Local SEO

The initial scoping means gathering basic information about the business and defining how we will work together on changes and communication. At this stage I collect the locations or service area, the list of services, the opening hours and the contact details, to keep the information consistent from the start. In parallel we establish how changes are approved and the communication channel, so that implementations and corrections can be carried out in a predictable way. These decisions are the starting point for the audit and the work plan that follow.

Some of the work requires access and permissions to edit the website and the business profile in maps, and to view traffic and query data. If access is missing, I can carry out part of the work only in the form of recommendations, without implementing the changes directly. As part of the start we also sort out where the key information is located (e.g. contact details, opening hours, service descriptions), to limit later discrepancies between the website and the profile.

I establish the range of locations by deciding whether the work covers a single location, multiple locations or a service area. This choice determines how many local pages will be needed, how to split the content for services and how many elements will have to be kept consistent in the business data. On that basis I can propose a target structure in the form of a local page map: locations, service areas and services in a given location. In later stages this decision also affects the number of listings and resources needed to maintain NAP consistency.

Action planning and the structure of local pages mean arranging the work in an order that makes it possible to sort out the critical elements of local SEO first, and only then develop content and local authority. Based on the conclusions from the audit, I put together a work plan and a backlog with tasks to implement in successive iterations. I first cover the elements related to business data, indexing and the business profile in maps, followed by content work and activities that support local recognition. This arrangement makes decision-making easier and limits the risk of working on content without the foundations in order.

I describe the site structure in a document called the “Local page map”, which sets out the proposed layout of pages for locations, service areas and services in a given location. In this map I define which pages are worth creating, which should be merged and which removed, to better match the site to local queries and the service model. The scope of the map depends on the agreed number of locations and on whether the business operates as a single location, multiple locations or a service area. The document is a practical basis for further implementations on the website and for consistently linking services to the right locations.

Website optimisation for local SEO covers adapting the content and technical elements of the site to local queries and linking the website with the business profile in maps. As part of the work I prepare or improve the location and service pages so that they contain unique content, contact details, directions, trust elements and clear CTAs. In parallel I tidy up the meta and headings so that they clearly indicate the service and the location and answer the intent behind the queries. All of this is carried out on the basis of the earlier mapping of keywords to pages and locations.

In the same part, local structured data (including local business, address, opening hours and services) is implemented or updated to limit inconsistencies between pages. This is complemented by local internal linking, which connects service pages with locations and vice versa, strengthening navigation and context for the search engine. We agree separately on how the changes are implemented: they can be implemented by me (if I have access) or by the client/developer. This choice affects the pace of delivery and responsibility for implementation errors.