Back to The Journey
Series · 7 parts
Winning Local Search
- Google Business Profile Setup for Oakland County BusinessesThe map box at the top of local search results decides who gets the call. A step by step guide to claiming, verifying, and filling out your Google Business Profile the right way, plus the mistakes that get profiles suspended.September 3, 2026
- How to Get More Google Reviews (Without Begging or Buying Them)92% of consumers read reviews before trying a local business. How to earn more Google reviews with a direct link, a well-timed ask, automated requests, and smart replies, without ever begging or buying.September 4, 2026
- Local SEO Basics: How Small Businesses Win Their Own BackyardLocal search runs on proximity, relevance, and prominence. What each one means in plain English, the five moves worth making on a small budget, and the SEO services you should never pay for.September 5, 2026
- The Clarkston Small Business Guide to Winning Local SearchA 90-day plan for winning local search in Clarkston and Oakland County: complete your Google Business Profile, build a review habit, fix the website fundamentals, and earn local links.September 5, 2026
- The Google Map Pack: How the Top Three Are ChosenThe three businesses under the map are picked from Business Profiles, not web pages. Here is what Google says it weighs, why a good website ranking does not carry over, and which levers an owner can move.October 8, 2026
- How Customers Search for Local Businesses: Your Town Has More Than One NameYou call your town one thing and your customers type another. A worked example from Lake Orion shows how to find the names people really search with, and where to put them.October 22, 2026
- What Is SEO? A Plain-English Guide for Small Business OwnersSEO gets sold to small business owners as magic. It is not. Here is what it actually is, the handful of levers that move it, and how ranking locally turns into real revenue.August 18, 2026