For local service businesses, your Google Business Profile is often more important than your website. Use this guided self-assessment to score your profile and get a prioritised fix list in 60 seconds.
Fill in your profile details and click "Check My Profile Health" to see your score and get recommendations.
For local service businesses (trades, clinics, legal, real estate), the Google Business Profile is often the single most important SEO asset, more immediately impactful than the website itself. Yet most profiles are half-finished, sitting on outdated categories with a handful of stale reviews and no posts since 2022.
In Sydney's competitive local SEO market, particularly for trades and home services, a well-optimised GBP is the difference between appearing in the map pack or being invisible. The Google Business Profile is the number one local ranking factor for map pack results. Research shows that 38% of Australian businesses struggle to keep up with Google algorithm changes that affect local rankings. This guided self-assessment helps you identify exactly what's holding your profile back.
Google's local ranking algorithm considers three primary factors: relevance, distance, and prominence. Your GBP directly influences relevance (through categories and services) and prominence (through reviews, photos, and engagement signals).
Categories are the strongest relevance signal. Your primary category tells Google what you do. Choose the most specific option available. Photos signal an active, legitimate business. Industry analysis suggests businesses with 50+ photos tend to outperform those with fewer than 10 in local pack rankings. Reviews are the primary prominence signal. Both quantity and recency matter. A business with 100 old reviews will often lose to a competitor with 30 recent ones, particularly in competitive Sydney markets like plumbing, electrical, and legal services.
Posting frequency signals business activity. Weekly posts are ideal. Posts stay visible for 7 days, so weekly posting ensures you always have fresh content. The Q&A section is often neglected but valuable. Seed it with common customer questions and provide detailed answers. This content is indexed and can appear in search results.
Yes, indirectly. A well-optimised Google Business Profile improves your local pack rankings (the map results), which drives more traffic to your website. The signals from your GBP—reviews, engagement, completeness—also contribute to your overall local SEO authority, which can positively impact your organic website rankings for local searches. In competitive Sydney markets, businesses with optimised GBPs often see improved organic rankings for location-specific keywords.
There's no magic number, but businesses ranking in the top 3 local pack positions typically have 50+ reviews with recent activity. Review quantity, recency, and rating all matter. A business with 100 reviews from 2 years ago will often lose to a competitor with 30 recent reviews, particularly in competitive Sydney markets. Aim for consistent review generation (2-4 per month) rather than a one-time push.
Weekly posting is ideal for maximum visibility. Google favours active profiles, and regular posts signal that your business is operational and engaged. Posts stay visible for 7 days, so weekly posting ensures you always have fresh content. At minimum, post monthly. Quarterly or less is insufficient for competitive local markets.
Choose the most specific primary category that accurately describes your core business. You can add secondary categories, but your primary category is the most important ranking signal. Avoid generic categories like 'Business' or 'Company' - be as specific as possible (e.g., 'Plumber' not 'Home Services', 'Personal Injury Lawyer' not 'Lawyer').
You can handle basic optimisation yourself (adding photos, responding to reviews, posting updates). However, advanced optimisation (category strategy, review generation systems, citation building, Q&A seeding, and competitive analysis) benefits from professional expertise. Many businesses find that professional GBP management delivers better results through consistent posting, strategic review generation, and competitive monitoring.
Our Local SEO packages include complete Google Business Profile management, weekly posts, review generation, and strategic optimisation to get you ranking in the map pack.