality. Naver also states that the detailed filter thresholds are not published, so no vendor can credibly promise that a tactic "will not be caught".
AI Briefing: a summary you cannot edit
Naver Smart Place, "Place AI Briefing exposure guide"AI 브리핑은 네이버 이용자가 작성한 데이터를 바탕으로 제공되기 때문에 내용을 임의로 수정할 수 없습니다.
Our rendering: "Because AI Briefing is generated from data written by Naver users, its content cannot be edited at will."
Naver summarises your reviews into a short blurb shown with your listing. You can switch it off in the Smart Place admin, but you cannot rewrite it. What customers write becomes how Naver introduces you. The document says it currently covers some categories, such as restaurants and cafés, and only shops with enough reviews. The threshold is not published.