Why your business isn't showing up on Google.
The plain-English diagnostic: find out which of the common blockers is hiding your business, and exactly what to do about each one.
- 01The blockers that keep local businesses off Google, in plain English
- 02A self-diagnosis you can run tonight in about ten minutes
- 03The fix for each blocker, ranked by effort and payoff
The plain-English version
You've seen it. You search "[your trade] near me" and there he is — the guy whose work you've had to fix. Top of the map. Phone ringing.
He's not smarter than you. He's not paying Google. He's just feeding Google the three things it checks. Here they are, straight up.
How close you are to the person searching
When someone searches "plumber near me," Google leans hard on where that person is standing — not just how good you are.
That's why you show up fine on your own street and disappear three blocks over. You're not "on Google" or "off Google." You're on Google block by block, and it changes as the searcher moves across town.
The other guy might beat you on the north side and lose to you on the south side — and neither of you knows it, because you both only ever search from your own shop.
Open Google Maps on your phone. Search your trade + a neighborhood you want work in (not your own street — a spot across town). See who shows up. That's who's getting the calls over there. Now you know who you're actually up against, and where.
Your reputation — reviews, and what you do with them
Google's trying to answer one question for the searcher: can I trust this guy? It reads your reviews the way a customer does:
- How many you have
- How recent they are — 40 reviews that all stopped two years ago reads like you retired
- Whether you reply — even a one-line "Thanks Dave, glad the water heater's holding up" shows Google (and the next customer) there's a live human running this business
Most owners do great work and never ask. The other guy asks every time. That's the whole difference.
Text your last happy customer. Exact words — copy, fill in, send:
(To grab your review link: open your Google Business Profile, tap "Ask for reviews," copy the link. Takes a minute.)
Then reply to your last 3 reviews — even the old ones. One sentence each is plenty.
Whether Google trusts your info
Google won't send a neighbor to a business it's fuzzy on. It wants your story straight, everywhere it looks:
- A Google Business Profile that's actually filled out — hours, services, photos of real jobs, service area. Half-empty profile reads like a half-open business.
- A real website that says what you do and where you do it. "Quality service since 2009" tells Google nothing. "Water heater repair in [your town] and [neighboring town]" tells it exactly when to show you.
- Matching details everywhere. Same business name, same phone number, on your profile, your site, your Facebook page. Mismatches make Google hesitate — and hesitant Google shows the other guy.
Open your Google Business Profile and fix the emptiest thing you see. No photos? Add 5 from your camera roll — real trucks, real jobs, no stock photos. Hours missing? Fill them in. Services list blank? List every job you actually do. Ten minutes, done from the truck.
Myth-bust
"He's paying Google for that spot"
You can't buy the map spots. The ones marked "Sponsored" are ads — everything below that is earned, and no amount of money moves you up the earned list.
The other guy isn't cheating, and he doesn't know a secret. He's just fed Google the three inputs above: he's findable across town, his reviews are fresh and answered, and his info is complete and consistent.
Which means this isn't rigged against you. It's a checklist. And you just read it.
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