Local SEO is the work that helps a business show up when nearby customers search on Google and Google Maps. Here is what it includes, how Google decides who ranks, and how it turns searches into calls.
Most service businesses see early local SEO movement within 4 to 12 weeks and stronger results in 3 to 6 months. Here is what happens in each phase, what speeds it up, and what slows it down.
Local SEO usually costs between a few hundred and a few thousand dollars a month in the US, depending on your market and what is included. Here are real survey numbers, typical tiers and what you should get at each price.
Most local businesses that struggle on Google are not missing a secret trick. They are making a few common mistakes. Here are the nine I see most often, with the fix for each one.
Local keyword research is about finding the exact words nearby customers type when they need your service. Here is a simple, free process using Google’s own tools, plus a worked example for a home service business.
Google confirms three local ranking pillars: relevance, distance and prominence. Here is what sits under each one, which factors you can actually control, and where a local service business should spend its time first.
If a page is not indexed, Google cannot show it to anyone. Here is how to check a page in Search Console, what each “not indexed” status means, and how to fix the ones that matter for a local service business.
A suspended Google Business Profile stops calls overnight. Here is why suspensions happen, the documents Google accepts, and the exact appeal steps to get your profile reinstated.
A sudden Google Maps ranking drop usually has a clear cause: a profile edit, a suspension, a new competitor, a review problem, a website change or a Google update. Here is the order to check them in.
If your business does not show up on Google Maps, the cause is usually one of a short list of problems: verification, suspension, address settings, categories, distance, or weak trust signals. Here is how to find yours and fix it.
