How a small business can appear on Google: 7 practical steps
Nobody can guarantee you first place on Google, and you should doubt anyone who promises it. But some things depend on you and really help customers find you. Here are seven steps in order of importance.
1. Clear titles and descriptions
Every page should say who you are and what you do right in the title: for example "Roof repair in Sofia" instead of "Home". The same goes for the short description that Google shows under the title.
2. Phone, city and working hours as text
Write them as ordinary text on the site, not only inside a picture. That way search engines and customers see them right away.
3. Separate pages for services
If you offer several different services, describe each in a few sentences with photos. A person searching for "window replacement" should find exactly that.
4. A mobile version and speed
Most searches are made from a phone. The site must be easy to read on a small screen and load fast.
5. Real reviews
Happy customers are the best advertising. Ask them to leave a review and show the best ones on the site. Reviews are not bought and not invented.
6. A Google Business profile, if you have an address
If you have a shop, an office or you work at the customer's place, a Google Business profile shows you on maps and in local searches. The data in it must match the site. A business without a real address and without meeting customers in person cannot get such a profile, and fake addresses must not be used.
7. Search Console and links from other places
Add your site to Google Search Console and submit the sitemap so that Google knows which pages you have. Links from partners, directories and social profiles also help, as long as they are genuine.
How long it takes
Results come in weeks and months, not days. New pages are discovered and assessed gradually, so it is important to maintain and extend the site.
What does not help
- Stuffing the text with repeated keywords.
- Buying links and reviews: Google recognises and penalises them.
- Copying texts from other sites.
- Promises of "first place on Google in a week".
A 10 minute checklist
- Search for your business name on Google. Does your site appear?
- Open the site on a phone. Is it easy to read and does it load fast?
- Check that the phone, the city and the working hours are written as text.
- Check that every service has a description, not only a title.
- Check that the site is added to Google Search Console.