The Ultimate Guide to Your Local SEO
Step-by-step Playbook • January 2026 Edition
Are you an artisan, shopkeeper, freelancer, or SME owner?
Attract new clients naturally through SEO, without spending all your days on it or becoming a technical expert.
This guide explains how to be more visible on Google and appear in AI responses like ChatGPT.
Author: Antoine FrankartLocal SEO expert
What you will learn in this guide
No long-winded text. No technical jargon. Only:
- ✓simple explanations,
- ✓concrete examples,
- ✓and tools to take action.
Thanks to this guide, you will be able to:
👀 Part 1: Understanding Local SEO
🗺️ The places where your clients find you on Google
Display of classic Google results
🧩 What to understand
Your clients use the Google Maps app and the Google search engine to find you.
📍 Google Maps
This is where your clients look for directions or type a search directly (ex: "Hairdresser open") around them.
On the map
Your business appears as an icon or a red dot directly on the map.
In the list
Just below the map (or to the left on a computer), Google displays the list of the most relevant businesses for the search.
👉 A click on Google Maps opens your Google Business profile.
🔍 Google Search engine (organic results)
This is where your clients make more precise searches like "emergency water damage repair".
In business lists
Google first displays a map with businesses.
Then further down, other businesses can also be listed this way.
These spots are strategic because they capture the majority of clicks. Google calls this the "Local Pack".
In the blue links
These are the "classic" Google results displaying links to your website.
They take up less space than before, but remain useful for your visibility.
Concrete example
Pierre, an electrician in Austin, now appears under the map in Google results.
Effect: +200% phone calls in 4 weeks.
Dig deeper on our blog
Where can your clients find you on Google? An update on visibility types.
📍 How Google ranks businesses
🧩 What to understand
To decide which business to display first, Google uses dozens of signals. But 3 factors dominate:
🏃 Distance (No. 1)
Google will always favor the business physically closest to the user. If you are 500m from a client, you have a huge advantage over a competitor located 5km away.
⭐ Prominence
Google wants proof that you have real clients. It analyzes your reviews, your photos, and even GPS data from phones to see if people really visit you.
🤝 Relevance
Your name, address, and phone number must be identical everywhere. Google also evaluates if you are cited elsewhere (city hall, directories...) to confirm your local importance.
Dig deeper on our blog
Why am I ranked lower than a competitor when I have more reviews?
🤖 AI (ChatGPT & Gemini...) is revolutionizing search
🧩 What to understand
AIs like ChatGPT, Gemini, Google's AI Overview, etc., are disrupting business search. They:
- answer questions directly,
- recommend businesses,
- without displaying a list of websites or a map.
Concrete example
Question from a client: “What are the best real estate agencies in LA?”
AI Response: “Here are 3 highly-rated agencies I can recommend...”
What this changes for you
AI feeds on reliable information. It will prioritize businesses even more if they have a complete profile, regular reviews, and an informative website.
Working on your SEO is no longer optional: it is your insurance to continue existing online in AI responses.
✅ Good news: Working on your local SEO for Google also helps you for AIs. No double work required.
📊 Tracking your positions and rankings
Click on a point to display an example of results at that location
🧩 What to understand
Being "first on Google" means nothing. Your position changes depending on:
- Who is searching: a client downtown doesn't see the same results as a client in the suburbs.
- What search: you can be 1st for "landscaper in San Francisco" but invisible for "green space maintenance in San Francisco".
To improve your visibility, you must first measure it. That means tracking your Google Maps rankings neighborhood by neighborhood or city by city, and your presence in classic Google results.
❌ The trap to avoid
Do not rely on your ranking from your own phone or computer. Google knows you and personalizes the results. You will often see your business at the top... but that's not what your clients see.
🌸 Our tool Begonia.pro allows you to easily track your Google Maps and classic Google rankings:
📖 Part 2: Improving your online visibility
The 5 strategic pillars to improve your online visibility
In this part, we will see how to improve your local SEO to become the top-ranked online business in your sector, thanks to 5 different factors:
Google Business Profile
📱 Pillar 1: Your Google Business Profile, your #1 digital storefront
🧩 What to understand
Your Google Business Profile is your most powerful tool for attracting local customers. For many people, it is the first impression of your business, even before your website.
Key figures
- 86% of consumers look for a business's location on Google Maps.
- 76% of mobile searches result in a visit within 24 hours.
- A 100% complete profile gets 7x more clicks than an empty one.
🚀 What you can do:
It is important to fill out your Google Business Profile to 100%.
🏷️ Main category
Pick the one that best describes your primary trade.
Plumber
Handyman (too vague)
🗂️ Secondary categories
Add 2 to 4 categories for your related services.
Ex: "Heating contractor", "Bathroom installation"
ℹ️ Main Info
Your name, address, and phone number must be exact and identical everywhere on the web.
🛍️ Services & Products
Add them, using your clients' language.
✅ Pipe replacement
❌ Distribution network replacement
⏰ Hours
Keep them up to date. Especially public holidays and your vacations.
📝 Description
Present your business, your services, and specify your service area. Feel free to use AI to improve your description.
🌐 Website
Link to your site (not your social media, there is another field for that). If it no longer works, remove it.
⚙️ Attributes
Check all relevant options (parking, wifi, wheelchair accessible...)
📱 Social Media
If you have them and are active, link them to your profile. They will be displayed on Google.
❓ Questions & Answers
Don't wait for client questions. Ask the most recurring questions yourself (ex: "What are your rates?", "Do you operate in [Neighboring City]?") and answer them clearly.
🌸 Get a free audit of your Google Business Profile with our tool, and receive recommendations to improve your listing.
Google Business Profile
📱 Pillar 1: Maintaining regular activity on your Google Business Profile
🧩 What to understand
Filling out your profile is not enough. An inactive profile drops in rankings, even if it was well-filled initially. Google favors businesses that show signs of activity.
Comparison
Your Google Business Profile = your shop window. If it's dusty and never changed, customers walk by without stopping.
🚀 What you can do:
- Photos & videos: add some every month. Show your work (before/after), your team, your vehicle, or your shop.
- Google Posts: publish several times a month (or more) a special offer, a tip, an event, or a project... Mention your service and your city/neighborhood.
Concrete example
An idea for a Google Post: "Project finished! Laminate flooring installation completed for this client in Chicago."
Dig deeper on our blog
Posts on your Google Business Profile: a simple lever to make your business more visible.
Customer reviews
⭐ Pillar 2: Customer reviews → your new word-of-mouth
🧩 What to understand
Reviews are the new word-of-mouth. They reassure your future clients and are a key ranking factor for Google.
Key figures
- 88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
- A business with 4.5 stars gets +25% more clicks than one with 3.5 stars.
- Businesses that respond to reviews get +35% more reviews.
🚀 What you can do:
- Aim for consistency: Better 5 reviews a month, every month, than 50 all at once.
- Aim for quality: A review saying "Excellent plumbing work in Seattle" has more value than a simple "Top".
- Respond to 100% of reviews: Other clients see that you are attentive, and Google appreciates that you respond. Thank positive reviews. For negative reviews, stay calm and pro: propose solving the problem privately.
Dig deeper on our blog
How many reviews do you need to collect to pass your competitors?
Customer reviews
⭐ Pillar 2: How to collect reviews regularly
🧩 What to understand
Without a method, satisfied clients forget to leave a review. Without a strategy, your teams don't have the reflex to ask for reviews.
🚀 What you can do:
- Ask at the right time: right after the client thanks you for your work.
- Make it easy for them: send a direct link by SMS or email to the review page.
- Use a QR Code: on a small card or on your invoice. The client scans and lands directly on the review page.
Concrete example
After the client thanks you, you can ask: "I'm glad you're satisfied! If you have 2 minutes, a Google review helps us enormously. I'm sending you the link by SMS, it's very quick."
Contact details
☎️ Pillar 3: The consistency of your contact details
🧩 What to understand
For Google, your contact details are a trust signal. If your name, address, or phone number changes from one directory to another, Google doubts. And when it doubts, it displays you lower.
Your name, address, and phone number must be identical on:
- your website,
- your Google Business Profile,
- Yellow Pages, Facebook, Tripadvisor,
- and all directories where you are listed.
The key figure
A study (Moz) showed that info inconsistency can lower your ranking by 20%.
✅ Good news: if it's just a writing difference (ex: "Avenue" vs. "Ave."), don't worry, Google is smart enough to understand.
Contact details
☎️ Pillar 3: Hunting down inconsistencies in your information
🧩 What to understand
If you find inconsistencies in your contact details, you can help Google "update your file".
🚀 What you can do:
List your mentions
Search for your business on Google. Start with main directories (Yellow Pages, TripAdvisor, Facebook, trade-specific ones).
Check consistency
Is your info correct? Same name? Same address? Same phone?
Fix errors
Update incorrect listings.
Remove duplicates
If you have two listings on the same directory, it's a negative signal. Keep only one.
Concrete example
Julien, an optician in Boston, did not appear on Google Maps. Audit: 2 addresses existed (correct + old one). Google didn't know which one to display. After correction: he is now visible.
Website
💻 Pillar 4: Your website, the pillar of your visibility
🧩 What to understand
Your website is your home on the internet. It is the only place that belongs to you 100% and where you can:
- tell who you are,
- show your work,
- transform a visit into a call or a quote request.
Key figures
- 75% of users judge a company's credibility based on its website design.
- 60% of local searches are done on mobile.
It must be optimized for mobile and, like your profile, updated regularly to remain visible on Google.
🌸 Run a free audit of your website. Our tool checks its optimization and gives you priority actions to improve it.
Website
💻 Pillar 4: The optimal structure of your website for local SEO
🧩 What to understand
To be effective for local SEO, a site must be structured and contain certain key pages.
🚀 What you can do:
🏠 Homepage
Present who you are, what you do, and in which cities/areas you operate in a few sentences.
- Clearly highlight why a client should choose you (specialties, guarantees, experience...).
- Display your contact info very visibly at the top of the page (phone, contact button, form...).
- Examples: "Artisan carpenter in San Mateo and Burlingame, specializing in parquet installation", "Family real estate agency present in Denver for 20 years".
🛠️ Services Pages
Create a dedicated page for each of your main services.
- Explain concretely what you do, who the service is for, and how it works.
- Add proof: before/after photos, client reviews, explanation of your method.
- Examples: "Parquet Installation" page, "Sanding & Varnishing" page, "Bathroom Renovation" page.
📍 Local Pages (if you cover several cities)
Create a page per important city or zone you cover.
- Clearly mention the service and the city in the title and text.
- Cite interventions carried out in this area and reviews from clients in the neighborhood.
- Examples: "Heat pump installation in Central San Mateo", "Garden maintenance in Burlingame".
📞 Contact / About Page
Use this page to reassure and provide a central point of contact.
- Tell your story, your experience, and your way of working.
- Check that all your information is up to date (name, phone, address, hours, access map, email, or form).
- Examples: a photo of you or your team, a short text on the creation of the company, a summary block with all your details.
❌ The trap to avoid
Avoid copy-pasting the same text on all your pages. If the content of several pages looks too similar, Google may consider them as duplicate pages and ignore them in its results.
Vary the projects, testimonials, and of course your explanations.
Website
💻 Pillar 4: Technical optimization of your website
🧩 What to understand
This is the "geeky" point of the guide: a website well visible on Google is a site that is fast and well optimized.
🚀 What you can do:
- ✓Accessible by Google: Check that Google can access your site: our free website audit allows you to verify this.
- ✓Mobile: Your site must be fast to load on smartphones, and easy to read on them. Google analyzes the mobile version first for its rankings.
- ✓Schema: Add "schema.org": it's a small piece of code (invisible to the user) added to the site to tell Google and AIs: "Here is my info and my type of business". Plugins exist for WordPress and other site managers to help you add it.
Concrete example
Nathalie, an osteopath in Miami, posted content regularly on her Google Business Profile, but her site dated from 2015, slow and unreadable on mobile. She was almost never highlighted on Google. After redesign: +90% calls since the site ranks better.
🌸 Run a free audit of your website. Our tool checks if it is accessible by Google, fast on mobile, and has schema.
Website
💻 Pillar 4: Regular content to feed it
🧩 What to understand
A website that never changes loses value in Google's eyes. Your content must show that you are an active and relevant expert in your city.
🚀 What you can do:
- Add an FAQ: answer questions your clients ask you the most (ex: "What are the deadlines?", "Do you do after-sales service?").
- Update your "Services" and "Cities" pages: don't let them gather dust. Regularly add photos of your new projects there.
- Testimonials: integrate reviews from satisfied clients directly on the corresponding service page. It is the ideal tool to prove your expertise.
- Blog: it is the ideal tool (if you have time) to prove your expertise. Write an article presenting a project, a tip, a new standard, etc.
Local citations
🔗 Pillar 5: Local citations, your trust network
🧩 What to understand
Imagine the local baker recommending your services to their customers. It’s a strong sign of trust, isn’t it? On the Internet, the principle is exactly the same.
Links or mentions from other sites reinforce your credibility for Google and AIs. The more local and reliable they are, the more it reinforces your status as a reference in your area.
🚀 What you can do:
- Register with your local Chamber of Commerce or Trade Association to appear in their public directories.
- Join local business associations.
- Propose to a local media or blog to talk about your know-how.
- Become a sponsor of a local sports event or association.
Concrete example
Émilie, a photographer in Las Vegas, got an article about her in "Las Vegas Weekly", her registration in Chamber of Commerce directory, and a link on a local event's website. Result: 3 quality links → moved from 8th to 4th position, increased website traffic.
Summary of the 5 pillars of local SEO
You now know the 5 subjects that will allow you to rank better on Google.
Pillar 1
Your Google Business Profile
Complete profile, info and hours always up to date, new photos regularly.
Pillar 2
Customer reviews
Ask for reviews regularly and respond to them to reassure Google and your clients.
Pillar 3
Identical info
Same name, same address, and same phone everywhere on the web.
Pillar 4
Your website
Fast site, readable on mobile, with your services and locations well explained, and content updated regularly.
Pillar 5
Local citations
Links and mentions from reliable local sites: city hall, Chamber of Commerce, partners.
🚀 How to apply this plan?
🗓️ Your roadmap for local SEO
Local SEO is not a list of boxes to check once and for all. It's a marathon: you start by laying solid foundations, then you regularly fuel the engine.
Step 1 · Foundations
Getting your bases in order
- Create or claim your Google Business Profile and fill it out to 100%.
- Update your website: essential pages, contact info, covered areas.
- Check that your contact details are identical everywhere on the web.
Step 2 · Start the engine
Sending strong first signals
- Start asking for reviews after each service.
- Highlight the review link on your site, your emails, your invoices.
- Contact a few local actors (associations, partners, Chamber of Commerce...) to exchange links.
Step 3 · Routine
Maintaining your visibility
- Regularly publish recent photos of your work.
- Post important news or offers from time to time.
- Respond to all your reviews, positive and negative.
- Update your site and key pages a few times a year.
Better small regular actions, every month, than a big effort just once.
🕵️ Inspiration from your competitors
Begonia.pro: competitor analysis
🧩 What to understand
Your highly-ranked competitors are a goldmine of information. Analyzing what works for them allows you to define your priorities, and find opportunities for action.
🚀 What you can do:
Look at your 3 most visible competitors and ask yourself:
- What services do they highlight on their Google Business Profile?
- How many reviews did they get this month?
- From which local directories or sites do they have links?
This will allow you to know the efforts needed to rank better than them. If your competitors have 6 reviews per month, you must collect as many or more! If they have a content-rich site, you'll have to think about creating one.
🌸 We help you by automating the tracking of your competitors: positions, number of reviews, key information, and activity:
Dig deeper on our blog
Why can analyzing your competitors help your local SEO?
🌸 Manage your local SEO autonomously with Begonia.pro
You now know the theory of local SEO. Regular actions will allow you to climb the rankings and be the most visible business in your sector.
In practice, you can get guided by our tool Begonia.pro.
It's the perfect tool if you want to keep control, without spending hours on it, to:
- ✓track your rankings on Google Maps and Google Search,
- ✓automatically monitor your competitors,
- ✓receive a personalized and simple-to-follow action plan each month.
Begonia.pro: homepage
🤝 Enjoy personalized coaching
If you prefer to delegate, save time, or be personally guided to apply this strategy, custom coaching is possible:
- ✓we define your goals together,
- ✓we build your local strategy,
- ✓we handle the implementation of actions.
🎯 Test your knowledge
You finished the guide! Check what you retained with our quick 6-question quiz.
It's the occasion to consolidate your knowledge and identify points to review.
6 questions
~2 minutes