Local businesses can fix their website speed, broken links, contact details, and Google Business Profile before hiring an SEO agency. Does the thought of tackling this yourself feel overwhelming? You’re not the only one.
Plenty of small business owners know search engine optimisation counts, but figuring out where to start often burns hours in wasted time, and guesswork.
Here’s the thing, though. A bit of local SEO prep saves money and helps your agency hit the ground running.
We’ll cover the basics you can handle, from quick website fixes to prepping your logins.
Let’s get into it.
Website Basics You Can Tidy Up Right Now
Your website is the first thing an SEO agency will look at. If technical SEO issues like slow site speed, broken links, or missing contact info are lurking, they’ll spend time fixing those before anything else.
So, sorting these SEO basics yourself lets your agency skip the cleanup and focus on real growth.
We’ll start with the most common culprit.
Check Your Site Speed
Slow sites frustrate visitors because they expect pages to load in seconds. Poor load times also tank your search rankings since search engines penalise them, especially on mobile devices.
Finding the issue is easy. Just run your site through Google PageSpeed Insights to check your site speed. It shows exactly what’s dragging your load time down.
In most cases, oversized images and clunky plugins slow things down. After you fix those, broken links are the next thing to check.
Fix Broken Links and Missing Pages
Broken links send visitors to dead ends. When someone clicks a link and gets an error page, they bounce. These dead links also signal to search engines that your site isn’t well-maintained.
From our experience working with local businesses, most don’t realise they have broken links until someone complains. Luckily, tools like Broken Link Checker find them in minutes.
Once you find broken links, redirect old URLs or remove dead links.
Make Sure Contact Info Is Easy to Find
Your phone number, address, and email should be easy to spot. If visitors have to dig around, they’ll leave and call your competitor instead.
For this reason, put contact details in your header, footer, and a dedicated contact page. This consistency also helps search engines trust your business.
With contact info sorted, your website basics are set. Your Google Business Profile is the next thing to tackle.
Your Google Business Profile: Easy Wins to Grab First
Your Google Business Profile shows up in local search results and Google Maps. If it’s incomplete, your online visibility drops and potential customers won’t find you. That’s because Google ranks complete profiles higher in local search.
But fixing this is easier than you’d think. A few DIY SEO improvements take minutes, starting with claiming your listing.
Three simple fixes will sort this out.
1. Claim and Verify Your Listing
If you haven’t claimed your Google Business Profile, someone else could control your business info (yes, it’s surprisingly common), and claiming it is simple.
All it takes is a quick verification. Google sends a postcard or phone code to confirm you’re the owner. The postcard method usually takes a few days, though some businesses qualify for instant verification via Google Search Console.
Once verified, you gain editing access and can respond to online reviews.
2. Add Accurate Hours and Business Details
Wrong business hours frustrate customers who show up when you’re closed. And an incorrect business name or address is even worse.
We’ve seen firsthand how these mistakes damage reviews. To avoid this, check your phone number, business category, and service areas, too.
While you’re at it, keep everything accurate and up to date, including public holiday hours. These small details influence how customers see your business before they even visit.
3. Upload Fresh Photos of Your Space
Listings with high-quality images get more clicks than those with generic stock photos. That’s because a good photo is worth its weight in gold when it comes to first impressions.
For best results, show your shopfront, team, products, or workspace. Update them every few months to keep things current. Photos like these help local customers picture themselves visiting before they even leave the house.
What Info Should You Gather Before the Agency Starts?
Before your agency starts, gather your target suburbs, main services, and account logins. These three things determine your keyword targeting, location focus, and how quickly your agency can start tracking progress.
Let’s break each one down.
1. Know Your Target Suburbs and Service Areas
Local search targets specific locations, so clarity here shapes the whole seo strategy. Without clear location info, search engines can’t match your business with nearby customers.
So be specific. List the suburbs and postcodes where most of your target audience comes from. If you’re Brisbane-based, specify the areas you serve, like the CBD, Northside, or Southside.
2. List Your Main Services Clearly
Your agency will build keywords around what you offer. If your service descriptions are vague, the keywords will be, too.
With that in mind, write them out in plain language, not internal jargon (we’ve untangled that mess a few times). Along with the basics, include pricing tiers if you have them, seasonal offerings, or services you want to push harder. This level of detail helps your agency prioritise where to focus.
3. Collect Login Details for All Accounts
Believe it or not, forgotten passwords are one of the most common onboarding delays. Your agency will need access to Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and your website backend to track progress and make changes.
A little prep avoids this. Having usernames and passwords ready before your first meeting keeps onboarding smooth. If any are missing, reset them now. For shared accounts, a separate login with editor access protects your admin settings while giving your agency what they need.
Time to Hand Over the Reins
Local SEO can feel overwhelming for local businesses, and it’s easy to put things off. But the prep work doesn’t have to be complicated. When you follow the right steps, things start to move in the right direction, and local SEO success becomes easier to reach.
This article covered the essentials: checking site speed, fixing broken links, updating contact info, claiming your Google Business Profile, and gathering logins. These fixes save time and money. Your agency can focus on growth instead of cleanup, helping you reach more potential customers.
When you’re ready to take your local SEO further, our team at Appsecute is here to help. Reach out today, and let’s turn your prep work into real organic traffic.