Local SEO:
be found when it counts.
Local search does not play by the same rules as classic SEO. Here are the levers that genuinely determine your presence in the local pack and on Google Maps.
Three criteria, two of which you can act on
Google explains publicly how it ranks local businesses: relevance, distance, prominence. That transparency is a gift, because it says exactly where to put the effort.
Distance cannot be worked on. That leaves relevance, how closely your profile matches what is being searched, and prominence, how far you are an identifiable reference outside Google.
The concrete levers
- Your business profile, filled in seriously: the foundation of relevance.
- Your reviews, in volume, freshness and with replies: a signal of activity and social proof at once.
- Your NAP citations, name, address, phone, consistent everywhere your business is mentioned: this is what builds prominence for search engines.
- Your website, which confirms and expands on what the profile says.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between SEO and local SEO?
Classic SEO aims to rank pages on general queries. Local SEO aims to surface a physical business on geolocated queries, in the local pack and on Google Maps. The levers differ: the business profile, reviews and citations weigh more than content and links.
How long before local SEO shows results?
Profile fixes often show an effect within a few weeks, because Google recrawls profiles frequently. Prominence, however, builds over several months: reviews, citations and consistency cannot be caught up in one go.
Do NAP citations still matter?
Yes, but differently. Their role is no longer to accumulate links: it is to keep your details consistent from one directory to the next. An inconsistent address or phone number blurs the signal.
Do you need a website when you already have a Google profile?
The profile is enough to appear, but not to convince or to confirm your prominence. A site, even a simple one, lets you detail your services, support your NAP citations and capture searches the profile alone does not cover.