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Ranking first on Google Maps: local SEO
I am not talking here about being the first website on Google and optimising your SEO. Here I am talking about optimising your local ranking, which means your Google Business Profile listing, the one that shows on Google Maps.
Google Business Profile is a powerful option for legal professionals, particularly those outside the big cities, who face less competition than notaries in cities such as Paris.
But even in Paris you have a card to play. Look below: my search was "Notaire paris" and "Notaire dans ma ville". A fairly logical query when you are looking for a notary nearby. Three things stand out:
- These notaries had the sense to put their specialism in their name, so they are identified first.
- In the city, competition is weaker: the third result is a notarial practice that outperforms, with plenty of positive reviews.
- It is always possible to rank in Paris!
Now to the practice
To start, search for the most searched terms on Google Trends
You can compare two queries and position yourself on the keywords that are most searched and most relevant to your work. Here, notaire paris is far more relevant than notaire dans ma ville.
Once your target queries are set, you have to work them into your Google Business Profile listing.
So move from the name of your practice to Practice X - notarial services in (target query).
Then take every optimisation opportunity available and give as much information as you can. Two elements deserve particular attention:
- The category of your business (use the best queries, as above)
- The services offered (same again: use Google Trends or Semrush to work in keywords that perform)
Go fishing for reviews
To promote your business, it is essential to invite your clients, contacts and partners to leave reviews on your Google listing, and to make sure you reply to them.
At the end of every engagement, encourage satisfied clients to give your business 5 stars on your Google listing. If you want to be sure they are happy before asking for a review, build a satisfaction form with a tool such as Typeform or Tally. Ask them to rate their experience out of 10; if they answer 10/10, send them a link to leave a review on your Google listing. If they rate it below 10, get in touch to talk it through and fix whatever went wrong.
To make sure, send a direct link to add a review, like this:
Over to you!
I am here if you need help. I hope you like this format, and I would be glad to hear what you think.
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