How to run a local SEO audit in 7 steps
A local SEO audit answers three questions: where do you rank today, why do the businesses above you outrank you, and what should you fix first? This method takes an afternoon, uses free Google tools and one grid check, and ends with a short list of fixes in order.
Step 1: Choose the searches that matter
List the 3 to 5 phrases customers type when they need you, in their words: “dentist”, “emergency dentist”, “dentist near me”. Include the service you most want to sell. Leave out your business name: people who search for it already know you.
Step 2: Map where you rank
Check each search from a grid of spots over the area your customers come from; for a shop or clinic in town, 7 × 7 spots over about 2 km is a good start. Write down your average position, the number of spots where you are in the top 3, and your position at your own door.
If you are not in the top 3 even at your door, start with steps 4 and 5: the problem is usually the profile itself, not distance.
Step 3: Find your real rivals
Your competition is the businesses that come out on top most often across your grid, not the ones you think of first. Take the top three for your most important search: they are the standard your profile is measured against.
Step 4: Audit your Google Business Profile against theirs
This is the part people call a GMB audit, after Google My Business, the old name of Google Business Profile. Go through each field, first against Google's guidelines, then against your three rivals:
| Check | What good looks like |
|---|---|
| Verified | Yes, and the map pin sits on your entrance |
| Business name | Your real-world name only: no added keywords, towns or taglines |
| Main category | The most precise one that says what you are |
| Extra categories | Only what your business really is |
| Hours | Complete, with special hours before holidays |
| Phone and website | A number that rings here; a link to your own site |
| Description | Up to 750 characters: what you do, for whom and where; no links |
| Services | Each service you offer, in customers' words |
| Photos | Recent, real, and at least as many as your rivals |
Our Google Business Profile checklist explains each field and Google's rules for it.
Step 5: Compare your reviews
Look at four numbers for you and each rival: how many reviews, how many in the last three months, the star rating, and how many have a reply from the owner. A rival with far more recent reviews often explains why you miss the top 3.
The fix is a habit, not a campaign: ask every customer for a review with your review link, and reply to every review. Never offer anything in return, and never ask only happy customers: Google's policy bans both.
Step 6: Check your website and listings
- Same details everywhere. Your name, address and phone should match exactly on your website, Google, Apple Business Connect, Bing Places and the directories of your trade.
- A page for each main service, saying where you offer it, and your profile linked to the most relevant page.
- Structured data. Add LocalBusiness markup and test it with Google's Rich Results Test.
- Speed on phones. Test your main pages with PageSpeed Insights.
- Search Console. Add your site to Google Search Console to see which searches bring people to it.
Step 7: Put the fixes in order and set a re-check
Fix first what stops you showing at your door, then what makes you less relevant, then what makes you less known:
| Order | Fix | Why first |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Verification, the pin, the business name, the main category | These decide whether you show up at all |
| 2 | Missing hours, phone, website, services, description | Complete profiles match more searches |
| 3 | Reviews: ask every customer, reply to all | Reviews build prominence over months |
| 4 | Website pages, structured data, matching listings | Gives Google and AI assistants more to go on |
| 5 | Photos and posts, every month | Keeps the profile current for customers |
Then run the same grid with the same search terms every week, and note the date of each change, so you can see which fix moved what.
Questions
How often should I audit my local SEO?
A full audit every three to six months is enough for most businesses, with a ranking check every week in between to catch drops early.
Can I do a local SEO audit for free?
Yes. Google Business Profile, Search Console, PageSpeed Insights and the Rich Results Test are free, and PinRipple's 15-day free trial covers the grid check and the rival comparison.
What is a GMB audit?
An audit of your Google Business Profile, formerly Google My Business: each field checked against Google's guidelines and against the businesses that outrank you. It is step 4 above.
Sources
Check where you rank, street by street
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