What Small Businesses Should Know About Local SEO

The most important thing small businesses should know about local SEO is this: if locals can’t find you on Google, they’re finding your competitors instead. Local SEO is how you change that, because it puts your business in front of people who are already searching for your services nearby.

We’re H-Mag, a Brisbane SEO agency that’s helped local businesses improve their search visibility for years. That experience has shown us what works, what wastes time, and where most people get stuck along the way.

That’s why we wrote this guide. It walks you through your Google Business Profile, keyword research, online reviews, image optimisation, and when Google Ads make sense alongside organic SEO. 

Everything here is practical and built around what we’ve seen get real results for local businesses. So, without further ado, let’s get started! 

Setting Up Your Google Business Profile the Right Way

A well-set-up Google Business Profile puts your business in front of local customers before they even visit your website. 

When someone searches for a service in your area, Google pulls information directly from your business profile to decide what shows up in Google Maps and local search results. So if your profile is incomplete, your business gets skipped entirely.

That’s why it’s worth getting the basics right from the start:

• Business Hours and Operating Hours: Keep these accurate and update them for holidays, because outdated hours frustrate customers and send them to a competitor.
• Categories and Services: Pick the categories that best describe what you do, then list your individual services so Google can match you to relevant searches.
• Verified Street Address and Phone Number: Google needs to confirm your location is real, which is why a verified address and working phone number help build that trust with both Google and your customers.

Setting it up once isn’t enough, though. We’ve worked with plenty of local businesses on this, and the ones who post updates and add fresh photos consistently tend to stay visible longer in local search.

How Keyword Research Improves Local Search Results

Most small businesses guess which words their customers search for, and most of the time, they get it wrong. If your website content doesn’t match the specific keywords people type into Google, your business won’t show up in local search results.

Keyword research fixes that problem by helping you find the exact phrases potential customers use when looking for services in your area. And you don’t need expensive SEO tools to get started, because even Google’s own search suggestions can point you in the right direction.

Here’s an example: Say you’re a plumber. Instead of targeting a broad term like “plumber,” try combining your service with a location, something like “emergency plumber West End Brisbane.” 

These long-tail keywords face less competition in search results and attract people who are closer to making a decision. In fact, long-tail local phrases often convert two to three times better than broad terms.

And once you’ve built a list of relevant keywords, work them into your page titles and meta descriptions as well as your website content. If you create content around topics your local customers already search for, search engines will notice.

Why Online Reviews Affect Your Local Search Ranking

Google treats online reviews as trust signals, and they directly influence where your business appears in local search results. 

BrightLocal’s 2025 Local Consumer Review Survey found that only 4% of consumers never read online reviews, which means nearly everyone is checking before they choose a local business. So if your business profile has zero reviews or a low rating, potential customers will scroll right past you.

Google doesn’t just look at your star rating, though. It pays attention to a few different things when deciding how to rank your business in local search:

What Google Looks At	Why It Affects Your Ranking
Review quantity	More reviews signal that customers are actively using your business
Review recency	Fresh reviews tell Google your business is still active and relevant
Star rating	Higher ratings build trust with both Google and potential customers
Owner responses	Replying shows you’re engaged, which Google factors into local visibility

Responding to every review is worth the effort, and that includes the negative ones (ignoring a negative review doesn’t make it disappear; it just makes you look like you don’t care). 

From our experience working with small business SEO campaigns, we’ve found that businesses that reply to reviews consistently tend to build a stronger online presence over time. And believe it or not, you don’t need hundreds of reviews to see results. Even a small number of positive reviews posted regularly can help your business climb in local search. 

Pro tip: The easiest way to get reviews is to ask customers right after a completed job or a positive interaction, when the experience is still fresh.

High Quality Images and Local Optimisation for Google Search

Ever scroll past a Google listing with no photos? So does everyone else. 

When your business profile includes high-quality images of your team, your location, and your work, it gives potential customers a reason to click. We’ve tested this across a few client profiles, and listings with real photos consistently get more clicks than stock images.

Images alone won’t do all the work, though. Google also looks at how it reads those images and how your business details connect across the web. Let’s break it down. 

Why Image Quality Affects Local Listings

When you upload photos to your Google Business Profile, include your shopfront, your team on the job, and the services you provide. 

Rename each file with a location and service description, something like “roof-repair-west-end-brisbane.jpg.” This helps search engines connect your images to relevant local searches.

Getting Your NAP Details Right

NAP stands for Name, Address, and Phone number. Keeping these consistent across your website, your Google Business Profile, and every online directory your business appears in is a big part of local optimisation. 

So if your street address says “St” on your website but “Street” on your business profile, that simple mismatch can confuse search engines. Even Google’s own local ranking guide confirms that complete and accurate business information directly affects your local search ranking.

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Should Small Businesses Use Google Ads Alongside Local SEO?

Yes, and it’s one of the best moves a small business can make early in its SEO journey. 

Running Google Ads while building your organic local SEO strategy means you don’t have to wait months for website traffic to pick up. Your ads show up at the top of Google search results straight away, which gives your business online visibility from day one.

To be honest, most small businesses we work with don’t realise how well these two channels work together. Your Google Ads campaign captures clicks at the top of the page, while your local SEO builds your presence in the map pack results on Google Maps. 

Plus, when potential customers see your business in both paid and organic results, it builds trust and often leads to more clicks.

You don’t need a huge budget to get started, either. Begin with a small campaign targeting your main service and suburb, then use Google Analytics to track which ads bring in organic traffic and qualified leads. 

Finally, pair that with an active social media presence and links from your local community, and you’ll create a solid SEO campaign that builds online visibility over time.

Get Your Business Into Google’s Search Results

Now that you’ve got the full picture, here’s how to put it all into action. 

Local SEO is one of the most cost-effective ways for a small business to grow its online presence and reach more customers. And you don’t need a big budget or a complex SEO strategy to get started.

Just begin with the basics like setting up your Google Business Profile, asking customers for reviews, and creating website content around the local keywords people are already searching for. These steps alone can improve where your business appears in Google’s search results and on Google Maps.

The small businesses that see success with local SEO are the ones that stay consistent. Keep your business profile updated, stay active on social media, build local links, and keep an eye on algorithm updates. 

If you need a hand, a local SEO agency like H-Mag can help you build an SEO campaign that fits your goals.