Draft: hidden from Google until Dan signs it off.
Local SEO means showing up when people near you search for what you do: the map results, 'near me' searches, and now the AI answers that recommend local businesses. Google says local results are based on relevance, distance and prominence, and that you can't pay for a better local ranking. So the work is making your Business Profile, reviews and website say clearly what you do, where, and that people like you. I'm based on the Central Coast, NSW, and work with local businesses across Australia.
Written by Dan Picken, founder. Last checked 28 October 2026.Audience first
Two people can type the same local search for completely different reasons, and they look at different things on your profile. The person with a toothache at 7am wants to know who's open. The person choosing a family dentist for the next ten years reads every review. I work out which people are searching for you, then make sure the profile and the page each of them lands on answers what they care about.
Map who searches and from where
Which services, which suburbs, which times. Checked against your profile data and real enquiries.
Match the profile to them
Categories, services, photos and posts that answer what each type of searcher checks first.
Back it up on your website
One strong page per service and real area, with jobs and reviews from that area. No copy-paste suburb pages.
Worked example: a dental clinic
Same clinic, same suburb, two people searching:
The emergency
'emergency dentist near me open now'
The family chooser
'family dentist Erina good with kids'
Same profile, two different needs. The photos, services and replies to reviews can answer both, if you plan them for both.
From my audits
Most local audits I do turn up the same few problems, whatever the industry. These are the six I check first.
'Medical clinic' when they're a physio, or 'contractor' when they're a roofer. It decides which searches they can show for, and nobody notices.
'Smith Plumbing Gosford Emergency Hot Water'. It might work for a while, then a competitor reports it and the profile gets suspended.
Lots of reviews from three years ago, almost none since. Customers notice, and so does the ranking.
Thirty pages with the suburb name swapped. They don't rank well, and if one does, the visitor can tell it was written for Google.
Old phone number on one directory, old address on another, a different business name on Facebook. It muddies who you are.
They search from their own desk and see themselves first. Three suburbs away, where most customers are, they're not on the map at all.
How Google picks local results
Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and prominence. You can't change distance. The other two are the job.
How well your profile matches the search. Google says complete, detailed information helps your profile match more searches.
What I do: The most specific main category, every service listed, and a website that says the same.
How far you are from the person searching, or from the place they searched for.
What I do: You can't move. You can make sure your service areas and suburb pages are real and accurate.
How well-known you are. Google says it looks at things like links to your website and how many reviews you have.
What I do: A steady flow of reviews, mentions in local news and directories, and a website other sites link to.
Google's guidelines say your name should be your real-world business name, without keywords or locations added, and that breaking the rules can get a profile suspended.
What I do: Keep the profile honest. A suspended profile costs more than any keyword ever earned.
Locals don't only use Google. In BrightLocal's 2026 US survey, use of ChatGPT and other AI tools to research local businesses rose from 6% to 45%, and Apple Maps from 14% to 27%.
What I do: Claim Bing Places and Apple Business too, with the same details everywhere.
Worth knowing: Google says there's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking. Anyone selling a guaranteed spot in the map pack is selling something Google says doesn't exist.
Business Profile health check
Your Google Business Profile is usually the best free lead source a local business has, and the most neglected. Tick what's true for yours now. If you're not sure, leave it unticked: not sure usually means no.
Profile health
0/10
Untouched. This is the cheapest fix in local marketing. Start here.
First fix
Change the main category to the most specific one that describes what you do. It is one of the biggest levers on which searches you show for.
A quick self-check. The free audit checks it properly.
Consumer psychology
A map result is a decision made in seconds, mostly from stars, recency and replies. Here's what the research says people look at, and what to do about it. The survey numbers are from the US: the best large local review survey available. Australian habits are likely similar, but treat them as a guide.
01Scanning the results
In BrightLocal's 2026 survey of 1,002 US consumers, 68% will only use businesses with four stars or more, and 47% won't use one with fewer than 20 reviews.
People filter before they compare. Below the line, you are not even considered.
What I do: Know where you sit against the main competitors on stars and review count, and close the gap with a steady review habit.
02Reading the reviews
In the same survey, 74% want reviews from the last three months.
A great rating from old reviews reads like a business that used to be good.
What I do: Ask for reviews every week, not in a burst once a year.
03Reading your replies
89% expect owners to respond to reviews, and 50% are put off by templated replies.
How you reply tells people how you will treat them when something goes wrong.
What I do: Reply to every review in your own words. Be calm and specific on the bad ones.
04Choosing between close options
People follow the behaviour of people like them. In a well-known hotel study, a message about guests who had stayed in the same room worked better than one about guests in general.
A review from someone in the next suburb with the same problem beats a generic five stars.
What I do: Ask customers to mention the job and the suburb. Show those reviews on the matching pages.
I'm a marketer, not a psychologist. This is published research, linked so you can read it yourself.
Method: Buyer State Mapping
Local searches change with how urgent the need is. Each one needs something different from your profile and site.
1Need it now
'pharmacy open now near me'
Health
2Choosing carefully
'best accountant for small business Gosford'
B2B
3Planning a visit
'cafe with outdoor seating Terrigal dog friendly'
Hospitality
What local SEO covers
Not every local business needs all of these equally. A café lives on its profile and reviews. A law firm needs its website pages to do more of the work.
Your listing on Google Maps and in local results: categories, services, hours, photos, posts and questions.
Best for: Every local business. Usually the biggest and fastest win.
Getting a steady flow of genuine reviews, and replying to all of them.
Best for: Everyone. Most important where trust is the decision: health, trades, childcare.
One strong page per service and per real area you work, with local jobs, photos and reviews.
Best for: Businesses that travel to customers, or cover several towns.
Your details on Bing Places, Apple Business and the directories in your industry, matching exactly.
Best for: Everyone, once. Then checked when anything changes.
Being talked about locally: news, community groups, sponsorships, local business lists.
Best for: Competitive areas, and anyone who wants AI tools to recommend them.
How it works
I check your profile, reviews and local rankings across your area, and send the top 3 fixes. Then a 20-minute call.
Categories, services, areas, hours, photos and the name, all in line with Google's guidelines.
A simple way to ask every customer, and a plan for replying to every review.
Real service and area pages on your site, then a monthly check of rankings, calls and reviews in plain English.
What you get
Signals this works on
Out of the 8 signals every page and ad sends.
Getting your business to show up when people nearby search for what you do: in the Google Maps results, in 'near me' searches, and in AI answers about local businesses. It covers your Business Profile, reviews, website pages and listings.
Google says local results are based on relevance, distance and prominence. In practice: the right main category, a complete profile, a steady flow of reviews, and a website that backs it up. You can't pay for a better local ranking.
No. Google's guidelines say to use your real-world business name without added keywords or locations, and that extra words can get the profile suspended.
No. Google's policy bans offering incentives such as discounts or free goods for reviews, and also bans asking only happy customers. Ask everyone, with no reward.
If customers don't come to you, Google says to hide your address and set service areas instead.
Usually not. A few strong pages for the areas your work actually comes from, with real local jobs and reviews, beat dozens of pages with the suburb name swapped.
Yes. People use several review sites, and BrightLocal's 2026 US survey found use of ChatGPT and other AI tools for local research rose from 6% to 45%. AI tools read reviews from across the web.
Takes a minute. You'll hear back within 1 to 2 business days.
What happens next
Keep going