When someone looks for a hairdresser, a mechanic or a plumber, Google usually shows a map with three businesses first and only then the regular results. You don't get into that top three with your website alone, but with your Google Business Profile. Local SEO means working on both places at once: on the profile in Maps and on a website that answers searches containing the city name.

For a service business this is often the fastest source of phone calls. A customer searching for a service nearby usually wants to buy now, not in a month. They choose from what they see on the first screen.

How Google chooses businesses for the map

Google states plainly that local results are based mainly on three factors. You can influence two of them, but not the third.

We write more about the weight of individual signals and where calls from the map come from in our guide local SEO for small businesses.

Local SEO pricing

Gross prices. Each additional location is a separate profile. On the market, profile management alone usually costs PLN 300 to 1,500 net a month, and SEO for a local business starts at around PLN 1,200 net. The cheaper option, Start from PLN 790 a month, and all packages are in our SEO pricing.

What we fix most often in business profiles

The same mistakes keep coming up in our audits of businesses on Google Maps. Each of them costs phone calls, and most can be fixed in a day:

• a primary category that is too broad, for example "Construction company" instead of "Roofer";
• no list of services and no description saying which towns the business serves;
• a different phone number in the profile, on the website and in directories;
• the latest photo is several years old;
• reviews without replies, especially critical ones;
• the link in the profile goes to the homepage instead of the page for that service.

The first month step by step

1. Profile and competitor auditWe compare your profile with the three businesses currently on the map: categories, number and rating of reviews, photos, descriptions.
2. Cleaning up the profileCategories, services, description, hours, photos and details consistent with your website and directories.
3. Review collection systemA review link and QR code, an NFC sticker on your premises and a short guide for your team on when to ask for a review.
4. A website built for local keywordsA service page with the city name, structured business data and a link from the profile to the right page.
5. MeasurementEvery month: calls, direction requests and website visits from the profile, keyword positions in Maps.

What we don't do

Shortcuts can get you onto the map for a few weeks and then cost you the profile for good. That's why we stick to Google's rules and the law:

• We don't add keywords to the business name. "Plumber Olsztyn 24h Kowalski" instead of the real name breaks Google's guidelines and risks having the profile suspended.
• We don't create profiles for virtual offices or for addresses where the business doesn't serve customers.
• We don't buy reviews or write them for customers. Fake reviews break Google's rules, and in Poland since 1 January 2023 they have been on the list of practices prohibited in all circumstances (Act on Counteracting Unfair Market Practices).
• We don't promise first place across the whole city, because the distance from the person searching is beyond anyone's control.

A business without premises can have a profile too

If you travel to your customers, like an electrician, a renovation crew or a mobile mechanic, you don't have to show your address. The profile can have a service area: a list of the towns and municipalities you serve, while the address stays hidden. We work the same way: we're based just outside Olsztyn, without premises for clients, and we travel to meetings wherever suits the client.

We describe how to set up the profile yourself and get through verification in our guide how to set up a Google Business Profile step by step. How to create a link that takes the customer straight to the review form is covered in Google review link.

Local SEO in Olsztyn and across Poland

We work remotely with businesses from all over the country. Businesses from Olsztyn and the Warmia-Masuria region can also meet us in person: details on the page SEO in Olsztyn. If you need a website first, see websites for businesses in Olsztyn or website design.

Frequently asked questions