Topic
Local SEO and Google Business Profile
Ranking in the map pack and on local search: Google Business Profile setup and suspensions, service area businesses, reviews, and why a competitor outranks you.
16 articles · browse the full archive
GSEOGoogle Removed Q&A From Your Profile: What Now
Google shut the Q&A API on Nov 3, 2025 and Ask Maps now writes the answers. What Gemini reads, how to save old answers, and 3 popular fixes that backfire.
16 min
Growth8 Best Review Management Software for Contractors
8 review tools for contractors, filtered by Google's review policy and the FTC's 2024 rule first, then by price and FSM trigger. Check what you already pay for.
17 min
GrowthShould I Build Service Area Pages? A 5-Step Test
Most contractors fail at least two of these five tests. Run the demand check first, then Google's three named policies, then what to build instead.
17 min
Lead GenerationHow Many Google Reviews Do I Need to Rank? (2026)
Review count is only the 9th biggest map pack ranking factor. Here is the number your market actually requires, and the four free fixes that outrank it.
17 min
GrowthHow to Rank in a City With No Office: 4 Levers
You can win organic in a neighbouring city and almost never the map pack. The 4 levers ranked by cost, plus Google's own limits on how far you reach.
16 min
Lead GenerationWhy Is My Competitor Outranking Me on Google?
Usually it is three profile fields, not your website. Diagnose which Google surface you actually lost, and what the 2026 ranking data says fixes it.
16 min
Lead GenerationDoes Nextdoor Work for Local Service Leads? 6 Facts
Nextdoor reports 22.9M weekly actives across 350,000 neighbourhoods. That is about 65 per neighbourhood. What that means before you spend a dollar.
17 min
Lead GenerationHow to Remove a Fake Google Review: 7 Levers
Google removed 292 million policy-violating reviews in 2025, yet most owner flags get denied. The fix is picking the right violation, not arguing truth.
17 min
Lead GenerationGoogle Business Profile for Contractors (2026)
Google names three ranking inputs and you only control two. What proximity means for your real service radius, and why a profile you set up once is now losing.
15 min
Lead GenerationGoogle Business Profile Messaging and Booking
An enquiry route nobody watches is worse than none, because the customer believes they contacted you. When to turn each feature on, and when to leave it off.
13 min
Lead GenerationGoogle Business Profile Photos That Get Calls
Customer photos often display above yours, recency now feeds rankings, and the shot that converts is not the one most contractors upload. What to shoot, when.
14 min
Lead GenerationGoogle Business Profile Suspended: How to Fix It
Do not create a new profile. That reflex gets suspended too. The two suspension types, the appeal structure that works, and the triggers nobody warns you about.
13 min
Lead GenerationHow to Rank in the Google Map Pack (2026)
Map pack position is not a rank, it is a grid. You rank differently on every street, and that changes what you should measure and what you can win.
14 min
Lead GenerationHow to Respond to Bad Reviews as a Contractor
The response is not for the person who wrote it. It is for the next hundred people who read it, and they are looking for one thing: how you handle a problem.
12 min
Lead GenerationService Area Business Setup on Google (2026)
Hiding your address does not extend your reach. Proximity still radiates from where you are, which changes what a service area listing can and cannot do.
13 min
Lead GenerationWhy Is My Business Not Showing Up on Google?
Why is your business not showing up on Google? Usually it is how you check. Then category, verification, duplicates, a shared address or suspension. 8 tests.
16 min
Frequently asked questions
- What do Pavado's Local SEO and Google Business Profile guides cover?
- Ranking in the map pack and on local search: Google Business Profile setup and suspensions, service area businesses, reviews, and why a competitor outranks you.
- What is the best starting point in the Local SEO and Google Business Profile collection?
- Choose the guide that matches your business, platform and question. This collection includes Google Removed Q&A From Your Profile: What Now; 8 Best Review Management Software for Contractors; Should I Build Service Area Pages? A 5-Step Test. Check each article's examples and sources before applying it to your situation.