Guides to getting more calls from Google Maps.
Plain-English help for local business owners. No jargon, no fluff. Start with the basics, or jump to the guide for your trade.
All guides
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What is a Google Business Profile, and why does it matter?
The free listing that puts you on Google Maps, explained in plain English.
How to get your business into the top 3 on Google Maps
What Google looks at when it picks the top 3, and the steps that move you up.
How to choose a local SEO company, and the red flags to avoid
Questions to ask before you sign, and the warning signs to walk away from.
How to do it
Google Business Profile categories: how to choose the right one
How Google uses categories, how to choose yours, and a list for 20 trades.
How to get more Google reviews, without breaking the rules
When to ask, what to send, and the rules that you must obey.
Google review request templates for 12 trades
Copy-and-paste review requests for text and email, by trade.
What decides the top 3 on Google Maps
Relevance, distance and prominence, explained with the work that changes each one.
Google listing photos: what to post and how often
What to photograph, how many, how often, and what to avoid.
45 Google review reply templates
Replies for 15 situations, from 5 stars to a false accusation.
Your Google performance report, line by line
Each number in the performance report, and how to read it correctly.
Service area businesses on Google: how to hide your address
How to hide your address, set your service areas, and stay inside the rules.
52 Google post ideas, one for each week
52 post ideas by season and purpose, with eight copy-and-paste templates.
Google verification: what the video must show
The verification methods, what the video must show, and why it fails.
Two Google listings for one business: how to fix it
How to find duplicates, and how to merge or remove them safely.
Someone else controls your Google listing
The ownership request process, the timeline, and the options if it fails.
What local SEO costs, and what you get
The price levels, what each one includes, and how to compare offers.
12 questions to ask before you pay anyone
The questions to ask, the good answers, and the answers that should worry you.
10 local SEO red flags
Ten warning signs, and the damage that each one causes.
Doing it yourself, or hiring someone
What you can do yourself, what takes time, and when hiring pays.
What Super LS includes, week by week
The weekly task list, the reporting, and the limits of the service.
Google listing management: what it costs and why
The work behind a monthly fee, and how to spot an automatic service.
Guides by trade
Google Maps for plumbers
Categories, services, photos, reviews and suspension risks for plumbing companies.
Google Maps for HVAC companies
Categories, services, photos and the seasonal plan for HVAC companies.
Google Maps for electricians
Categories, services, photos and storm-season work for electricians.
Google Maps for painting contractors
Categories, services, before-and-after photos and reviews for painters.
Google Maps for moving companies
Categories, licensing, photos and the suspension rules for movers.
Google Maps for law firms
Practice area categories, attorney listings and the rules that apply to legal advertising.
Google Maps for dental offices
Categories, booking links, photos and privacy-safe review replies for dentists.
Tools and reference
Free tools
Six tools for your listing: categories, business name, reviews, photos, business information and call value.
Map Pack simulator
Move a customer around a map and watch the top 3 change.
Local search glossary
25 terms in plain words, from Map Pack to review gating.
Free 6-lesson course
Claim, categories, photos, reviews, business information and measurement.
Find out where you show up on Google Maps.
You can start in two ways. Both are free. We do not make a sales call.
You can also write your own email. Send your business name and your city to team@localseomarketing.agency.