When someone in your city searches for what you offer, do you show up? Or are you invisible while competitors take all the customers?

Local SEO is how you get found by people searching for your services in your area. And for small businesses, it's often the difference between thriving and struggling.

This guide covers everything you need to rank locally.

What is Local SEO?

Local SEO is optimizing your online presence to appear in local search results. When someone searches "plumber near me" or "best pizza in [city]," local SEO determines who appears.

Local Search Results Include:

  • Google Map Pack: The 3 businesses shown on the map
  • Local organic results: Regular search listings for local queries
  • Google Business Profile: Your listing with hours, reviews, photos

Why Local SEO Matters

  • 46% of all Google searches have local intent
  • 88% of mobile searches for local businesses result in a call or visit within 24 hours
  • 76% of people who search for something nearby visit a business within a day
  • 28% of local searches result in a purchase

If you're not optimizing for local search, you're leaving money on the table.

Step 1: Optimize Your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is THE most important factor for local SEO. Here's how to optimize it:

Claim and Verify Your Listing

  1. Go to google.com/business
  2. Search for your business or add it
  3. Verify ownership (usually via postcard, phone, or email)

Complete Every Field

  • Business name: Exact legal name (no keyword stuffing)
  • Categories: Primary category = most important. Add 2-5 relevant secondary categories
  • Address: Exact match with your website and all citations
  • Phone: Local number preferred over 800 numbers
  • Hours: Keep updated, including holidays
  • Website: Link to your homepage or location page
  • Description: 750 characters about what you do, naturally including keywords
  • Attributes: All that apply (women-owned, wheelchair accessible, etc.)

Add Quality Photos

  • Logo and cover photo
  • Interior and exterior photos
  • Team photos
  • Product/service photos
  • Customer photos (with permission)

Add new photos regularly. Businesses with photos get 42% more direction requests.

Post Regular Updates

Use Google Posts for:

  • Promotions and offers
  • Events
  • Product highlights
  • Company news

Post weekly to show Google you're active.

Step 2: Get More Reviews (The Right Way)

Reviews are a major ranking factor AND influence whether people click on you.

How to Get More Reviews

  • Ask happy customers directly (in person, via email, via text)
  • Send follow-up emails with direct review links
  • Add review links to your website and email signature
  • Make the process easy—one click to the review form

Review Best Practices

  • Never buy fake reviews—Google will penalize you
  • Respond to EVERY review—positive and negative
  • Don't offer incentives for reviews (against Google's terms)
  • Address negative reviews professionally—show you care

How Many Reviews Do You Need?

Look at your top competitors in the map pack. You need to match or exceed their review count and average rating.

Step 3: Optimize Your Website for Local Search

Title Tags and Meta Descriptions

Include your city/service area in title tags:

Plumbing Services in Austin, TX | 24/7 Emergency Plumber | ABC Plumbing

Create Location-Specific Pages

If you serve multiple areas, create individual pages for each:

  • /plumbing-services-austin
  • /plumbing-services-round-rock
  • /plumbing-services-cedar-park

Each page should have unique content about serving that specific area.

Add Local Business Schema

Schema markup helps Google understand your business. Add LocalBusiness schema with:

  • Name, address, phone
  • Hours
  • Service area
  • Price range
  • Reviews

NAP Consistency

Name, Address, Phone must be EXACTLY the same everywhere:

  • Your website (header and footer)
  • Google Business Profile
  • Social media profiles
  • Directory listings

Even small differences (St. vs Street) can hurt.

Embed Google Map

Add an embedded Google Map on your contact page with your business location marked.

Step 4: Build Local Citations

Citations are mentions of your business on other websites. They help establish credibility and improve rankings.

Essential Directories

  • Yelp
  • Facebook
  • Apple Maps
  • Bing Places
  • Yellow Pages
  • Better Business Bureau
  • Chamber of Commerce

Industry-Specific Directories

  • Legal: Avvo, FindLaw, Justia
  • Medical: Healthgrades, Vitals, Zocdoc
  • Home Services: HomeAdvisor, Angi, Houzz
  • Restaurants: TripAdvisor, OpenTable

Local Directories

  • Local newspaper websites
  • City business directories
  • Local blogs
  • Community websites

Step 5: Create Local Content

Content that shows you're part of the local community helps rankings and builds trust.

Local Content Ideas

  • Local events you sponsor or attend
  • Community involvement stories
  • Local customer success stories
  • Guides specific to your area ("Best neighborhoods for X in [City]")
  • Local industry news and updates
  • Seasonal tips for your area

Step 6: Get Local Backlinks

Links from other local websites boost your authority.

Local Link Opportunities

  • Sponsor local events, sports teams, charities
  • Guest post on local blogs
  • Get featured in local news
  • Partner with complementary local businesses
  • Join and participate in Chamber of Commerce
  • Offer scholarships to local schools

Step 7: Track and Measure

Key Metrics to Monitor

  • Google Business Profile Insights: Views, clicks, calls, direction requests
  • Search Console: Local keyword rankings and clicks
  • Analytics: Traffic from local organic search
  • Review velocity: New reviews per month
  • Rank tracking: Positions for "[service] + [city]" keywords

Tools for Local SEO

  • Google Business Profile (free)
  • Google Search Console (free)
  • BrightLocal (paid, comprehensive)
  • Moz Local (paid, citations)
  • Whitespark (paid, citations and tracking)

Local SEO Timeline: What to Expect

  • Week 1-2: Optimize Google Business Profile, fix NAP issues
  • Month 1: Build core citations, optimize website
  • Month 2-3: Start seeing improvements in rankings
  • Month 3-6: Noticeable increase in calls and visits
  • Ongoing: Reviews, content, and links continue building authority

Local SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. But the payoff is worth it—consistent, free traffic from ready-to-buy customers.

Local SEO Checklist

Use this to audit your local SEO:

  • ☐ Google Business Profile claimed and verified
  • ☐ All GBP fields complete
  • ☐ 10+ photos uploaded
  • ☐ Regular GBP posts
  • ☐ 10+ reviews (5+ reviews/month goal)
  • ☐ NAP consistent everywhere
  • ☐ Local keywords in website titles
  • ☐ Location pages for each service area
  • ☐ Local schema markup
  • ☐ Major directories claimed
  • ☐ Industry directories claimed
  • ☐ Local content strategy
  • ☐ Tracking set up

Need help with local SEO? Let's talk about getting your business found by local customers actively searching for what you offer.

Tags: local SEO Google Business Profile small business search ranking marketing