Local SEO Checklist (2026): 54 Checks for Local Businesses
54 checks for local businesses: the Google Business Profile, reviews against the map pack, service pages, listings, rankings across the service area and AI answers.
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- 28 min read
By Szymon Kokot Published Updated 4 min read
Local pack and SEO (2026)
SEO for local businesses is an interesting battle that, in a way, is fought on two fronts. On one side is the traditional ranking, and on the other is the local pack. While they are connected, and the website should stay congruent, the truth is that it's easier to rank in the local pack in your city. It is very much possible for your website to stay hidden on the second or third page of regular results, while your Google Business Profile is doing all the work for commercial keywords. This article will focus on that exactly.
The obvious part
For your GBP to rank, you first need to have one! And it's not just about having one, it needs some love. Accurate information, a few photos, a list of services you offer, etc. Most of these are things that, if you give it some time and follow the process of creating the profile carefully and with attention to detail, you won't miss. This is the obvious part, which is definitely worth a reminder. It's not difficult to have a decent GBP, it just requires a little effort.
What details need special attention?
Even though setting up a decent profile is easy and intuitive, there are definitely a few things that are easy to miss. And those things are the opening hours, review recency, review count, review responses and website content.
Opening hours
Some businesses, like local shops, don't have much of a choice. They should just write the actual opening hours. There are businesses that can't really afford being found by a user only to frustrate them by being closed while Google states they are open. But there are companies, especially in the legal sector, that close most clients on the phone, for instance. When answering the phone is a priority, some companies staff the phone around the clock and list themselves as open 24 hours, so that when they are found, the potential client knows they can call right away. That only works if someone really answers at 3 a.m. Google's guidelines ask for your real customer-facing hours, and listing hours you don't keep can get the profile suspended. Of course this kind of commitment is not for everyone. Still, B2C companies should keep in mind that if they are closed in the afternoon and on weekends too, they most likely won't receive many phone calls.
Review recency
Reviews are probably one of the most important factors. And review recency is especially important to close customers. According to BrightLocal's 2026 Local Consumer Review Survey, 18% are only convinced by reviews from within the last seven days. 32% look for reviews two weeks old or less and 74% seek reviews written in the last three months. Getting reviews on Google is not a one-time thing. It's not just getting a decent number of reviews with a good overall score. Collecting reviews on Google has to be a constant process that should never stop.
Review count
Once you get the reviews flowing, this is a matter of time. But still worth mentioning. Local pack reviews show not only the overall rating, but also the review count. If you have to choose between three companies you never heard about, they all seem similar, all have good reviews, but one has 200+ reviews, another has only 70+ and the last one has 190+ reviews, which one would you choose? Would you even think about the second one? Placement is of course very important, but so are reviews. And don't forget the overall score is legitimized by their count. 4 stars from hundreds of reviews are more valuable than 5 stars from only a dozen.
Answering reviews
This is actually quite similar to any social media. Algorithms nowadays like active users. Also, when your profile is active, it sends a clear signal to the user that the profile is not abandoned, so all the information that can be found in there is up to date. So answering the reviews should definitely be a part of the flow.
Website content
Another thing to have in mind is that although the local pack is different from normal results, the two are still connected. It's not only about making sure your online presence remains consistent and congruent. It's also that quite a few users actually visit the website of businesses they find. And so it's important that the website supports the GBP, and makes sure the user doesn't go back and choose a competitor.
Conclusion
A decent GBP is easy to get. Refining it requires a little research, mostly to make sure you are not missing anything. But overall it's a pretty easy and straightforward way of making sure people will get to know about your business. Ranking outside the local pack is still important, and somewhat more difficult to achieve. And so if you need help with SEO or your GBP, check out my local business SEO audit.