Most of my clients don’t need to be top of Google for the whole country. They need to show up when someone three miles away pulls out their phone and types “electrician near me” or “hairdresser in Sunderland”. That map that appears at the top — the three businesses with the stars and the little pins — is where the calls come from. It’s called the local pack, and getting into it is more about doing the boring bits properly than it is about clever tricks.
Here’s how it actually works, and what to do about it.
The thing that gets you on the map: a Google Business Profile
Your website and your Google Business Profile are two separate things. Your website is your home; your Business Profile is your listing in Google’s directory. The profile is what feeds the map, the reviews, your opening hours and the “Call” button. You can have a brilliant website and still be invisible on the map because your profile is half-finished or unverified.
If you’ve never claimed it, search your business name on Google. If a panel appears on the right with a “Claim this business” or “Own this business?” link, that’s your profile sitting there unmanaged. Claiming it is free and takes ten minutes. Verification (usually a code by post, phone or video) can take a few days — start it now so it’s not the thing holding you up later.
Fill it in like a nosy customer would want
Google rewards profiles that are complete and active. Once you’re verified, go through every field:
- Business name — your real name, exactly as it appears on your signage. Don’t stuff it with keywords like “Dave’s Plumbing Sunderland Best Emergency Plumber”. Google will slap you for it and competitors can report you.
- Primary category — this is the single biggest ranking lever. Pick the most specific one that fits (“Web Designer”, not “Internet Marketing Service”). Add secondary categories for the other things you do.
- Service area — set it to the places you actually cover: Sunderland, Washington, Houghton, South Shields, wherever. This tells Google where to show you.
- Hours — accurate, and updated for bank holidays. Nothing annoys a customer more than turning up to a “closed” that says “open”.
- Photos — real ones. Your premises, your work, your team. Profiles with photos get noticeably more clicks than the ones with a grey placeholder.
- Products and services — list them out with short descriptions. It’s free space to describe what you do in your own words.
Reviews are the currency
Ask every happy customer for a review. Not in a pushy way — just a short message after the job: “If you’ve got two minutes, a Google review really helps a small business like mine.” Send them the direct link (Google gives you one in the profile dashboard) so they’re not hunting for it.
Then reply to every review, good or bad. A calm, human reply to a bad review does more for you than the five-star ones — it shows anyone reading that you turn up when things go wrong. Reviews with keywords in them (“great website design”, “sorted our IT out”) also quietly help you rank for those terms.
Post to it like a mini social feed
The Business Profile has a posts feature most people ignore. A quick update every week or two — a finished job, an offer, a “we’re taking bookings for July” — keeps the profile looking alive. Google likes active profiles, and it gives customers a reason to pick you over the shop next door that last posted in 2022.
Make your website back it up
The map and your website work together. To help both:
- Put your business name, address and phone number in the footer of your site, written exactly the same way as on your profile. Consistency matters — “St.” on one and “Street” on the other can confuse Google.
- Have a proper contact page with a map and your Sunderland address.
- Create pages for the specific services and areas you want to be found for. A page about website design in Sunderland gives Google something to rank; a homepage that lists everything gives it nothing to grab onto.
If you want the longer version of how organic ranking works alongside the map, I’ve written a plain-English explainer on what SEO actually is and why it matters.
Give it time, then check the results
Local ranking isn’t instant. Once your profile is complete and verified, it usually takes a few weeks of reviews, posts and a tidy website before you start climbing. The profile dashboard shows you how many people called, asked for directions or visited your site — that’s the number that actually matters, not where you sit on a vanity search.
If all of that sounds like one more job you haven’t got time for, that’s fair — it’s exactly the kind of thing I sort for local businesses. Have a look at how I help clients with getting found on Google, or just drop me a message and I’ll take a look at where you’re currently showing up.
