Marketing AI Skill

Local Seo

Optimize local SEO including Google Business Profile, local citations, local keyword targeting, review management, local link building, and geo-targeted content. Use when setting up Google Business Profile, managing local citations, optimizing for local sea...

Local SEO

Optimize local SEO including Google Business Profile, local citations, review management, local link building, and geo-targeted content.

Workflow

1. Google Business Profile Optimization

GOOGLE BUSINESS PROFILE (GBP) OPTIMIZATION
═══════════════════════════════════════

Profile Completeness Checklist:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  → Business name: Exact legal name (no keywords)
  → Address: Complete, consistent (NAP)
  → Phone: Local number, consistent
  → Website: URL (location page, not homepage)
  → Category: Primary + secondary (up to 10)
  → Description: 750 chars, keyword-rich, benefit-focused
  → Hours: Regular + holiday hours (accurate)
  → Services: Complete list (with descriptions)
  → Products: Catalog (with prices, photos)
  → Photos: 25+ high-quality (interior, exterior, team, work)
  → Attributes: All applicable (wheelchair access, WiFi, etc.)
  → Q&A: Pre-populated (5-10 common questions)
  → Posts: Weekly (offers, events, updates)
  → Booking: Enabled (if applicable)
  → Messaging: Enabled (if applicable)

CATEGORY SELECTION:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Primary: Most specific and relevant
  Secondary: Related categories (up to 9 more)
  → Example: "Software Company" + "IT Consultant" + "Web Designer"

PHOTO STRATEGY:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Type              Count       Frequency       Source
  ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  Exterior          5-10        One-time + updates Staff
  Interior          5-10        One-time + updates Staff
  Team              3-5         Quarterly        Staff
  Products/Work     10+         Monthly         Staff + customers
  Logo              1           One-time        Designer
  Cover             1           Quarterly       Designer

  → Geotag photos (location metadata)
  → Alt text (descriptive, local keywords)
  → High-resolution (minimum 720px)
  → Natural lighting, professional quality

GBP POSTS:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  → Frequency: 2-3 per week
  → Types: Update, offer, event, product
  → Content: New feature, promotion, team event, blog highlight
  → CTA: "Learn more", "Call now", "Book", "Sign up"
  → Image: High-quality, relevant
  → Expiration: 7-30 days (promotions)

2. Local Citations & Directories

LOCAL CITATION BUILDING
═══════════════════════════════════════

Primary Directories (Must-Have):
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Directory           Priority    NAP Required    Category        Verification
  ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  Google Business     CRITICAL    Yes             Multiple        Phone/Email
  Bing Places         HIGH        Yes             Multiple        Phone/Email
  Apple Maps          HIGH        Yes             Single          Apple Connect
  Facebook            HIGH        Yes             Single          Business page
  Yelp                HIGH        Yes             Single          Phone
  Yellow Pages        MEDIUM      Yes             Single          Phone
  Better Business Bureau HIGH     Yes            Single          Membership

Industry-Specific Directories:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Directory              Priority    Industry         Verification
  ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  Clutch                   HIGH      Tech services    Manual review
  Capterra                 HIGH      Software         Application
  G2                       HIGH      Software         Application
  Trustpilot               MEDIUM    All              Email
  Glassdoor                MEDIUM    All              Email

NAP CONSISTENCY:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  → Name: Exact legal name (no variations)
  → Address: Standardized format (no abbreviations)
  → Phone: Local number, E.164 format
  → Website: www.example.com (not blog.example.com)

  Current Consistency: 92% (target: 100%)
  Inconsistencies found: 8 (fixing)

LOCAL LINK BUILDING:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  → Local chamber of commerce (membership)
  → Local business associations
  → Sponsorship of local events
  → Local news (press releases, features)
  → Local blog guest posts
  → Partner links (complementary businesses)
  → Local directory submissions (50+)

3. Review Management

REVIEW MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
═══════════════════════════════════════

Review Generation:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  → Post-purchase email (24h after purchase)
  → Post-service email (48h after service)
  → In-app request (after milestone)
  → SMS request (for mobile-first customers)
  → Direct link (short URL to review page)
  → QR code (on packaging, receipts)
  → Staff ask (verbal request)

  Email Template:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Subject: "How was your experience with [Company]?"

  Hi [Name],

  Thank you for choosing [Company]! We'd love to hear about your experience.

  If you have a moment, please leave us a review:
  [Direct link to Google review]

  Your feedback helps us improve and helps others find us.

  Thank you,
  [Team name]

REVIEW RESPONSE TEMPLATE:
═══════════════════════════════════════

Positive Review:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  "Thank you, [Name]! We're thrilled to hear [specific compliment].
  Our team works hard to [specific value]. We look forward to
  [next positive interaction]!"

Negative Review:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  "Thank you for your feedback, [Name]. We're sorry to hear about
  [specific issue]. This isn't the experience we want for our
  customers. We'd like to make this right — please contact us at
  [phone/email] so we can resolve this."

  → Respond within 24 hours
  → Never argue, always professional
  → Take conversation offline for resolution
  → Show action taken (if applicable)

REVIEW METRICS (Q4 2024):
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Platform        Total Reviews  Avg Rating  New Reviews  Response Rate
  ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  Google          145            4.6/5       32           100%
  Facebook        58             4.5/5       12           100%
  Capterra        35             4.4/5       8            90%
  G2              28             4.3/5       5            100%
  Trustpilot      22             4.5/5       6            85%
  Clutch          15             4.7/5       3            100%

4. Local Content Strategy

LOCAL CONTENT STRATEGY
═══════════════════════════════════════

Location Pages:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  → Dedicated page per location/service area
  → URL: /city/service or /service-city
  → Unique content (not template-duplicated)
  → Local keywords (city, neighborhood, region)
  → Local business info (address, phone, hours)
  → Embedded Google Map
  → Local testimonials/case studies
  → Local blog content

LOCAL KEYWORD TARGETING:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Keyword                     Volume   KD     Intent      Current Rank
  ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  project management software [city]  480   35   Commercial  8
  best [service] in [city]           320   28   Commercial  5
  [service] near me                  1,200  42   Commercial  12
  [service] [neighborhood]           180   22   Commercial  3
  [company] [city]                   240   15   Navigational 2

LOCAL BLOG TOPICS:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  → "Best [industry] practices in [city]"
  → "[City] business trends 2025"
  → "How [city] companies use [solution]"
  → "Case study: [Local customer] success"
  → "[City] event: [Company] sponsors"
  → "Local partnerships: [Company] × [Local org]"

5. Local SEO Performance

LOCAL SEO PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD
═══════════════════════════════════════

GBP Performance:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Metric              Target        Current      Status
  ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  Profile completeness 100%         95%          ⚠️ Near
  Monthly views        ≥ 5,000      6,200        ✓ Above
  Monthly searches     ≥ 3,000      4,100        ✓ Above
  Direction requests   ≥ 100        145          ✓ Above
  Website clicks       ≥ 200        280          ✓ Above
  Phone calls          ≥ 50         78           ✓ Above

  Search Queries (Top 5):
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Query                          Searches    Position
  ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  [brand name]                   1,200       #1
  [brand] + [service]            450         #1
  [service] near me              380         #3
  best [service] [city]          280         #2
  [service] + [company]          220         #1

Local Pack Rankings:
═══════════════════════════════════════

  Keyword                     Position    Trend    Status
  ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
  project management software [city]  #2      ↑     ✓ Good
  software company [city]            #1      →     ✓ Good
  IT services [city]                 #3      ↑     ⚠️ Near top
  [service] near me                  #4      ↑     ⚠️ Improving

Edge Cases

Multi-location: Consistent NAP across locations, location pages
Service-area: No physical address (SAB business)
National brand: Local optimization per market
E-commerce: Local pickup, local delivery, store locator
Seasonal: Holiday hours, seasonal services

Integration Points

GBP: Google Business Profile, Google Maps
Citations: Moz Local, BrightLocal, Whitespark
Reviews: Birdeye, Podium, ReviewTrackers
Directories: Yelp, BBB, Facebook, Bing Places
Local SEO: SEMrush, Ahrefs, Moz, Local Falcon
Analytics: GA4, GSC, GBP Insights

Output

Local SEO Status

LOCAL SEO — Q4 2024
═══════════════════════════════════════

GBP completeness: 95% (target: 100%)
Monthly views: 6,200 (↑ 25% QoQ)
Reviews: 145 total (4.6/5 avg)
Citations: 85 (NAP consistent: 92%)
Local pack rankings: 3 of 5 in top 3
Direction requests: 145/month
Phone calls: 78/month
Website clicks from GBP: 280/month
Next priority: Complete GBP to 100%, fix 8 citation inconsistencies