I’ve been thinking a lot about local SEO lately.
It doesn’t feel the same anymore.
A few years ago, it was simple. Add some keywords. Build a few links. Wait.
That doesn’t work now.
In 2026, Google feels less like a machine and more like a judge. It watches. It remembers. It notices patterns.
I realized something important.
If a Google Business Profile is quiet, Google assumes the business is quiet too. So I started treating it like a living thing. Posting updates. Adding real photos. Replying to reviews.
Not perfect. Just active.
Then I stopped chasing keywords. Instead, I focused on showing what the business actually does.
Service pages. Location pages. FAQs real people ask. Case studies from real work.
It felt slower. But it felt honest.
Trust became the big shift.
Author names. Certifications. Testimonials. Past work. Small details that prove there’s a real human behind the screen.
And then I noticed something else.
Local SEO isn’t really “SEO” anymore. It’s branding.
The businesses that grow are the ones people recognize. The ones people search by name. The ones that show up locally, online and offline.
Social activity started to matter. Local mentions mattered. Community engagement mattered.
Even content changed.
Writing long, fancy paragraphs stopped helping. Clear words worked better. Direct answers worked better. Structure mattered because AI was reading before humans.
And that’s when it clicked.
Local SEO in 2026 is simple, but not easy.
Stay active. Show real experience. Build trust slowly. Act like a brand. Write so both humans and AI can understand you.
No tricks. No shortcuts.
Just quiet consistency that adds up over time.