A practical local SEO checklist for UK small businesses: Google Business Profile, consistent listings, reviews and pages that rank in your town.
When someone types "Indian takeaway Derby" or "photo booth hire Nottingham" into Google, the first thing they usually see is a map with three businesses under it. That block is the map pack, and for most local businesses it matters more than anything else on the page.
The good news: you don't need a big budget to get into it. You need the basics done properly and done consistently. Here's the checklist we work through with every local client.
1. Claim and finish your Google Business Profile
Your Google Business Profile is the listing that appears in the map pack and on Google Maps. If you haven't claimed it, do that first at business.google.com.
Then fill in everything, not just the name and phone number:
- Primary category. Pick the most specific one that describes what you do. "Japanese restaurant" beats "Restaurant".
- Secondary categories. Add the others that genuinely apply.
- Opening hours, including bank holiday hours when they come round.
- Services or menu, with short descriptions.
- Photos. Real photos of your place, your team and your work. Add new ones regularly.
- Business description. Say what you do and where, in plain English.
An incomplete profile is one of the most common reasons a good local business doesn't show up.
2. Make your name, address and phone number match everywhere
Google cross-checks your details across the web. If your website says "Unit 4", your Facebook page says "4 High St" and an old directory has a phone number you stopped using two years ago, you're sending mixed signals.
Pick one exact version of your business name, address and phone number and use it everywhere: your website footer, Google, Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, TripAdvisor, Bing Places, Apple Maps and any industry directories.
3. Ask for reviews, every week
Reviews help you rank and they help people choose you. The trick is making asking a habit rather than something you remember once a year.
- Get your review link from your Google Business Profile and turn it into a QR code for the counter or the bill.
- Send it in a follow-up message after a job or booking.
- Reply to every review, good and bad. A calm, helpful reply to a bad review often wins more trust than the five-star ones.
Don't buy reviews or offer rewards for positive ones. It breaks Google's rules and can get reviews removed.
4. Build a page for each thing you sell, in the places you sell it
If you do three services, one page that lists all three will struggle to rank for any of them. Give each service its own page, with a clear title that includes the service and the town, for example "Wedding photo booth hire in Leicester".
Each page should answer the questions customers actually ask: what's included, how long it takes, roughly what it costs, and how to book.
5. Get the technical basics right
You don't need to be technical to check these:
- Does your site load quickly on a phone? Try it on 4G, not your office Wi-Fi.
- Does every page have a unique title and description?
- Is your phone number a tap-to-call link on mobile?
- Is your address on the site as text, not only inside an image?
Google's free Search Console will also tell you about pages it can't read or index.
6. Post to your profile like it's a social channel
Google Business Profile has a Posts feature most businesses ignore. Share offers, events, new menu items and recent work. It keeps your profile active and gives people another reason to click.
The short version
Local SEO isn't a trick. It's a complete, accurate profile, consistent details everywhere, a steady flow of reviews, and a website that clearly says what you do and where. Do those well for a few months and you give Google every reason to show you.
If you'd rather hand it over, that's exactly what our SEO service covers.