Do you have the sinking feeling that when someone a few blocks away searches for what you sell, you're nowhere on the results page? Or maybe you’ve had a customer outright tell you that they couldn’t find you online?
That's not a reflection of your work. It usually means Google doesn't have enough information to connect you to that search.
It all has to do with local SEO, and it's less technical than most business owners expect.
What is Local SEO?
Search engine optimization is a broad term for showing up in search results. Local SEO narrows that to one specific situation: someone nearby is looking for a service or product.
Local intent and high intent then come into play.
Local intent means the person wants a business close to them. They're not searching for a plumber in Poland as a hobby. They want a plumber who can drive to their house and fix their leak.
High intent means they need it now. "I have a leak in my kitchen" is a very different search from "how does plumbing work." One of those people is ready to hire someone today.
More than half of Google searches carry local intent, and searches that include a phrase like "near me" or a city name have grown dramatically over the past few years. People have learned that adding "in Red Deer", or whatever city they are in, gets them better results, so that's what they type.
These aren't casual browsers. They're ready to buy, and if you don't come up, they call or visit someone who does.
The good news is that most small businesses aren't working on this, and you’re already thinking about it. That makes it possible to stand out without spending a fortune.
Start With Your Google Business Profile
When you search for a local service, you usually see a small group of business listings near the top, each with a star rating, photos, and contact details. Those are Google Business Profiles. That's local SEO at work, and it's where you want to be.
Your Google Business Profile is the easiest place to start with—and it’s free. Think of it as your business card online because it lists your business name, phone number, website, hours, services, and photos, all in one place.
If you've never claimed yours, one may already exist. Google creates them automatically, which means the details might be outdated or wrong. That’s why it is important to claim and remove any duplicate listings that may be floating around.
Claiming your profile is straightforward. Find your business listing, sign in with a Google account, and follow the steps to verify that you own it.
Keep Your Details Consistent
After claiming your profile, the next priority is keeping everything consistent.
Your business name, address, and phone number should match everywhere they appear. Your website. Your Google Business Profile. Your Facebook page. Any online directory.
Google uses those details as signals. When the information matches across the places it finds you, it has more confidence in what to show someone searching. When your phone number is different on three sites, it has to guess.
Cleaning this up isn't difficult, but it takes time. There are usually listings out there you don't know about. Start with the ones you control: your website, your Google profile, and one or two social pages.
Reviews Are a Trust Signal, and You Have to Ask
Reviews tell Google that real people have done business with you. Recent reviews carry more weight than old ones. Someone comparing three businesses will notice the difference between a review from last month and one from four years ago. Recent activity signals that you're still operating and still doing good work.
While you need reviews, your customers don’t know that, and most people won't leave one unless you ask. Build it into how you close out a job.
And once reviews start coming in, respond to them, including the negative ones. A professional reply to a one-star review does more for you than the review costs you. Someone reading it later sees a business that takes problems seriously instead of ignoring them.
What AI Search Changes, and What It Doesn't
AI tools now answer questions directly, without sending anyone to a website.
What hasn't changed is that those tools still need somewhere to get the answer. They scan businesses for relevant, accurate information and pull from it, often crediting and linking the source.
So the fundamentals still apply. Write for people, not bots. Answer the four or five questions customers actually ask you about a service. Add a short summary near the top of your key pages so the main points are easy to find. Keep your business details up to date and accurate.
There's a technical layer as well, called schema, which is structured information that tells search engines what your business is and what your pages cover. It's been around a long time, and it still affects how AI tools read your site. That's a job for a developer or a marketing agency; it’s worth knowing about schema and seeing if a partner can implement it for you.
None of this means abandoning what worked before. It means doing the same fundamentals with another tool in mind.
How to Tell If It's Working
Google sends a monthly summary for your Business Profile. It shows website visits, phone call clicks, and impressions, which is how many times people saw your listing. Scanning that once a month tells you whether things are moving.
If you want more detail, Google Search Console lays out the phrases people typed to find your website. It gets technical quickly, but even a quick look tells you a lot about what people are searching for. And then you can apply those keywords to your marketing.
The simplest measure is the one you already track. Are you getting more calls? More inquiries?
We also recommend giving it time. Local SEO is a marathon. Plan to work consistently before you see a difference, and keep going after that. Your competitors don't stop, and Google updates its algorithm regularly, so what worked three months ago needs occasional maintenance.
Where to Start
If you've done nothing for your local SEO so far, do this: claim your Google Business Profile, make sure the information is correct, and start asking customers for reviews. That's step one, before anything else.
Then look at your website. It's still where people go to verify that what you told them is true, whether they met you at a trade show or found you through a search.
If you'd like help getting your business showing up in local search, reach out to EDGE Marketing & Design. We'll take a look at where you stand and develop a marketing strategy to get you to the top of search results.
September 24, 2026
Posted By Robert van Ginkel
Project Manager
Robert specializes in developing targeted marketing strategies that deliver measurable results while staying on schedule and within budget. A graduate of the Donald School of Business, he stays current with the latest digital marketing trends and brings a passion for creative problem-solving and clean design to every project.
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