Local Seo skill

Local SEO

In 2026 you optimize for three map-pack ecosystems, not one: Google (Maps + AI Overviews), Apple (Maps + Siri + Spotlight + Wallet), and Bing (Maps + ChatGPT Search). Skipping any of the three leaves visibility on the table — Apple ships in iOS by default, and ChatGPT Search routes through Bing's index.

Google Business Profile (GBP)

Setup Checklist

• Claim and verify listing
• Correct business name (no keyword stuffing)
• Primary + secondary categories (most specific first)
• Complete address (or service area for mobile businesses)
• Phone number (local, not toll-free)
• Website URL (to location-specific page if multi-location)
• Business hours (keep updated, mark holidays)
• Business description (750 chars, natural keywords)
• 10+ high-quality photos (exterior, interior, team, products)
• Enable booking if applicable (messaging — see deprecation note below)

GBP chat sunset: Google retired Business Profile chat and call-history on July 31, 2024 (deprecation began July 15, 2024). Past records were exportable via Google Takeout until Aug 30, 2024. Move customer messaging to your website chat widget, SMS, or WhatsApp Business.

Ongoing Optimization

• Post weekly (offers, events, updates, products)
• Respond to ALL reviews within 24 hours
• Add new photos monthly
• Update seasonal hours
• Use Google Posts for promotions
• Answer Q&A section proactively

Apple Business Connect (ABC)

Apple's free, self-serve listing manager — launched Jan 11, 2023 — covers business presence across Apple Maps, Siri, Wallet, Messages, Spotlight, and other Apple surfaces. Independent from GBP; you must claim separately.

Setup

1. Sign in at businessconnect.apple.com with the Apple ID you want to associate with the business
2. Search for the business location → claim → Apple verifies (typically by phone call, postcard, or document upload)
3. Fill the place card: categories, hours, photos, logo, action button (call / website / order / book)
4. Add Showcases — time-bound promotions, menu items, seasonal offers — these surface on the Maps place card

Why it matters

• Apple Maps drives the default "directions" experience on >1B iOS devices
• Siri uses ABC data to answer "is X open?" and "directions to nearest Y"
• Wallet shows logo + place card data on Apple Pay receipts
• iOS Spotlight (system-wide search) pulls from the same listing

Bing Places for Business (Microsoft + ChatGPT Search)

Bing Places powers Bing Maps and is the underlying business-listing graph for ChatGPT Search (which uses Microsoft's web index via the OpenAI-Microsoft partnership). Skipping Bing Places means you're invisible in the AI search surface that ChatGPT users see when they ask local questions.

Setup

1. Sign in at bingplaces.com with a Microsoft account
2. Fastest path: import from GBP — Bing offers one-click import of any verified Google Business Profile
3. Verify via phone, mail, or email
4. Keep NAP identical to GBP and ABC

NAP Consistency

NAP = Name, Address, Phone. Must be IDENTICAL everywhere:

• Google Business Profile
• Website footer and contact page
• All directory listings
• Social media profiles
• Schema markup

Even small variations hurt ("St." vs "Street", "Suite" vs "Ste.").

Local Citations

Submit to top directories: references/citation-sources.md

Local Schema

Add LocalBusiness schema to every location page. Minimal example (extend with Restaurant, Dentist, etc. subtypes when applicable):

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "LocalBusiness",
  "@id": "https://example.com/locations/austin#business",
  "name": "Example Coffee Roasters — Austin",
  "url": "https://example.com/locations/austin",
  "telephone": "+1-512-555-0100",
  "image": "https://example.com/img/austin-store.jpg",
  "priceRange": "$$",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "1234 Congress Ave",
    "addressLocality": "Austin",
    "addressRegion": "TX",
    "postalCode": "78701",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": 30.2672, "longitude": -97.7431 },
  "openingHoursSpecification": [{
    "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
    "dayOfWeek": ["Monday","Tuesday","Wednesday","Thursday","Friday"],
    "opens": "07:00", "closes": "18:00"
  }],
  "sameAs": [
    "https://www.google.com/maps/place/?q=place_id:ChIJ...",
    "https://maps.apple.com/?q=Example+Coffee+Roasters+Austin",
    "https://www.bing.com/maps?ss=ypid.YN..."
  ]
}
</script>

The sameAs array linking Google, Apple, and Bing map URLs is the strongest entity-disambiguation signal for AI search engines. See also references/local-schema.md.

Review Management

• Ask happy customers for reviews (email 1 week after purchase/service)
• Respond to negative reviews: acknowledge, apologize, offer resolution offline
• Never buy fake reviews (Google penalizes heavily)
• Display reviews on your website (with Review schema)
• Target: 4.0+ average, 50+ reviews for competitive niches

Geo-Targeted Content

For each location:

• Unique location page (not boilerplate with city swapped)
• Local landmarks, events, community references
• Local testimonials from that area
• Embedded Google Map
• Location-specific schema markup

References

• references/gbp-optimization.md — Detailed GBP guide
• references/citation-sources.md — Top directory sites
• references/local-schema.md — LocalBusiness JSON-LD