What a Good Monthly Local SEO Report Should Show You
Rankings alone don’t pay the bills. Here are the numbers a good monthly Local SEO report should show — and the vanity metrics you can safely ignore.
Read articleIf I could change only one thing on most Google Business Profiles, it would be the category. It quietly decides which searches you can show up for — and many businesses get it wrong.
What categories do
Your categories tell Google what your business is. When someone searches “saree shop near me” or “dentist near me”, Google looks for businesses whose categories match. Wrong category, and you simply don’t appear — no matter how good your photos or reviews are.
Primary vs additional categories
- Primary category: the one that describes your main business. It carries the most weight.
- Additional categories: Google lets you add up to 9 more for other things you genuinely offer.
How to choose your primary category
- Be specific. “Saree store” is better than “Clothing store” if sarees are your main business. “Dental clinic” is better than “Medical clinic”.
- Match what customers search. Think about the exact words people type to find a business like yours.
- Check your top competitors. Search your main keyword on Google Maps, open the top 3 results and see which categories they use.
How to choose additional categories
- Add only what you actually offer — a boutique that also does tailoring can add a tailoring category.
- Don’t add unrelated categories “just in case”. It can confuse Google and customers.
- Review them every few months as your business changes.
Common mistakes
- Choosing a broad category because it “sounds bigger”.
- Using a category for a service you don’t provide.
- Never revisiting categories after setting up the profile years ago.
Quick action for today
Open your Google Business Profile, check your primary category, and compare it with the top 3 businesses for your main search. If they’re more specific than you, that may be the reason they rank above you.
In my fashion boutique case study, optimizing categories was one of the first changes — and direction requests grew 29.3% year on year. Want me to check yours? Book a free strategy session.
