Measuring and Improving Your Google Business Profile Performance

Measuring and Improving the Performance of Your Google Business Profile

0:00 Your goal is to rank in positions 1, 2, or 3 in the local map pack — across as broad a radius as possible — for your key search terms.

0:18 If your profile ranks in positions 4 and below, you won’t appear in the local map pack, which significantly reduces visibility.

Local Ranking Issues

0:26 Many businesses rank well very close to their physical location but drop off in visibility as you move further out. This is common.

Tools to Measure Performance

0:35 You can use tools like:

• Local Dominator
• Local Falcon
• BrightLocal

0:51 These tools let you input:

• Your business name
• Your target keywords
• Your desired radius of visibility

1:00 You’ll get a visual heat map showing your ranking at various points across the area. Green = position 1–3. Yellow or red = lower rankings.

Why Rankings Vary By Area

1:12 Example: You may be ranking 1 in your immediate neighbourhood but 7 in another part of town. The reason is usually local competition.

1:36 To evaluate performance correctly:

• Enter all keywords your customers might search (e.g., “emergency plumber”, “local plumber”, “boiler repair”)
• Set a realistic service radius — only include areas where you actually work

Example: Hair Salon in Cambridge

2:23 A salon in Cambridge ran a 1-mile radius scan with 133 pins. Some pins showed rank positions 1–3, others showed positions 11–20 or more.

3:07 Areas with little competition tend to perform better. In areas with more businesses, you’ll rank lower unless you optimise.

3 Key Ways to Improve Local Rankings

1. Location-Based Reviews

4:10 Google knows where a person is when they leave a review. Ask clients from different areas to leave reviews while they are in their home location (not at your business).

2. Location-Based Profile Visits

4:44 Google tracks where profile visits come from. If users in a distant area view your profile, Google may increase your visibility there.

5:08 Tactic: Print flyers with a QR code linking to your Google Business Profile and distribute them in target areas. When scanned, this counts as a profile visit from that location.

3. Service + Location Pages on Your Website

5:37 Create individual landing pages for your services targeting each location. For example:

• Hair Salon Cambridge
• Hair Salon Grantchester
• Hair Salon Hardwick
• Hair Salon Longstanton

6:07 These pages don’t need to be visible in the main navigation but should be crawlable by Google.

6:22 Tailor each page’s content to mention the service and the target location (e.g., “Our salon is based in Cambridge, near Longstanton”). Add relevant local info to help trigger location-based searches.

Tracking Progress Over Time

6:44 Once your profile is fully built out and optimised (using all previous lessons), start tracking your performance w