When someone searches for "dentist near me", "IT repair Brisbane" or "Italian restaurant Oslo", Google shows a map with a handful of businesses before any normal results. Getting into that list is what local SEO is about. Unlike most marketing, much of it is free — it just takes some care and consistency.
Here's the checklist we work through with local businesses.
1. Claim and complete your Google Business Profile
Your Google Business Profile is the listing that appears on Maps and in local results. Claim it, verify it, and fill in everything:
- the primary category that best matches what you do, plus any secondary categories that genuinely apply,
- accurate opening hours, including holiday hours,
- your phone number, website and booking link,
- a clear description of your services, written for customers rather than for search engines,
- real photos of your premises, team and work — and keep adding new ones.
2. Keep your name, address and phone number identical everywhere
Google cross-checks your business details across the web: your website, social profiles, directories and maps. Small differences — "St." in one place and "Street" in another, an old phone number on a directory — make it less confident about which details are correct.
Pick one exact format and use it everywhere. Put it in the footer of your website too.
3. Ask for reviews, and reply to all of them
Reviews influence both your ranking and whether people click. Make asking part of your routine: a short message after a job is done with a direct link to your review page works well.
Reply to every review, good or bad, politely and specifically. A calm, helpful reply to a negative review often reassures future customers more than another five-star rating.
4. Create a page for each service and area
If you offer several services, give each one its own page on your website, explaining what it is, who it's for, the area you cover and how to book. One vague "Services" page rarely ranks for anything.
If you serve several towns or suburbs, a page for each is useful — but only if each page has genuinely useful local information. Copying the same text with a different town name doesn't help, and can hurt.
5. Add local business structured data
Structured data (schema markup) is code that tells search engines, in a precise format, what your business is, where it is, your hours and how to contact you. A LocalBusiness schema on your homepage or contact page is a small, worthwhile addition — your developer can add it in an hour.
6. Make your site fast and easy on a phone
Most local searches happen on a phone, often on the move. Check your site on your own phone:
- does it load quickly on mobile data?
- can someone call you or get directions with one tap?
- are the opening hours and address easy to find?
Google's free PageSpeed Insights tool will point out the biggest speed issues.
7. Keep the profile active
Profiles that are updated regularly tend to perform better than ones that are set up once and forgotten. Post updates, offers or events, answer the questions people ask on your listing, and keep photos current.
8. Measure what matters
Your Business Profile shows how many people found you, called you, asked for directions or visited your site. Check it monthly alongside your website analytics, so you can see which of these steps is actually bringing customers in.
None of this happens overnight, but it compounds. If you'd like a hand setting it up — or an outside look at what's holding your listing back — let's talk.