Local SEO for small business

Local SEO is the work that gets you found by people nearby who are ready to buy. It overlaps with regular SEO, but the map results are decided by different signals, which is why a business can rank well on the website side and still be invisible on the map.

What the map results respond to

• +How close you are to the searcher
• +How complete and specific your Google Business Profile is
• +Your review volume, recency and what those reviews mention
• +Consistency of your name, address and phone number across the web
• +Whether your website backs up the services listed on your profile

Name, address, phone, pick one version and stick to it

Unit 3/12 Smith St and 12 Smith Street, Unit 3 are the same to you and two different businesses to a search engine. Write the exact version down and use it everywhere: website footer, Google, Facebook, directories, invoices.

Suburb pages, done honestly

Pages for the areas you genuinely service work well when they're real: local jobs you've done, photos, travel times, specifics about that area. Thirty near-identical pages with the suburb swapped out are a well-known pattern and they don't rank any more.

Reviews are local SEO, not just social proof

A review saying "repointed our roof in Blackburn" tells Google what you do and where. Ask customers to mention the job and the area naturally. Never write them yourself, it's obvious, and it puts your listing at risk.

Where to start if you're time poor

Complete the profile properly, fix your details everywhere they appear, and set up one routine for asking for reviews. That's most of local SEO for most businesses.