Best Local SEO Experts

What a good local SEO package includes

Local SEO gigs are sold as audits, one-time setups or monthly work. Check that the package states:

• Business profile: setup or optimization of your Google Business Profile, and others such as Bing or Apple Maps.
• Categories, services and hours checked and completed.
• Citations: how many listings will be created or corrected, and on which sites.
• Website: location pages, contact details and local information on your site.
• Reviews: a plan for asking real customers and replying to reviews.
• Reporting: calls, direction requests, website visits and rankings in your area.
• Access: work done through manager access to accounts you own.

What to prepare before you order

1. Your exact business name, address and phone number, written the same way everywhere.
2. Your service area and the towns or neighborhoods you want to be found in.
3. Your main services and the phrases customers use for them.
4. Photos of your premises, team and work.
5. Access to your business profile and website, as a manager or staff user.
6. Old details: previous addresses, phone numbers or names that may still be listed.
7. Competitors that appear above you in local results.

Make sure you are the owner of your business profile before any work starts. If an agency or former employee created it, recover ownership first. You can then add the expert as a manager and remove them later.

Reply to reviews, good and bad, in a calm and helpful way. Your replies are public, and potential customers often read them to judge how you treat people when something goes wrong.

What drives the price

• number of locations
• number of citations to create or correct
• website changes and local content
• review management and replies
• competition in your area and industry
• one-time setup versus ongoing monthly work

Red flags

• Offers to buy, write or swap reviews.
• Suggestions to use fake addresses or add keywords to your business name.
• The expert wants to own the business profile.
• Guaranteed top positions on the map.
• Hundreds of low-quality directory listings instead of a few accurate ones.

For search beyond your local area, read our SEO guide. To appear at the top quickly while local SEO builds up, see our search ads guide.

Keep your profile active after the setup is done. Post updates, add new photos, answer questions from customers and keep holiday hours correct. An active, accurate profile helps customers trust you, and wrong hours or an old phone number can cost you a visit even when you appear first in the results. Set a monthly reminder to check that every detail is still correct, especially after you move, rebrand or change your opening hours.

Quick pre-order checklist

• I own my business profile and can add a manager.
• My name, address and phone number are written the same everywhere.
• I have listed my services and service area.
• Reviews will come only from real customers.
• I know what the reports will show.