Build a local SEO audit checklist

Your local SEO audit checklist

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A local SEO audit checklist with 40 checks in 5 sections, written for Smith Plumbing in Austin.

Google Business Profile

• Google Business Profile is claimed and verified for Smith Plumbing
• Primary category fits what Smith Plumbing mostly sells (check the nearest category for a plumber)
• Secondary categories are added only where they are true
• Business name on the profile matches the name on the sign and invoices, with no keywords added
• Phone number, address or service area, and opening hours are correct, including holiday hours
• Service areas include Austin and the towns served
• Services or products are listed with a short description each
• The business description is written and says what is offered and where
• Photos are recent and show the work, the team and the premises or vehicles
• Posts have been published recently
• The website link goes to the right page, with tracking added if you report on it
• Questions and answers have been checked

Website

• Title tag on the home page names the service and Austin
• Each page has one clear H1 and a unique meta description
• The site works on a phone and the phone number is tap-to-call
• The site loads over HTTPS with no browser warnings
• There is a page for each main service a plumber offers, not one page for all of them
• There is a page for Austin and for each other area served, with content that is not copied between them
• Name, address and phone on the site match the Google Business Profile exactly
• The contact form works and goes to a monitored inbox
• LocalBusiness structured data is present and matches the visible details
• Images have descriptive file names and alt text
• Reviews or testimonials are shown on the site, with the customer's permission

Citations and NAP

• Business name, address and phone are written the same way everywhere
• The major general directories have a listing (Apple, Bing, Yelp, Facebook and similar)
• Trade directories for a plumber have a listing
• Old addresses, old phone numbers and duplicate listings are found and fixed
• A local Austin directory, chamber of commerce or association listing exists if one applies
• A list of every listing and its login is kept for the client

Reviews

• Total review count and average rating on Google are recorded as the starting point
• Date of the most recent review is noted: are new ones still arriving?
• Every review has a reply, and negative ones are answered politely and factually
• There is a simple way to ask customers for a review (a link or QR code after each job)
• Reviews on other sites that matter for a plumber are checked
• Reviews are not gated, bought or written by staff

Competitors

• Search the main services with Austin and note the top three businesses in the map results
• Compare their review count, rating, categories and photos with the client's
• Compare what their websites have that the client's does not
• Note which plumbers appear in the directories the client is missing from
• Write down two or three gaps that can be closed in the first month

Copy everything

Copy textDownload as .txt

GOOGLE BUSINESS PROFILE [ ] Google Business Profile is claimed and verified for Smith Plumbing [ ] Primary category fits what Smith Plumbing mostly sells (check the nearest category for a plumber) [ ] Secondary categories are added only where they are true [ ] Business name on the profile matches the name on the sign and invoices, with no keywords added [ ] Phone number, address or service area, and opening hours are correct, including holiday hours [ ] Service areas include Austin and the towns served [ ] Services or products are listed with a short description each [ ] The business description is written and says what is offered and where [ ] Photos are recent and show the work, the team and the premises or vehicles [ ] Posts have been published recently [ ] The website link goes to the right page, with tracking added if you report on it [ ] Questions and answers have been checked WEBSITE [ ] Title tag on the home page names the service and Austin [ ] Each page has one clear H1 and a unique meta description [ ] The site works on a phone and the phone number is tap-to-call [ ] The site loads over HTTPS with no browser warnings [ ] There is a page for each main service a plumber offers, not one page for all of them [ ] There is a page for Austin and for each other area served, with content that is not copied between them [ ] Name, address and phone on the site match the Google Business Profile exactly [ ] The contact form works and goes to a monitored inbox [ ] LocalBusiness structured data is present and matches the visible details [ ] Images have descriptive file names and alt text [ ] Reviews or testimonials are shown on the site, with the customer's permission CITATIONS AND NAP [ ] Business name, address and phone are written the same way everywhere [ ] The major general directories have a listing (Apple, Bing, Yelp, Facebook and similar) [ ] Trade directories for a plumber have a listing [ ] Old addresses, old phone numbers and duplicate listings are found and fixed [ ] A local Austin directory, chamber of commerce or association listing exists if one applies [ ] A list of every listing and its login is kept for the client REVIEWS [ ] Total review count and average rating on Google are recorded as the starting point [ ] Date of the most recent review is noted: are new ones still arriving? [ ] Every review has a reply, and negative ones are answered politely and factually [ ] There is a simple way to ask customers for a review (a link or QR code after each job) [ ] Reviews on other sites that matter for a plumber are checked [ ] Reviews are not gated, bought or written by staff COMPETITORS [ ] Search the main services with Austin and note the top three businesses in the map results [ ] Compare their review count, rating, categories and photos with the client's [ ] Compare what their websites have that the client's does not [ ] Note which plumbers appear in the directories the client is missing from [ ] Write down two or three gaps that can be closed in the first month

A checklist of things to look at, not a score: you record what you find. It uses only the business name, trade and city you typed and makes no claim about the business.