The secret to getting more organic visits to your Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business) is called Local SEO. Unlike general SEO, which focuses on optimizing your website, Local SEO is all about improving your Google Business Profile and targeting searches like “near me” or “in [city].” By applying Local SEO strategies, you can boost your online visibility and attract more organic traffic to your profile.
Think of your Google Business Profile as your digital business card—it’s often the first thing potential customers see when they find you online. Local SEO not only optimizes your profile itself but also creates supporting signals across the web that act as trust boosters. These signals help search engines confirm that your business is legitimate, accurate, and worth showing to local searchers.
Crash Course Local SEO
To generate more organic visits to your Google Business Profile, apply the following local SEO strategy. No worries, we will dive in deeper in the course of this article!
- Fill in all relevant information on your Google Business Profile (including business categories, description, and attributes)
- Complete and accurate information (NAP consistency, business category, attributes)
- Use High-quality images and SEO-optimized descriptions on your Google Business Profile
- Encourage customer reviews and actively respond to them
- Use Google posts and the Q&A section
- Getting listed on relevant directories can increase the visibility of your Google Business Profile
- Monitor and analyze your Google Business Profile Insights
Let’s explore each step in detail in the following chapters!
How Do I Get People to See My Business on Google?
First, ensure that your Google Business Profile is set up correctly so that people searching for a service or product in their immediate geographic area can find it. An incomplete profile is less likely to be shown frequently, as the search engine may not be able to properly match your business with relevant search queries.
Steps to optimize your Google Business profile:
- Claim your Google Business profile and verify it.
- Fill in NAP (business name, address, phone number).
- Select a primary category and secondary categories (e.g., Primary: Italian Restaurant; Secondary: Pizza Restaurant,
- Pasta Restaurant, Restaurant).
- Add your website.
- Add business hours.
- Add a business description.
- Add high-quality images.
- Add industry specific options (such as menu link and menu items)
- Ensure you continuously collect and respond to reviews.
While your website will appear in the regular Google search results, your Google Business profile will be featured in the map-pack or through a direct search.
To increase visibility in the map-pack, you need to optimize based on specific ranking factors, which we will elaborate on in the next section!
What Are the Google Ranking Factors for a Google Business Account?
Next, we need to examine what actually influences your business's visibility at the top of search results. Understanding how local searches work is crucial. It is important to know that each search result varies for each person based on their proximity to the searcher. With local SEO, you will not rank for a specific search term but rather for a specific map coordinate! This means you could optimize to the maximum and still not appear to someone who is too far away. Let’s take a closer look at the local SEO ranking factors that influence the ranking of your Google Business profile.
Relevance
Relevance refers to how well a Google Business Profile matches what someone is searching for. To improve relevance, ensure your profile is complete with accurate business categories, services, and a detailed description that includes relevant keywords. The more specific your information, the more likely Google will match your profile to relevant local searches.
Distance
Distance is a crucial factor in local SEO, determining how close your business is to the searcher's location or the location they specify in their search. The closer your business is to the search location, the higher it is likely to rank in local search results. While you can't change your physical location, specifying your service areas and optimizing for local keywords can help target the right audience.
Prominence
Prominence reflects how well-known your business is, both offline and online. This includes online reviews, directory listings, articles, and backlinks. High prominence can be achieved by maintaining a strong online presence, generating positive reviews, and earning backlinks from reputable websites. A prominent business profile is more likely to be considered authoritative and rank higher in local search results.
NAP Consistency
NAP (Name, Address, Phone number) consistency across the web is vital for local SEO as it ensures search engines view your business information as reliable. Inconsistent NAP details can confuse search engines and lead to lower rankings in local search results. To maintain NAP consistency, ensure your business details are the same across all platforms, including your website, directories, and social media profiles.
Reviews (Customer Engagement)
Customer reviews and engagement are strong indicators of a business’s quality and trustworthiness. Actively encouraging satisfied customers to leave positive reviews and responding promptly to all reviews can boost your profile’s visibility in local searches. High review volume and engagement signal to Google that your business is reputable and valued by customers, which can positively impact your local ranking.
High-Quality Content and Images
High-quality content and images enhance user experience and provide Google with more context about your business. Consistently updating your Google Business Profile with fresh posts, detailed descriptions, and high-resolution images can make your profile more appealing to potential customers. Quality content also helps Google understand your business better, potentially leading to higher visibility in local search results.
Attributes
Many businesses are unaware of the importance of attributes, but filling them out in your Google Business profile is essential. The more specifically you describe your business, the more likely Google will match your business with specific search queries related to those attributes. For example, if your restaurant is wheelchair accessible and you indicate this on your Google Business profile, but your competitor does not, it is almost certain that (a) your business will outrank the competitor when someone searches for a wheelchair-accessible restaurant and (b) the person will choose your restaurant over the competitor because it's unclear whether they can access the competitor's location.
How to Organically Grow a Google Business Profile?
To increase the number of visitors to your Google Business Profile organically, consistency is key. You need to continuously maintain and improve your online presence. We have already discussed the importance of a detailed and accurate Google Business profile, as it serves as your digital business card for both potential customers and Google.
Now, let’s look at the remaining aspects to consider for generating more organic traffic to your Google Business profile:
Collect and Respond to Reviews
To ensure review velocity, continuously request reviews from your customers. There are multiple approaches to this:
- Incentivize staff to collect reviews
- Create a QR code to be printed on receipts, flyers, brochures, or posters at the entrance/exit
- Send follow-up emails after a visit or service completion
Responding within one hour is crucial as it signals to the search engine that your business is actively engaging with its customers and takes all feedback—positive or negative—seriously.
While responding within one hour can be extremely challenging, using a review management tool like the one we offer at Obenan can handle the heavy lifting for you. You can set up automatic responses, which will be done by our advanced AI in your brand’s tone of voice. No need to worry about replying too late or at all to any review that comes in. We also offer the option to create a review campaign that redirects negative reviews to a private survey. This way, you can still receive negative feedback to improve your service, but those negative reviews will not be published on your Google Business profile, giving you more control over your overall rating.
Learn more about Obenan’s Review Management Tool!
Schedule Google Posts
Google posts are an excellent way to share updates, announce events or special offers, and showcase your best menus, rooms, team, or services (depending on what your business offers). We advise scheduling one post per day, as this signals to the search engine that your business is active and engaged with (potential) customers. This not only helps with your ranking, thereby generating more organic visits to your Google Business profile, but also increases the likelihood that potential customers who land on your profile will convert.
Scheduling a post every day can be quite time-consuming, and after a few weeks, you may forget—bet on that! At Obenan, we offer an automatic posting tool where you need to upload 31 images once, keep them in rotation, and our advanced AI will even create SEO-optimized captions for you!
Learn more about our Google Post Tool!
Citation Building
To achieve prominence, you need to start building citations in local directories. Citations are records of your NAP. Creating citations on as many relevant pages as possible not only helps your overall visibility across the web but also signals to Google that your business is legitimate. Thus, your Google Business profile will gain more authority, as Google always tries to match a user with the best possible search result. A legitimate business will, therefore, always outrank a less prominent business neighbor. While general SEO relies heavily on link building, for local SEO, citations are crucial for boosting your rankings on the map pack!
Explore our Listing Technology Tool for citation building and NAP consistency!
Google Q&A
Potential customers might have common questions they want answered before visiting your location. For example, they might want to know if you serve cocktails before a certain time of day or if outdoor seating is available in April. You can generate questions yourself or answer questions that have already been asked on your Google Business profile.
Industry-Specific Ranking Factors
If you own a restaurant, add your menu to your Google Business profile. If you run a hotel, provide detailed information about your rooms (e.g., room prices). Utilize all industry-specific features available on your Google Business profile. As a rule of thumb: everything that can be filled in and is applicable to your business needs to be completed! You can find the available options in your settings. They are prominently displayed and hard to miss!
Curious how we helped hundreds of restaurant owners, hotels or lawyers with their local SEO across the globe?
Monitor and Analyze Your Google Business Profile Insights
Your Google Business Profile insights should be checked at least every 3 months to measure the success of your local SEO activities and to spot points for improvement. The different sections of the GBP insights offer you an overview of your user views and user actions.
If you are using Obenan, we can also offer you insights into keyword performance. Here you can see the discovery keywords (e.g. restaurant in [city]) compared to the branded keywords (your company name; basically a direct search). The discovery keywords should always outweigh the direct search. If this is the case, you know your local SEO activities deliver the desired results. In the next chapter, we will explore more in-depth how to find the right localized keywords (discovery keywords) for your business.
Generate More Organic Visits to Your Google Business Profile Using the Right Localized Keywords
Keywords still play a very important role in SEO, and for local SEO, you need to focus on, no surprise, localized keywords. These keywords should be used in your description, Google posts, website, and social media.
What Are Localized Keywords?
Localized keywords are those that match the search queries of potential customers in your region.
Examples include:
- Restaurant near me
- Restaurant in [city] or [neighborhood]
In contrast to general SEO, where you target general keywords, local keywords are only meant to help you rank for search queries from people who are already nearby or are planning to visit the area soon. For example, it does not make sense if your restaurant is in NYC but is shown to someone in Chicago who wants to eat within the next hour. This would be pointless. The same goes for a traveler searching for accommodation in Australia while your hotel is in Spain. Even if they visit your Google Business profile, they are unlikely to convert into a customer anytime soon. Thus, this traffic has little to no value.
How to Find the Right Keywords for Local SEO?
Start with a seed keyword, such as “restaurant,” and enter it into your keyword research tool. Filter for local keywords by adding matching extensions (e.g., near me, city, neighborhood). Review the results and add all relevant keywords to a list. Repeat the step with another seed keyword, like “pizza restaurant.” Add all relevant keywords to your list. Ensure the keyword intent is either commercial, transactional, or navigational. You want to avoid targeting informational keywords since those searchers are looking for answers, not places to visit or services to book.
Your list of keywords might look like this:
- Restaurant in Soho
- Restaurant in NYC
- Best restaurant in NYC
- Cheap restaurant NYC
- Pizza restaurant in Soho
- Pizza near me
- Restaurant near me
- Best Pizza in NYC
While traditional SEO requires careful consideration of keyword difficulty relative to search volume, local SEO allows you to target high-value, high-competition keywords by “niching down” to a smaller market. Research the competition: you will face higher competition for general restaurant searches than for more specific searches like “pizza restaurant.” Try to be as specific as possible about what your restaurant offers. You can try to rank for menu items rather than just targeting people searching for restaurants. Aim for a good mix of both.
Our Tip: Don’t be afraid of low-volume keywords. In general SEO, the focus is on high-volume keywords. For e-commerce sites, this makes sense, but for small businesses relying on local (foot) traffic, targeting even 2-3 digit keywords can be effective. Imagine gaining 140 new customers from just one keyword! While for e-commerce, 140 visitors might not mean a high conversion rate, local searchers are more likely to visit your location or book a service, resulting in a much higher conversion rate.
How to Use Local Keywords?
For each menu item keyword, create a Google post with a matching photo and a compelling caption that includes your keyword in the first 11 words. Add a call to action linking to your reservation page, website, or directly to your menu.
Include the most promising keywords that best represent your business in your description. Add them not only to your Google Business profile description but also to the description of your directory citations (if the option is available).
The keywords should also be included in your website content, such as:
- Title tag
- Meta description
- Headings
- Image file names
- Alt text for images (only if the keywords truly match what the image depicts)
- Website copy
I Did All of the Above, Yet My Google Business Profile Does Not Generate Organic Traffic
Numerous factors play a role in local SEO. While traditional SEO allows some control over your rankings, in local SEO, some ranking factors are beyond your influence. You cannot control the most important factor: proximity to the searcher (distance). If your business is located on the city's outskirts, you likely won’t outrank competitors in the city center unless you relocate.
However, not all hope is lost! In our experience, there are still strategies you can employ to climb to the top.
Popular Opening Hours
If you open at 5:00 pm and your main competitor is closed until 8:00 pm, you will outrank them for searches during this time frame. You could try adjusting your opening hours and monitor whether this affects not only impressions of your Google Business profile but also traffic to your location or bookings for your services. This approach applies not only to restaurants but also to locksmiths, for example. If your competitor does not offer 24-hour service or weekend hours, you could adjust your offerings to take advantage.
Menu Items (Restaurants Only)
As mentioned earlier, try to rank for specific menu items. This can be particularly beneficial if you offer popular dishes that your competitors either do not rank for or simply do not offer.
Pets (Hotels and Restaurants)
If your competitors do not allow pets, this could be an opportunity to rank for search queries that include pets. While allowing pets may not be convenient for your business, it's a more practical solution than moving to a different location.
Host or Participate in Events
Leverage local events or even host them to attract potential visitors to your Google Business profile, who are likely to convert into customers. For example, if you own a restaurant, you could participate in a local street food festival and include this event in your Google posts, mention it on your social media accounts, and post about it on your website to appear in searches for street food festivals or specific event searches.
If you own a hotel, you can easily leverage local events by offering accommodations during these popular times. Include events in your content, Google posts, and social media posts to highlight that visitors can stay at your hotel while attending the special event.
You can also create seasonal offers and promote them through the previously mentioned channels. For example, offer a “Christmas dinner” or “business Christmas dinners,” as well as an “Easter brunch” or “Mother’s Day special.” We recommend researching popular events and holidays in your geographic area and optimizing your Google posts, social media, and website content accordingly.
Rule of Thumb: Search results are unique to each user, depending not only on the search query but also on location, time of day, season, or even the day of the month. While you can't directly impact the ranking factor “proximity to the searcher,” you can aim to rank for different search queries and leverage competitor research. Find opportunities where your competitors are lacking (e.g., if they are closed during specific times or do not offer particular services). Small adjustments can have a significant impact, especially when everything else is nearly perfect but still not yielding the desired results.
Case Study - The Impact of Local SEO
At Obenan, we help hundreds of businesses increase their online visibility. A fully optimized Google Business Profile is often the first—and most important—step. Here’s what our local SEO strategy delivered for one of our clients.
The Situation & Strategy
A local sandwich shop in Amsterdam joined Obenan in [Month, Year]. We implemented a full optimization strategy that included:
- Complete Google Business Profile optimization
- Claiming and syncing listings across key business directories
- Automated review responses
- Daily Google Posts for consistent, fresh content
The Results
In 2024, this location saw a 2320.98% increase in overall search visibility (meaning across Google Search and Maps on both desktop and mobile). For example, mobile Maps impressions grew from 36,307 in February to 325,791 in April.
What Made the Difference?
These results were fully organic and driven by a structured optimization process. One key factor was the improvement in discovery keyword rankings (e.g. “restaurant near me”), thanks to strategic use of keywords in:
- Google Posts
- Reviews
- Business descriptions
But also NAP consistency, citation building and review management contributed to those great results, playing an evenly important role. While in 2023 they collected only 415 reviews, in 2024 a total of 739 reviews was collected. 566 of them were 5-star reviews.
The Ongoing Challenge
Many businesses still overlook the importance of a properly optimized Google Business Profile. Inconsistent listings, missing information, and low engagement continue to hold them back. Effective local SEO requires:
- Consistent business data across all platforms
- High-quality backlinks
- NAP (Name, Address, Phone) consistency
- Regular engagement through reviews, Q&A, and social media
Local SEO isn’t optional—it’s essential.
Some Last Words to Wrap Up Local SEO is neither a quick fix nor a one-time effort. It requires continuous updates, monitoring, and maintenance of your Google Business profile (and overall online presence) and an ongoing commitment to expanding your knowledge and following the latest Google Updates.
If local SEO is not something you can integrate into your day-to-day business to generate more organic visits for your Google Business profile, don’t worry! At Obenan, we are dedicated to helping your business boost its online visibility almost completely automatically. You don’t need to stay updated on local SEO changes or worry about time-consuming maintenance, as our local SEO specialists and tools provide everything you need to excel online.
