Free local SEO resource
Help nearby customers understand your business and take the next step. Work through 20 practical checks, from accurate details to a booking link that actually works.
Make these answers easy to find
How local ranking works
Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity. It describes prominence as how well-known a business is, and says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking.
Google is also clear that there’s no way to request or pay for a better local ranking. This checklist helps you keep an accurate, useful profile. It can’t guarantee a ranking.
Sources: Google Business Profile Help.
Stage 01
Fix details that could send someone to the wrong place or stop them reaching you.
01 / Check
Use an account the business controls. Confirm the business meets Google’s eligibility rules and complete the verification requested in your account.
Ready when: the right person can manage the correct listing.
02 / Check
Google says your name should reflect your business’s real-world name. Keep service keywords, sales claims and location phrases out unless they’re genuinely part of it.
Check against: signage, invoices and the website.
03 / Check
Use an accurate address or service area. Service-area businesses that don’t receive customers at their address should hide it.
Customer test: can someone tell whether to visit or request a callout?
04 / Check
Call the listed number. Review regular and special hours, and confirm someone handles enquiries during the times you publish.
Customer test: try the contact route from a phone.
Stage 02
A visitor should quickly know whether you can help with their specific job.
05 / Check
Choose the most specific accurate primary category. Add only categories that genuinely describe the business.
Review prompt: what is this business, rather than everything it has?
06 / Check
Remove work you no longer offer and make unfamiliar service names easier to understand.
Team task: ask the person answering enquiries to check the list.
07 / Check
Explain what you do and who you help in plain language. Avoid links, promotional pricing and unsupported claims.
Read it aloud: does it sound like your business?
08 / Check
Check the website and any booking link. For a branch, use a page that clearly represents that location.
Customer test: complete the journey up to the enquiry or booking step.
Stage 03
Real, useful photos reduce uncertainty before the first visit or conversation.
09 / Check
For a customer-facing location, choose a clear entrance photo. Ask someone unfamiliar with the building whether they could find the door.
Photo brief: entrance, sign and approach from the street.
10 / Check
Use clear photos of the space, team or work. Get permission from identifiable people before publishing.
Photo brief: what would a first-time customer want to see?
11 / Check
Look through the public photos on mobile. Replace business-uploaded images that are blurry, out of date or no longer representative.
Review prompt: is the most useful information easy to see?
12 / Check
Where available, share an update when customers need to know something. Remove or revise expired information.
Example: explain a changed entrance during renovations.
Sources: Google’s local visibility guidance.
Stage 04
Ask for honest feedback consistently, then respond with care.
13 / Check
Use the review link or QR code in your profile. Test it before adding it to a message or printed card.
Customer test: does it open the correct business?
14 / Check
Invite genuine customers to leave an honest review. Google treats incentives for reviews as fake and misleading content, so never offer them.
Team routine: use the same fair invitation for everyone.
15 / Check
Thank people for useful feedback. Keep replies polite, never share private customer information, and offer a direct contact route for concerns.
Quality check: remove canned phrases that don’t fit.
16 / Check
Choose who checks new feedback and who handles an unresolved complaint. Our suggested routine: review weekly, escalate urgent issues promptly.
Ready when: feedback has a named owner, not just an inbox.
Sources: Google’s guidance on requesting reviews.
Stage 05
Use reports to ask better questions, and keep real business outcomes beside the platform numbers.
17 / Check
Review the Performance section and record the metrics available. Compare equivalent date ranges.
Working note: record the period, metric and any missing data.
18 / Check
Website clicks count clicks on the website link. Calls reflect clicks on the call button, not confirmed conversations or bookings.
Team task: compare platform activity with actual enquiries.
19 / Check
If people reach the website but don’t enquire, check the destination on a phone for confusing offers, broken forms or a hidden next step.
Practical test: ask a colleague to find and use the contact route.
20 / Check
Record what changed, why and when. Review results alongside holidays, seasonality and other marketing before deciding what to do next.
Working note: choose one priority for the next review.
Worked example · fictional business
Example Edmonton Plumbing offers residential leak repairs and fixture replacement, but not 24-hour emergency service. This is an invented teaching example, not an AlphaIT client or a results claim.
Example Edmonton Plumbing helps Edmonton homeowners with leak repairs, tap replacement and toilet repairs. Our team visits customers at their homes and explains the proposed work before starting. Contact us during our published hours to discuss the problem and arrange a visit.
Fictional sample. Replace the name, services and claims with accurate details.
Afterwards, keep a simple log of relevant enquiries and requests for services you don’t offer, and compare equivalent periods. Don’t read a short-term change as proof of a ranking improvement.
Ready-to-adapt review request
Hi [First name], thank you for choosing [Business name]. If you have a moment, we’d appreciate an honest Google review about your experience: [Review link]. Your feedback helps us improve and helps others decide whether we’re the right fit. Thank you!
Send it after a genuine customer interaction. Replace the placeholders and test the link first.
Sources: Google’s review request guidance.
AlphaIT’s suggested routine, not a schedule required by Google.
Common questions
A few things worth clearing up.
Google Business Profile is the current name for the listing customers see in Google Search and Maps.
No. Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity, and there’s no way to pay for a better ranking. This checklist helps you keep a useful profile and enquiry journey; it doesn’t guarantee a ranking.
No. Google says your name should reflect your real-world business name. Don’t add search phrases to attract traffic.
Serving a city doesn’t by itself justify a separate profile. Follow Google’s eligibility and location rules, including its guidance for service-area businesses.
No. This guide doesn’t set a daily quota. Keep information accurate and publish useful material when there’s a reason to.
No. Google considers offering incentives for reviews to be fake and misleading content.
Yes. We can review your profile, related website pages and enquiry journey, then identify practical priorities.
Guidance reviewed October 2026. Features vary by category, region and account; see the linked Google documentation for current requirements. The example business is fictional.
Want help finding the gaps?
We help Edmonton businesses connect their Google Business Profile, website and enquiry process. Bring your questions, and we’ll help you decide what deserves attention first.
