Search for a plumber, an accountant or a dentist in Ipswich and Google shows you a map with three businesses under it before it shows a single website. That box is the map pack, and for a local business it is often worth more than the first organic result, because the people looking at it are close by and ready to call.
Getting into it is not luck. Google says plainly that local results are decided by three things: relevance, distance and prominence. You cannot move your shop closer to every customer, but you can do a great deal about the other two.
Start with your Google Business Profile
Your Business Profile is the listing that appears in the map pack, and it is the single biggest lever you have. Most profiles we look at are half finished. Check these first:
- Your primary category is the most specific one that fits. "Electrician" beats "Contractor", and "Dry cleaner" beats "Laundry service" if dry cleaning is what you mostly do.
- Secondary categories cover the other things you genuinely do, and nothing you do not.
- Your hours are right, including public holidays. A listing that says open when you are closed costs you a review.
- Your services list names the jobs people actually search for, in the words they use.
- Real photos of your work, your team and your premises, added regularly rather than all on day one.
Make your name, address and phone agree everywhere
Google cross checks your business against the rest of the web: your website, directories such as Yellow Pages and True Local, industry sites and social profiles. When the name, address and phone number match exactly across all of them, Google is more confident it is dealing with one real business. When one directory still has your old number or a different spelling of your name, that confidence drops.
Pick one exact version of your details and use it everywhere, down to whether you write "St" or "Street". Then go looking for the old ones and fix them.
Reviews are part of prominence
The number of reviews you have, how recent they are and what they say all feed into how prominent Google thinks you are. A business with a steady stream of recent reviews usually looks more active than one with a large pile from three years ago. Ask every happy customer, make it easy with a direct link, and reply to every review, good or bad. We cover how to ask without being awkward in our guide to getting more Google reviews.
Your website still matters
The map pack is not separate from your website. Google reads the page your listing links to, so that page should say clearly what you do and where you do it. If you work across Ipswich, Springfield and the western suburbs of Brisbane, say so in plain words on the page, and give your main services a page each rather than one line on the home page.
Avoid the old trick of a grey strip of forty suburb names at the bottom of every page. It does not help, and it makes the page read like it was written for a robot.
Distance is real, so measure it honestly
A business in Spring Mountain will naturally find it easier to show up for searches in Springfield Lakes than in Toowoomba. The useful question is not "where do I rank" but "where do I rank from each part of my service area". A rank check from one location tells you almost nothing about the rest. A grid of checks across the area you serve shows where you are strong, where you are invisible and which suburbs are worth working on next.
What to do this month
- Open your Business Profile and fix the category, hours and services list.
- Add ten real photos.
- Search your business name and phone number and correct every listing that disagrees with your website.
- Ask your last ten happy customers for a review, with a direct link.
- Make sure your website has a clear page for each main service and names the area you serve.
None of this is quick, and anybody promising a guaranteed top three spot is guessing. But it compounds, and a business that keeps at it for a few months usually sees the map start to work for it.
Assured Technologies helps businesses in Ipswich and across Australia with Google Map SEO. If you would like a second opinion on your own situation, book a free consultation.