How Do I Rank Higher in Google Local Search? Our Checklist for Local SEO The good news: Showing up in Googles search engine can be extremely beneficial to your local business. The bad news: Google doesnt care if you rank high or low. It cares only that there are quality results that answer the query to the total satisfaction of the searcher. So the pressing question is, how do you rank higher on Google Maps and Google local search results? Improving your local search rankings is possible, and the results are very real. A Google study found that: 4 in 5 consumers use search engines to find local information.50 percent of local smartphone searches lead to a store visit in less than a day.18 percent of local searches on a smartphone result in a sale within a day. If youre asking, How does Google local search work, and how can I rank higher in local search? then this local SEO checklist is for you! I first presented these 41 factors that contribute to local search ranking at Pubcon earlier this month (see my slide deck at the end). Here, I list them executive summary style, to help you understand how you can increase your local search rankings. Disclaimers: Each of these topics could be an article in itself, but Ive tried to give brief explanations and links for further reading, in keeping with a list format. This is not an exhaustive list of local ranking factors. Its not in priority order either, but grouped into general categories which you can jump to as follows: Housekeeping Signals 1. Branding Being a respected business in your community will increase your local search visibility. Google pays a lot of attention to a brands perceived trust and expertise. Even if youre just starting out, aim for happy customers and consistent quality to attract traffic and mentions. 2. Domain name Your websites name should accurately represent your business or brand. Itll be in every URL, so make it something appropriate and easily remembered. Dont use a keyword phrase alone (e.g., www.FloristLosAngeles.com) to avoid an exact match domain (EMD) penalty. On the other hand, including a keyword as part of your domain (e.g., www.FirstStreetDental.com) can help you as a local business if its tied into your brand name. Search algorithms are getting better and better at weeding out low-quality results, so make sure your domain doesnt look like spam. 3. Hosting When it comes to web hosting, think about speed, availability, and maintained software. Choose a