Module 10: Local SEO - Get Found in Your Area

By the end of this module, you'll know how to set up and fully optimise your Google Business Profile, add local signals to your website, and track whether your local SEO is working. This module is for businesses that serve a specific geographic area - whether that's a suburb, a city, or a region.

Who This Module Is For

Local SEO applies if any of these describe you:

• You have a physical location customers can visit (shop, clinic, studio, office)
• You serve customers in a specific city or region (trades, cleaning, delivery, services)
• You want to appear in "near me" searches or in the Google Maps results

If you run a fully online business with no geographic focus, you can skim this module for awareness and move on to Module 11.

For everyone else, local SEO is often the fastest path to visible results. A well-optimised Google Business Profile can start appearing in Maps results within days of verification.

Step 1: Set Up and Verify Your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is the listing that appears when someone searches for your business name or for businesses like yours in your area. It shows in Google Maps and in the "Local Pack" - the map and three listings that appear at the top of local search results.

Do this:

1. Go to business.google.com and sign in with your Google account
2. Click "Add your business" and enter your business name
3. Choose your primary business category - be as specific as possible (e.g., "Physiotherapy clinic" not just "Health")
4. Add your address if customers can visit, or set a service area if you go to customers
5. Add your phone number and website URL
6. Follow Google's verification steps - this is usually a postcard sent to your address with a code, or a phone/video verification option

Check this worked: Search for your business name on Google Maps. Once verified, your listing should appear with your basic details.

Step 2: Fully Optimise Your Google Business Profile

Most businesses create a profile and leave it half-empty. A complete profile ranks better and converts more searchers into customers.

Do this - work through each section:

Business description: Write 2-3 sentences describing what you do, who you serve, and what makes you different. Include your main keyword naturally - e.g., "We're a family-run physio clinic in Brisbane's north side, specialising in back pain, sports injuries, and post-surgery recovery." Maximum 750 characters.

Categories: You can add up to 10 categories. Your primary category is the most important. Add secondary categories that accurately reflect your services - don't add irrelevant categories to appear in more searches.

Photos: Add at minimum: your logo, a cover photo, photos of your premises (inside and outside), and photos of your work or products. Profiles with photos get significantly more clicks than those without.

Hours: Keep these accurate and up to date. Update them for public holidays.

Services or products: List what you offer with descriptions and prices where appropriate. This feeds directly into local search results and helps Google understand what you do.

Posts: GBP lets you publish short posts (similar to a social media update) that appear in your listing. Post once a week - offers, updates, news, or tips. Fresh activity signals to Google that your business is active.

Step 3: Add Local Signals to Your Website

Your website needs to tell Google the same location information as your GBP. Inconsistency between the two is a common local SEO mistake.

NAP consistency - NAP stands for Name, Address, Phone number. These three pieces of information must be identical everywhere online: your website, GBP, social profiles, and any directories. Even small differences (Street vs St, or a missing suburb) can dilute your local signals.

Do this:

1. Add your full NAP to your website footer - this should appear on every page
2. Create a Contact page that includes your full address, phone number, a contact form, and ideally an embedded Google Map
3. If you serve multiple areas, consider a separate page for each location - e.g., "Physiotherapy in Brisbane North", "Physiotherapy in Chermside"
4. Add your location in your page titles and meta descriptions where it fits naturally: "Family Physio Clinic - Brisbane North"

Local schema - Schema markup (the structured data you learned about in earlier modules) has a local business type. Adding LocalBusiness schema to your Contact page tells Google your name, address, phone, opening hours, and geographic coordinates in a format it can read directly. This is worth adding once you're comfortable with basic schema concepts.

Step 4: Build Local Citations Safely

A local citation is any online mention of your business name, address, and phone number - typically in a business directory.

Citations help because they corroborate your location data. When Google sees your NAP consistently across 20 different reputable directories, it increases confidence that your business is real and where it says it is.

The directories worth being in:

• Google Business Profile (already done)
• Apple Maps (mapsconnect.apple.com)
• Bing Places (bingplaces.com)
• True Local (Australia)
• Yellow Pages Australia
• Hot Frog
• Facebook Business Page
• Your industry-specific directories (e.g., healthengine.com.au for health businesses, houzz.com for trades)

Do this:

1. Choose 5-10 relevant directories from the list above
2. Create or claim your listing on each one
3. Make sure your NAP is identical on every listing - copy and paste directly from one source
4. Add your website URL and a brief business description to each listing

What to avoid: Bulk citation services that submit you to hundreds of low-quality directories automatically. Focus on a smaller number of reputable, relevant directories rather than sheer volume.

Step 5: Get and Manage Google Reviews

Google reviews are one of the strongest local ranking signals. A business with 50 genuine reviews will almost always outrank an identical business with 5 reviews.

Do this:

1. Find your Google review link: In your GBP dashboard, click "Get more reviews" - it gives you a direct link you can send to customers
2. Ask every customer directly: "Would you mind leaving us a Google review? It takes about a minute and really helps us." Most people who have had a good experience will do it if asked directly
3. Make it easy: Put the review link in your email signature, on your receipts or invoices, and on a follow-up text or email after a job is done

Responding to reviews: Respond to every review - positive and negative. For positive reviews, a short thank you is enough. For negative reviews, respond calmly and professionally without arguing. How you respond to a bad review tells potential customers more about you than the review itself.

What Google prohibits: Paying for reviews, offering discounts for reviews, or asking only happy customers while filtering out unhappy ones. Stick to simply asking all customers.

Step 6: Track Your Local Rankings

Tracking local rankings is different from tracking national rankings. Your position in the Local Pack depends on the searcher's location - you might rank first for people in your suburb and fifth for people two suburbs away.

Free tools for local rank tracking:

• Google Search Console - shows which queries your site appears for, including local ones. Filter by location in the Performance report.
• BrightLocal (brightlocal.com) - has a free trial and a low-cost plan specifically for local rank tracking. Shows your position in the Local Pack from different locations.
• Manually searching - use Google in an incognito window and search from your target area. Note your position in the Local Pack over time.

Do this:

1. In Google Search Console, open the Performance report and look at your top queries
2. Filter by "country" to see if you're appearing for location-based searches
3. Set up a monthly check - note your position for your 3-5 main local keywords

Foundation Checklist

• My Google Business Profile is created, verified, and fully filled out
• My NAP is consistent across my website and all directories
• My website footer shows my full name, address, and phone number
• I have a Contact page with my address, phone, and map
• I am listed in at least 5 reputable local directories
• I have a process for asking customers for Google reviews
• I am tracking my local search positions monthly

Frequently Asked Questions

My business operates from home - should I add my address to my GBP? No. If you don't want your home address public, select "I deliver goods and services to customers" and set a service area instead. Google will still show you in Maps for your area without displaying your home address.

How long does local SEO take to work? GBP verification takes 1-7 days. Appearing in the Local Pack can happen within days for low-competition searches, or take 2-3 months for more competitive keywords. Consistent review growth and profile activity speeds up the process.

Do I need a separate page for every suburb I serve? Not necessarily. If you serve a wide area, one location page that names the main suburbs you cover is enough for most small businesses. Only create separate suburb pages if each location is genuinely distinct - different address, different phone number, different services.

My competitor has fewer reviews than me but ranks above me - why? Reviews are one factor, not the only one. Proximity to the searcher, your GBP category accuracy, website relevance, and overall engagement with your profile all contribute. Check that your primary category is as specific as possible and that your profile is fully complete.

Should I respond to negative reviews? Yes, always. A professional, calm response to a negative review shows potential customers that you take feedback seriously. Ignoring negative reviews looks worse than receiving them.

Quick Wins Linked to This Module

• How to Set Up Google Business Profile in 30 Minutes
• NAP: What It Is and Why It Matters for Local SEO

← Module 9: Topical Authority  |  Module 11: Content That Converts →