Most trades I speak to in Liverpool are brilliant at the job and have never been shown how Google decides who to put in front of a customer. So the same handful of mistakes come up again and again. None of them are expensive to fix. They just need someone to point them out.
Mistake 1: one page for every job and every town
I see this constantly. A single Services page lists boiler repairs, bathrooms, gas safety checks and a dozen towns in one long paragraph. Google can’t tell which job the page is actually about, so it doesn’t rank for any of them.
The fix is boring but it works. Give each main job its own page. Write it for the person searching, with the work you do, the areas you cover and how to get hold of you. Then add pages for the towns you really want work in. If you’re not sure how that looks, my builder SEO page shows the idea, and the areas page shows how I handle towns.
Mistake 2: a half-finished Google Business Profile
For most local searches the map shows before any website does. Yet plenty of trades have a profile with the wrong main category, no services listed and three photos from 2019. Google treats that as a business that isn’t bothered.
Pick the category that matches your main job. Add every service you offer. Upload real photos of real work. Check your opening hours and keep your phone number the same everywhere it appears. I’ve written a step-by-step on setting up your Google Business Profile and another on getting into the Maps top 3.
Mistake 3: never asking for reviews
Happy customers rarely leave a review on their own. They’re busy and the job is done. A quick message with a direct link the same day, while they’re still pleased, gets far more replies than hoping it happens.
Reply to every review too. Good or bad. A calm, polite answer to a grumpy one tells the next customer more about you than the five stars do. More on this in why Google reviews matter.
Mistake 4: a website that fails on a phone
Someone with a leak under the sink isn’t sitting at a desk. They’re on their phone. If your number is buried in a menu, or the page crawls because of huge photos straight off a camera, they’ll go back and ring the next result.
Open your own site on your phone right now. Can you tap to call within a couple of seconds? Does it say what you do and where? If not, that’s your first job. I cover the speed side in why a slow mobile site costs you customers and the next step in how to turn website visitors into enquiries.
Mistake 5: not knowing where the calls come from
Ask most trades which bit of their marketing brings in work and you get a shrug. Without tracking you can’t tell what’s working, so money goes on the wrong things and the good stuff gets dropped.
You don’t need anything fancy. Set up Search Console and Google Analytics, and count calls and form enquiries as results. My guides to Search Console and Google Analytics 4 walk through it. Once that’s running, getting more clicks from Google is the natural next step.
Want me to spot which of these you’ve got?
Fill in the form and I’ll go through your site and Google profile. I’ll tell you which of the five mistakes apply and what I’d fix first.
If you want me to crack on, it’s £125 a week, about £18 a day, on a 30 day rolling basis.
Free website check
Checked by me, not a tool.
Rather message? WhatsApp 07463 631121 or call 0151 402 0925.
Questions people ask me
Which of these mistakes costs the most?
Usually the half-finished Google profile, because the map is the first thing people see. It’s also the quickest to fix.
Do I need a page for every town I cover?
Only for the towns you genuinely want work in. A short, honest page for each beats a long list of places on one page.
How many reviews do I need?
There’s no magic number. Look at the businesses above you on the map and aim to match them, then keep a steady flow coming in.
Is my website too old to rank?
Not necessarily. Age matters less than whether it’s clear, fast on a phone and has a page for each job.
How long until I see a difference?
Profile and review changes can show within weeks. New pages usually take a couple of months to settle.
Can you fix these for me?
Yes. Most of it is part of my SEO fixes and monthly plan.
Keep reading
If you’re weighing up outside help, do you need an SEO company? gives you an honest answer. To see how you stack up locally, try competitor analysis for local businesses, and the benefits of local SEO explains why it’s worth the effort.
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Hi, I’m PeteWant a straight answer on your site?
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