Local SEO
Why local SEO matters: getting found where your customers are
Local SEO puts your business on Google Maps and in “near me” searches. Google's three ranking factors, your Business Profile, reviews and measurement.
First impressions happen on Google.
We set up your Google Business Profile from scratch or bring your existing one up to date, with the words your customers search for, complete details and regular posts. The profile stays in your name.
Discuss your projectStarting point
Does any of this sound familiar?
Do only your competitors show up on Google Maps?
Someone nearby looking for what you do sees three businesses on the map first. If yours isn't one of them, they call someone else before they ever see your website.
Are your opening hours or phone number out of date?
You're not the only one who can change your profile. Google also accepts edits suggested by users and pulls in information from other sources. If the number is out of date or a holiday closure is missing, customers can't get through or find the door locked.
Can't get into your profile, or does your business appear twice?
A former employee set it up, or an agency still has access. Then you can't reply to reviews or correct anything. And if two listings show different details, customers don't know which one is right.
Do your competitors have ten times as many reviews?
The number of reviews and their ratings are among the signals Google uses to rank local results. ChatGPT often shows star ratings too when someone asks about a business nearby. In our study of furniture stores in Cologne, the four stores ChatGPT recommended most often had between 1,500 and 20,000 reviews each.
Has your profile stayed the same since it was set up?
No new photos, no posts for months, services you no longer offer. Customers see a profile nobody seems to be looking after.
Don't have a website?
You don't need one for a Business Profile. But then the profile is the only place customers can learn about you, and every missing detail costs you a call.
Your situation
How we approach your situation.
What we don't do: buy reviews, offer discounts or gifts in return for them, or put keywords in your business name. Any of these breaks Google's guidelines and can get your profile suspended.
If you don't have a profile yet
Do customers come to you, or do you go to them? That decides how your business is listed on Google, and whether your address appears on the profile.
- If you serve customers at your premises, your address appears on the profile. If you travel to them, we list a service area instead and your address stays hidden.
- Google usually asks for a short video to confirm that your business exists. We tell you beforehand exactly what it needs to show.
- Without a website, the profile has to do all the work. We fill in your services, photos and opening hours in full, so customers can call you or get directions straight away.
If your profile exists but the phone stays quiet
Here we start with numbers. The performance report in your profile shows how often customers found you and what they did next.
- We record views, searches, calls, direction requests and website clicks before we change anything.
- We look at the words customers use when they search for businesses like yours, and at the categories your strongest competitors have chosen.
- Then we rework your primary and additional categories, describe each service separately and write a business description of up to 750 characters.
If customers don't find you in AI answers
When customers ask ChatGPT for a business nearby, the answer often includes a map with ratings. Whether you appear there also depends on how complete and consistent your details are across the web.
- Our free check shows whether ChatGPT names you when your customers ask, and what state your Google profile is in.
- Your business name, address and phone number need to match on your profile, your website and in directories. We check them listing by listing and correct them.
- Bing search and Bing Maps take their listings from Bing Places, and Microsoft Copilot draws on Bing search. We import your profile from Google into Bing Places; changes sync every week.
Scope
What we take on for you.
Setup and verification
Want your Google Business Profile set up for you? You won't need to deal with anything technical. If there's no listing yet, we create one; if there is, we work with you to request access and report any duplicate listings to Google. Google requires the owner to complete verification, so that step is yours; we prepare it so it has the best chance of passing first time. Finally, we import the profile into Bing Places, so you appear with the same details in Bing search and on Bing Maps.
Keywords and complete details
Google Business Profile optimization starts with knowing how your customers search. Based on the keyword research, we choose your primary and additional categories, set up each service with its own description and write a business description of up to 750 characters. Then we add opening hours (including public holidays), attributes such as accessibility or online booking, and photos of your premises, team and work. We create a direct review link and turn it into a QR code for your counter or invoices. We also tag the link to your website, so Google Analytics shows how many visitors come from the profile.
Monthly management
A profile only stays current if someone looks after it. Each month we plan posts about news, offers and events, built around your keywords; if you like, a post can go out every week. We upload new photos, add holiday hours and correct details that Google or users have changed. Replying to reviews stays with you, because you know your customers. If you'd rather hand that over, we'll take it on, with replies you approve first. At the end of the month you get a short report: views, search terms, calls, direction requests and website clicks compared with the previous month.
Our approach
One-off setup or ongoing care.
Your profile stays yours
You're the owner; we're listed as a manager. If we stop working together, you simply remove us and keep the profile, reviews and all.
Keywords in the profile, not in the name
A business name stuffed with keywords breaks Google's guidelines. Competitors can report it, and the profile can be suspended. We put keywords where they're allowed: in categories, services, the description and posts.
Measured against your performance report
Before the first change, we record the numbers from your performance report. After that we compare the same figures month by month and show them to you, even in months when they don't go up.
Process
A complete profile in four steps.
Profile and access
You send us your business name or the link to your profile. If a profile already exists, you add us as a manager.
Analysis
We review your profile, your competitors' profiles and your customers' search terms, and record the baseline.
Quote and setup
You get a written fixed-price quote. Once you approve it, we set up the profile; you see the text and photos before they go live.
Ongoing care, if you want it
If you like, we'll look after the profile every month after that, with no minimum term. Or you can carry on yourself, and we'll show you what matters.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions.
Google doesn't charge for the profile itself. You pay for the work: after the analysis, you get a written fixed-price quote for setup or optimisation. Monthly management has no minimum term; you can cancel at any time with one month's notice.
Yes. Google doesn't require a website for the profile, and customers can call you, get directions and see your photos straight from it. If you also want to be found for individual services, though, a website helps a lot: each service page shows Google which searches you're relevant for. If you decide you want one later, we'll build it and link it to your profile.
As the owner, you complete verification yourself; Google requires it. It usually involves a short video showing your location, your signage or equipment, and proof that you run the business. Beforehand, we send you a list of what the video needs to show, and we're on hand until the profile is confirmed.
No. Google ranks local results based on three factors: relevance, distance and prominence. Nobody can change the distance between the person searching and your business. We work on the other two, and each month we show you how your views, calls and direction requests are changing.
Not as standard. Replies are most convincing when they come from the business itself, because you know the customer and what happened. If you'd like to hand this over, we'll draft the replies, and nothing goes live until you've approved it.
By asking every customer, not just the happy ones. We set up a direct review link and a QR code you can use on invoices, in emails or at the counter. Google doesn't allow reviews in exchange for discounts or gifts, and in Germany bought or fake reviews are also illegal. We don't do either.
Because Google doesn't allow it: the name on your profile must be the one your business uses on its signage, website and stationery. Additions such as a town or a service count as a violation. Competitors can report them, and at worst the profile is suspended. If a word genuinely is part of your name, it stays, of course.
If a former employee or an agency manages your profile, we request ownership through Google together with you. If the profile is suspended, we first find out which guideline it breaks, fix the cause and then appeal through Google's form. The decision lies with Google; nobody can promise a profile will be reinstated.
Yes, once it's listed there. We import your Google profile into Bing Places and switch on weekly syncing, so changes you make on Google reach Bing too. Bing Places supplies the listings for Bing search and Bing Maps, and Microsoft Copilot draws on Bing search for its answers.
Blog
Articles on this topic
Read the article: Why local SEO matters: getting found where your customers are
The next step
After the map comes your website.
Your Business Profile puts you on the map. Anyone who wants to know more visits your website, and that's where they decide whether to get in touch or keep looking. That's why we also look after SEO for your website, Google Ads and conversion optimisation.
See our SEO & advertising serviceGoogle, Google Maps and Google Business Profile are trademarks of Google LLC. MAKK Digital is not affiliated with or sponsored by Google.