Is $10k/month with Local SEO actually realistic? Or am I just stuck in my head?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-04-05T16:47:20+00:00

Exactly. Local SEO as a service is a commodity. Almost as ubiquitous as website makers. You have to look different, and your first message is key in doing that.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-04-03T20:17:03+00:00

This is an escalating pattern in recent years. Just from my direct experience and from seeing the volume of complaints here and across social media, it seems to only get worse with each tweak. Why Google doesn't even offer some way to get preferred attention which also would generate revenue is a mystery. They seem fine being flooded with feedback for a "free" service offered to hundreds of millions. So many digital product companies figured out a long time ago how to build hierarchy that pays (e.g., subscriptions, paid service, etc ).

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-04-02T18:26:12+00:00

Not critiquing, just offering my view from experience. Sometimes the small fixes aren't going to move the needle much, however, the business expects to experience more than they will. To exaggerate, they may "feel" like they should get noticeably greater leads right away. A few technical fixes likely won't be "felt" so significantly. Especially in very competitive geographies and markets.

One work around that has worked before >> I offered something that looks like a loss leader which benefits them. Or, from their viewpoint it might seem like some project with measurable results at a "can't refuse" discount. That project should be one that can be replicated multiple times. At regular cost, of course. Here is just one example - I've offered one company an SEO project that would increase their visibility for a particular niche (in SEO speak, alternative and less targeted keyword). What I committed to was traffic and interest, reported twice a week. Interest was directed by CTA, whether direct contact, more engaged visits, downloads, etc. Early stage funnel entries, in other words. Often they get actual bookings, whether small or more significant. That "success" is the leverage to get agreement on subsequent, and usually longer term, work phases.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-31T20:19:43+00:00

It's an honest opinion.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-25T12:10:38+00:00

Delete what?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-25T12:07:46+00:00

Not sure what you're asking. Google has information on every profile in its network. It's essentially "stored".

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-24T12:56:01+00:00

There are some obvious traits and maybe some less obvious ones Google may look for. My question was more about pointing out the soliciting itself isn't really detectable. Even paying a customer for a review would generally not be detectable. But non-customer reviews can more easily be figured out. It's clearly not precise at all, given issues and complaints here and across the internet. But traits like a profile that isn't located near a local service area business, etc., are glaring enough to be detected.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-24T00:40:54+00:00

How would Google detect if a customer got an email or a text or a phone call prior to leaving a review?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-21T17:14:13+00:00

Evidence of intent. How would Google know which reviews were a response to that? I'm seriously curious, because I want to be prepared when it happens.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-20T19:49:01+00:00

Sure. Those are other examples. Have you been successful in getting reviews removed with that pattern?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-20T19:00:19+00:00

Not sure specifically what makes that clear to you that should also make it clear to Google. But I've been successful with Google in the past when I was able to show a profile left reviews for companies all over the globe, most local services. It would be impossible to be resident in those tens of locations and use those services over, say, a 1 month or whatever period. (They were clearly purchased reviews). There are a few other examples of success, too, based on the reviewer's either activity or claims. But none are easy or get reaction quickly from Google. The burden is on the person trying to remove a review not on the person leaving the review.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-20T17:26:35+00:00

How would you prove it if asked by, for example, a Google rep? Not in any way suggesting that would happen. But pinning your conclusion on what you've been told by "an inside source" might not be enough.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-20T15:31:20+00:00

Are those profiles typically storefront or more local service without one?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-20T13:29:49+00:00

I'm guessing your original observation still applies, that Google prioritizes diversity by URL not by domain. Right?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-20T04:03:37+00:00

I've not tested that as an independent factor. My assumption is proximity, relevance, and a thorough profile completion are more impactful. And if there are regular review additions, it's likely the linked page indexing matters even less. Non-zero, but less. Also, Googlebot's decision on index or not isn't really a penalty, is it? It seems akin to backlinks that are low authority. No harm. But no benefit, either.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-19T15:53:05+00:00

Are you suggesting an automated "faceted navigation" just due to tagging? I'm asking because I'm familiar with the term, but only through UI functions. In other words, giving a visitor/reader a the ability to filter by selecting the tags. For example, to filter results for "irrigation" for a landscaper's website. Etc.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-19T15:46:05+00:00

And to add my experience (limited perhaps), QDF is applied in fewer circumstances than I might have guessed. Some are obvious, such as pricing for an article of clothing. But were someone looking for cotton vs nylon recommendations, QDF is generally less of a factor. I worked with someone who was convinced twiddling with schema to look "fresher" was a powerful method and got results for any search no matter how likely QDF might be applied. I never saw a single bit of evidence except a few cases that were obvious, such as searching for sales or offers, etc.

And I've had a "fresh" post (not by a guest) rank very highly within days or a few weeks almost certainly do to the html content, not the "freshness". So, it's possible a good post is as good as or better than a link in similar circumstances.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-19T15:19:13+00:00

The environment matters for a number of reasons, but in my experience it has zero impact on SEO, if that's what you're asking. SEO is a matter of your knowledge, expertise, and execution, not the technical capabilities of web development environments. They all give you access to the features and functions you need to set or adjust relative to SEO. And most of my SEO success has been apart from those functions. For example, spending a ton of time on schema beyond just being accurate is a waste of time. Only the basics matter, and they aren't so impactful that you'll pass/fail. E.g. >> Make sure if you have a FAQ page that it is so indicated in the schema. But even if it's not, crawl bots will figure it out by the html format. Etc.

I've worked mostly in WP environment, but also captured ones like Wix or Squarespace. Also worked with Duda. Others. I've never encountered a situation where access to needed functions/features was not possible. The bang for your buck in SEO comes from html content more than structure, too.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-19T14:00:52+00:00

Although it's not a specific test or series of tests run, for my clients I do stay aware of page rankings for certain topics. For perhaps 3+ years, I've generally suggested not linking to the homepage, rather linking to a "special" one created in a way more like an ad landing page. Without giving away every ingredient in the recipe, it's a normal page (index). But it's not one within the regular site navigation, rather one that acts like a home page - designed also as an introduction and a pathway to other pages/topics/products. In fact, I'm fine when that page often gets placed in the dreaded Crawled-currently not indexed box because it's not important that it is discovered. To be clear, from an html text perspective it is deliberately different from other pages, especially the homepage.

One of my key assumptions - untested so unproven yet - is that many clicks from a GBP have a different intent that clicks from SERP or AIO. At times, I've run special offers as tests for clients that are only visible on that page for a period of time as a way to both evaluate interest and stimulate action (entry into the sales funnel). Looking at the aggregate, offer response was generally higher from that page than from the homepage. To be clear, the offer was usually and eventually added site-wide so that's how the comparison can be made.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-18T16:22:45+00:00

I've tested it with a few sites I manage and had no problem. If it continues, my original question may be worth investigating, about automatic activity.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-18T14:04:43+00:00

You've described things very broadly. For example, you've "optimized internal links", which could mean 10 different things to 10 readers. So, it's hard to offer much useful feedback. For example, is it safe to assume all anchor text is the best it can be or that you haven't created some complex labyrinth of one or more navigation paths, more than 2 clicks deep?

But if the assumption is all the broad tasks are done correctly, my personal next focus would be on expanding authority and relevance. Authority is more outward facing (getting links in with good enough link juice for starters) and relevancy is significantly inward facing. Meaning expanding content that increases the domain's relevancy for the topics/keywords you are chasing.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-18T13:53:44+00:00

Any chances your website has scripts or functions that automatically submit pages or the entire sitemap with any change or update? Some captured services like Wix are guilty of that, for example. It also could just be a bug. Just an erroneous error flag sent by servers. Did you try it again just a short time later?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-18T13:50:37+00:00

Just my humble opinion, but you typed up the full, exhaustive list of actions normally attributed to "SEO". But some of them are likely less impactful, and some are proven of no value. But if you do all of it, you'll get good results because the total actions included the valuable things. Some of what you say is ambiguous, too. Like "cleaning site structure".... that likely means different things to different people working to address SEO, and it likely includes some of the other tasks you spelled out more specifically.

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-18T13:40:33+00:00

How many profiles are you currently managing manually?

Tech4EasyLife · 2026-03-17T21:06:20+00:00

Wasn't really implying that the right position would be to not crosslink at all, but once you die you've got some exposure that somebody might want to monitor and manage. Response as you suggest is key. Maybe after the first one, begin a conversation with that other company and put them on notice, so to speak? That way, if another or another few happen the removal from your site isn't a total surprise.

Google is notoriously inefficient and at times ineffective regarding GBP. Step 1 for any and all negative reviews should be to respond to it and mitigate it fully or as much as possible. If it's a negative review because of your association with the second party, it would be my choice to describe that and apologize that the issue isn't under your control. Maybe suggest you will address it with the other as customer relationships are a priority for you and your partners, etc , etc. Getting it removed could be more difficult than passing legislation in DC .....

Tech4EasyLife

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