/ GUIDE — 6 min read

The local SEO checklist for review-driven businesses

GBP completeness, NAP consistency, core citations, structured data, and the weekly upkeep that keeps local rankings moving.

Local SEO is mostly a completeness-and-consistency game. This is the full checklist, ordered by leverage.

The seven layers at a glance, and the loop they feed: more reviews, more visibility, more customers.

1. Google Business Profile, complete

Claimed and verified
Correct primary category (the single most consequential field)
Services listed, hours accurate, description written from customer language
Photos: add 2 per week; listings with fresh photos earn more actions
The "Ask for reviews" short link in active use everywhere you ask

2. NAP consistency

Your Name, Address, Phone must be identical — character for character — across your website footer, GBP, and every citation. Inconsistency is the classic silent killer of local rankings.

3. Core citations

Claim these first: Google, Bing Places, Apple Maps, Facebook, Yelp, plus the 2–3 directories that matter in your vertical (Houzz, Avvo, Healthgrades, TripAdvisor…). Bing matters more than its search share suggests — it feeds several AI assistants.

4. Structured data

LocalBusiness markup on your homepage/contact page, matching your NAP exactly
A real FAQ written for people: the questions customers actually ask, answered plainly on the page
FAQPage markup is optional. Since May 7, 2026, Google shows no FAQ rich results for any site, so the markup earns none; add it only if another tool you rely on reads it
Validate after every site change; re-run your site audit to confirm detection

5. One page per service, city pages where justified

Each core service gets its own page with the keyword in title, H1, first paragraph, and URL. Build "[service] in [city]" pages only where you have real proof to show — review quotes from customers in that area are the strongest content those pages can carry.

6. Weekly upkeep (45 minutes)

1 GBP post + 2 photos
Respond to every new review (see the response formula in the Learn course)
Fix one on-page basic — a title, an H1, a missing internal link

7. Monthly

Rank check on a stable basket of 10–25 local terms — judge 4-week trends, not daily jumps
Backlink snapshot; pursue one local link (chamber, supplier, sponsorship, local press)
Compare calls and direction requests in GBP insights against last month

The compounding loop: reviews improve rankings and click-through → more customers → more reviews. The checklist exists to make sure nothing structural is blocking that loop from turning.

Last updated: November 10, 2026. Step 4 now reflects Google ending FAQ rich results for every site on May 7, 2026.