Your primary Google Business Profile category is the #1 Google Maps ranking factor because it defines your business entity, determines which searches you’re eligible for, and controls the competitor set you’re ranked against in the Local Pack. If your primary category is misaligned, Google won’t treat you as the most relevant result, no matter how […]

Review recency matters more than review volume in Google Business Profile (GBP) rankings because Google evaluates current business activity and behavioural engagement patterns, not just accumulated historical reviews. While total review count contributes to overall prominence, review recency influences how active, trusted, and relevant a business appears within local search and Google Maps results. A

Most businesses leave the Products section empty on their Google Business Profile. That’s a missed opportunity, not because it’s a “ranking hack”, but because it improves what actually matters in Google Maps: engagement, trust, and enquiries. When someone finds you in Google Maps, they want instant clarity on three things: what you offer what it

If you’re trying to rank higher in Google Maps, you’ve probably seen plenty of advice that sounds like a shortcut: “Just add more keywords” “Post every day” “Buy more reviews” But local SEO doesn’t work like that. Google Maps rankings are built on trust, relevance, and consistency, and the businesses that win in the local pack

BrightonSEO Talk Now Live on YouTube! 🎤 If you’re looking for a way to streamline your keyword research and build powerful topical maps in minutes, my BrightonSEO talk is now available on YouTube! This session is packed with insights on transforming raw keyword data into structured topical maps, automating clustering, and making sense of complex

Google Deleted Your Reviews—Now They’re Back For days, businesses were in panic mode. Thousands of genuine Google reviews disappeared overnight. No warning. No explanation. No fix in sight. Did your “SEO Expert” use spammy techniques? That was the first thought—but it wasn’t the case. This time, the issue wasn’t bad SEO practices or black-hat tactics.

I’m thrilled to announce that I’ve been featured in Majestic’s “SEO in 2024” series, where I dive deep into one of the most critical topics for the future of search engine optimisation: building trust through entity-based SEO. As the SEO landscape continues to shift, search engines are placing an increasing emphasis on trust signals. It’s