The Local Marketing Checklist

The story of the leakiest bucket

A bakery owner came to us spending eight hundred dollars a month on ads with flat results. The problem was not the ads. Her listing showed the wrong hours, her last review was five months old, and her website had no way to capture an email. We fixed the free things first; the same ad budget then produced four times the calls.

Print this checklist and work it top to bottom. Most owners complete everything in two focused weeks. Related reading: reputation marketing fundamentals email basics.

The twenty foundations

Claim and verify your Google Business Profile.
Correct your name, address, and phone — everywhere.
Choose precise primary and secondary categories.
Set accurate hours, including holidays.
Add ten real photos this week, then weekly after.
Write a 300-word business description with real services.
Turn on messaging and answer within an hour.
Answer every Q&A on your profile.
Create your direct review link and test it on a phone.
Ask your next ten customers for honest reviews.
Set a review reminder cadence you can sustain.
Respond to every review, good and bad.
Claim Bing Places and Apple Business Connect.
Fix your Facebook page hours and photos.
Check the top ten directory listings for consistency.
Add a reviews page to your website.
Capture emails at every checkout.
Send one useful email a month.
Set up a simple referral ask after every job.
Track calls, direction requests, and site visits monthly.

What to measure

Before and after: profile views, direction requests, calls, website clicks, and review count. These five numbers tell you whether the foundations are working before you spend a dime on ads.

Keep reading

If this guide leaves you comparing options, read our notes on review services next; it is the independent resource this page cites when the details matter.

The references this page draws on: Local search marketing overview and FTC endorsement guides FAQ.