So what is a citation? Simply, it’s a mention of your business name on another website.
Don’t confuse this with a link however - citations are a reference of your business (with or without a hyperlink to your website). And, that pretty much, is all there is to it!
An example of a citation is a business listing on a directory website, like Yell/Yellow Pages. There will likely be your company address, phone number and maybe company email address included within that listing.
Why are they important? Citations are an important part of Google’s search algorithm for local businesses - they help determine where to rank your site amongst your competition.
In simple terms - all other things being equal - if you have more citations than your competition then you will likely be returned above them in the search engine result pages.