How to get more customers from Google

Most of what moves the needle for a local business in Google search isn't complicated or expensive. It's a handful of fundamentals, done properly, that most small businesses never quite get around to finishing.

1. Claim and complete your Google Business Profile

This is the free listing that shows up with your hours, photos, and reviews when someone searches your business name or "[what you do] near me". Fill in every field: category, hours, service area, photos. An incomplete profile is one of the most common reasons a genuinely good business doesn't show up where it should.

2. Ask for reviews, consistently

Reviews affect both how often you show up and whether people click through once they see you. Asking every happy customer, right after a good experience, works better than hoping they remember later. Never offer anything in exchange for a review, and never write fake ones, both break Google's rules and can get a listing penalised.

3. Make sure your website actually loads fast on mobile

Most local searches happen on a phone, often on patchy mobile data. A slow site loses people before they ever see what you offer, and it's also a factor Google considers in ranking. Heavy, unoptimised images are the most common culprit.

4. Keep your details consistent everywhere

• The same business name, address, and phone number on your website, Google Business Profile, and any directories
• Hours that are actually accurate, updated for public holidays
• A website that links back to your Google Business Profile, and vice versa

5. Answer the actual question someone's searching

If someone searches "cafe website design Melbourne", a page titled generically "Services" with no mention of cafes or Melbourne is working against itself. Content that plainly answers what someone actually searched, like our own industry pages, tends to do better than a single page trying to cover everything at once.