Local SEO Checklist

Use this for: Businesses considering or managing a Google Business Profile.

Check whether the business makes in-person contact with customers under Google’s eligibility rules. Online-only businesses and lead-generation companies are generally ineligible; particular business types have documented exceptions. Find any existing profile before creating one, and use an owner-authorized account to claim and complete the available verification process.

1. Confirm the real customer-contact model.
2. Find any existing profile and resolve ownership.
3. Complete the offered verification steps if eligible.

Use this for: Storefront, service-area and hybrid businesses.

For a business that visits customers but does not serve them at its base, hide the address from the public profile and enter the actual service areas. In Business Profile, open Edit profile → Location → Service area. Select real cities, postal codes or supported areas rather than inventing a radius. A storefront or hybrid must genuinely receive customers at the displayed location under the applicable rules.

1. Choose storefront, service-area or hybrid based on operations.
2. Correct address visibility and real service areas.
3. Check the public location display after the edit is reviewed.

Use this for: Eligible managed business profiles.

Open Edit profile and check the name against the business’s real-world branding. Put service, location and hours information in their appropriate fields instead of appending it to the name. Choose the most accurate available primary category and only relevant additional categories. Category choices should describe what the business is, not every keyword it wants to rank for.

1. Check the real-world name.
2. Select accurate available categories.
3. Save and review the public result.

Use this for: Businesses whose profile type supports hours.

In Edit profile, review the hours fields and upcoming special hours. Match customer-facing availability, not the hours someone happens to answer email. Apply the rules for your business type; appointment-only businesses and some other categories should not publish ordinary opening hours in the same way as a walk-in shop. Update the website when availability changes.

1. Confirm actual customer access with the team.
2. Edit regular and relevant special hours.
3. Compare the website and public profile.

Use this for: Managed profiles with contact and website fields.

Check the business-controlled phone number and website field in Edit profile. Use the real page for that business or branch, then open the public link on a phone. Test that the page explains the correct services and has a usable call or enquiry route. A multi-location profile should not send customers to a misleading unrelated branch.

1. Confirm the controlled phone and intended landing page.
2. Update the profile fields.
3. Open the public links and test the route without submitting a real booking.

Use this for: Eligible profiles with relevant photo/service features.

Use the profile’s photo and service controls to add current images you have the right to use and accurate services where the category supports them. Show the actual entrance, workspace or work performed, as appropriate. Avoid stock imagery that falsely represents premises, invented staff or unsupported credentials. Obtain permission before displaying identifiable customers.

1. Choose current truthful images and service details.
2. Upload or edit the supported profile fields.
3. Review the public display and remove obsolete material.

Use this for: Local service pages.

In the website editor, describe the service, who it suits, important limits and how to enquire. Set the SEO title and visible main heading to reflect the real service and area where relevant. Use supporting headings to answer useful questions rather than repeating a city name in every line.

1. Confirm the real service and coverage.
2. Write the opening, useful sections and enquiry step.
3. Edit the SEO title and inspect the published page.

Use this for: Businesses with real locations or useful service-coverage information.

Give each genuine location a page when it helps visitors find that branch. Include its actual contact details, customer-facing hours, services and useful access information such as entrance or parking, when verified. Link it from the location finder or navigation. Service-area businesses can explain coverage without publishing a private home address.

1. Gather branch-specific verified details.
2. Publish the useful location information.
3. Link the page and test it at phone width.

Use this for: Businesses serving multiple cities or proposing city pages.

Review each proposed city page against real service availability and information a customer in that city needs. A single coverage page may answer several areas well. Create a separate page only when you can add genuinely useful local details. Do not create additional Business Profiles for every served city without separately eligible real operations.

1. Verify actual availability in each area.
2. Choose shared coverage or a genuinely distinct page.
3. Check that profile count follows real eligibility.

Use this for: Businesses with third-party directory listings.

Search the real business name, phone number and any previous public address. Review important local or industry directories where customers encounter the business. Correct stale phone, hours, website and permitted address details through the listing’s official management process. Choose relevant listings rather than buying a fixed-size directory package; do not expose a private service-area address merely to make every listing look identical.

1. Find material existing listings.
2. Compare them with the current business facts.
3. Correct inaccuracies and duplicate entries through official controls.

Use this for: Businesses inviting Google reviews.

Use the profile’s review-sharing link or QR code and offer it to genuine customers without selecting only those who seem happy. Keep the request neutral. Do not buy reviews, reward them with discounts, pressure customers for a rating, or require specific keywords. Check other review platforms’ solicitation rules separately before reusing the same workflow.

1. Get the correct review link.
2. Use a neutral request for genuine customers.
3. Remove incentives, rating pressure and positive-only screening.

Use this for: Businesses receiving public reviews.

Review incoming feedback in the profile’s review controls. Thank people when useful and answer specific issues calmly. Keep private order, health, address and contact details out of public replies; move complex discussion to an appropriate private channel. Report genuine policy violations through the platform rather than promising removal of any negative review.

1. Read the review and verified context.
2. Write a relevant privacy-safe reply.
3. Use the report function only for an actual policy concern.

Use this for: Verified profiles and websites with performance data.

Open Business Profile Performance for a comparable date range and inspect the available interactions. Use Search Console separately to review relevant landing pages and queries. A call-button click does not prove a completed call or sale, and profile performance can include ad-related data. Local search varies by location; one search from your office is not a complete market ranking report.

1. Compare equivalent reporting periods.
2. Review the relevant profile interactions and website pages.
3. Check business changes and verify any broken customer route.