Guides
Plain-English definitions and how-tos for local SEO — short, structured, and to the point. More guides are added regularly.
Start free — no card requiredBasics
Short, plain-English definitions for the core terms.
What Is Local SEO?
The practice of optimizing a business's online presence so it ranks higher in location-based search results.
Read the guide →What Is a Google Business Profile?
The free listing that controls how a business appears on Google Search and Google Maps.
Read the guide →What Is NAP?
Name, Address, and Phone number — the identity data that must match exactly everywhere online.
Read the guide →What Is the Local 3-Pack?
The block of three map-linked listings Google shows above organic results for local searches.
Read the guide →How-to guides & checklists
Step-by-step walkthroughs and reference checklists.
How to Set Up a Google Business Profile
A step-by-step walkthrough of creating and verifying a profile, plus a first-week checklist.
Read the guide →GBP Ranking Factors That Actually Matter
Google's own documented factors — relevance, distance, prominence — and which claims are myths.
Read the guide →The Complete GBP Optimization Checklist
Identity, completeness, photos, reviews, posts, Q&A, and monitoring — the manual version, done right.
Read the guide →Landing Page SEO Checklist for Local Businesses
NAP, embedded map, title tags, page speed, schema markup, and more, for the page your profile links to.
Read the guide →How to Report Fake Reviews & Spam on Google
What's actually reportable, how to report it, and what to expect from Google's review process.
Read the guide →Put these guides to work.
RateGather runs the repeating parts — reviews, Google posts, rank tracking — on autopilot, so you don't have to remember them every week.
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