The five things killing your local search ranking

Most local SEO problems aren’t glamorous. They’re broken basics — the kind of thing that’s easy to overlook because it doesn’t feel like ‘real’ SEO work.

Here are the five we see most often when we audit a local business site:

1. Inconsistent name, address and phone number across directories. Google cross-checks these. If they don’t match, it undermines trust in your listing.

2. No Google Business Profile posts or photos. An empty, stale profile signals a business that isn’t actively managed.

3. Missing location pages. If you serve more than one town or area, each one deserves its own page — not just a mention in a footer.

4. Slow-loading pages on mobile. Most local searches happen on a phone. If your site drags, people bounce before they even see what you offer.

5. No reviews strategy. Reviews are a ranking factor and a trust signal. Waiting for them to happen on their own rarely works.

None of these need a big budget to fix — they need someone to actually go through the checklist.