Where does the business actually operate?
Start with facts: the locations, opening hours and service areas the business really works from. Before creating or changing a Business Profile, check eligibility against Google’s guidelines. A profile is meant for businesses that have in-person contact with customers during their stated hours; a business that visits customers instead of receiving them can show a service area and hide its address. Getting these facts right is the first step of local SEO.
Assign one person to keep this information current, so that holiday hours, phone numbers and service changes do not drift apart between the website and the profiles. Note where each detail comes from and how it will be checked when something changes in operations: a move, a new phone line, a new service.
Inaccurate details cost more than a ranking. A customer who arrives at a closed office or calls a number that no longer works is unlikely to try a second time.
What should a location page contain?
A location page should help someone decide whether the business can serve them. Include the services available there, how to get there or which areas are covered, how to book or ask a question, and genuine local evidence where you have it: photos of the premises, details of access and parking, work carried out in the area.
Swapping the city name in otherwise identical text does not create a new page for the customer. Google’s spam policies describe sets of near-identical pages built to rank for different city names as doorway pages.
Decide which locations justify a dedicated page and which are better described as part of the coverage on an existing page. A clear list of the towns you serve, with your terms, is often more honest than a series of thin pages. Whatever you choose, the address, phone number and opening hours on the page should match the profile exactly.
How do you track local enquiries?
Point each profile’s website link to the most relevant page, the location page or the service page, not just the home page. Where tracking is set up, use a consistent tagging convention so that profile visits can be told apart from other traffic.
Look at calls, bookings and qualified enquiries, not only at visibility. It should be possible to separate genuine local demand from irrelevant traffic, such as people from areas you do not serve.
From time to time, compare three sources: the website, the profiles and your internal operations record. This matters most after a move or a change in the range of services, when an outdated detail is most likely to linger in one of them. If you list the business in other directories or run local ads, keep those details consistent as well.
Local information ownership
A template to adapt to your own project.
| Information | Update trigger |
|---|---|
| Location and access | A move, a new entrance or access restrictions. |
| Hours and availability | Holiday schedule or a change in staffing. |
| Service coverage | A new territory or a change in what the team can take on. |
| Destination page | A change in the offer, the booking process or the URL. |
Checklist: local SEO
- Confirm profile eligibility and the areas you serve.
- Name a person responsible for business information updates.
- Give each location page specific, practical information.
- Link each profile to the most relevant page on the site.
- Review local enquiries and fix conflicting details.
Example: one office, several towns
A service company has one office and works in several nearby towns. The main service page describes the coverage area and the booking process, and the business profile shows the same service area.
A separate town page is added only when the company can describe meaningful differences there, in available services, access or delivery, and is ready to keep that information up to date.
Common mistakes
- Swapping city names in identical text. Near-identical pages for different towns can be treated as doorway pages and do not help customers.
- Letting details drift apart. Hours, phone numbers and addresses must match on the site, the profiles and directories.
- Linking every profile to the home page. Send each profile to the most relevant location or service page.
- Measuring visibility only. Calls, bookings and qualified enquiries show whether local work pays off; impressions alone do not.
Questions
Do I need a separate page for every town I serve?
Only where you can describe meaningful differences: services available there, access, delivery or local work, and keep that information current. Otherwise a clear list of the areas you serve on the main service page is more honest and more useful.
Can a business without an office have a Business Profile?
Often yes, if it serves customers in person at their location. Such a business can show a service area and hide its address. Check the current eligibility guidelines before creating the profile.
Who should keep the business information up to date?
One named person, with a list of where each detail appears and what triggers an update: a move, new hours, a new phone line or a change in services. Shared responsibility usually means nobody updates anything.
How do I know local SEO is working?
Track enquiries from profile visits separately, with consistent tagging, and compare calls, bookings and qualified requests over time. Our local SEO work starts from that measurement, not from rankings alone.
