If your business isn't showing up when someone in your city searches for what you do, there's a specific reason. It's not random. It's not luck. It's one or more of five measurable gaps that a local SEO audit is designed to find. Here's exactly what each one is and why it matters.
1. Your Google Business Profile Score
Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is the listing that appears in Google Maps and the local pack — the three results Google shows above organic search results. It is the single most important local ranking asset you control.
A full GBP audit checks every field that affects how Google ranks and displays your listing:
- Primary category selection — most contractors pick a vague category ("contractor") instead of the specific one Google uses for ranking ("roofing contractor," "HVAC contractor," "plumbing service")
- Services list completeness — every service you offer should be listed by name so Google understands the full scope of searches you should rank for
- Photo count and recency — profiles with 10+ photos and fresh uploads in the last 90 days consistently outrank sparse ones; Google treats photo activity as a freshness signal
- Review count and velocity — 50 old reviews matters less than a steady stream of new ones; velocity signals that your business is active
- Review response rate — responding to every review is a documented ranking signal; most contractors respond to fewer than half
- GBP posts activity — weekly posts signal engagement to Google and give searchers a reason to choose you before they even click your website
- Q&A section usage — if you leave this blank, strangers fill it in with guesses; populate it yourself with the questions your customers actually ask
Most contractors we audit score below 40% on GBP completeness — and it's the single highest-impact fix available.
2. Your Website Speed vs. Your Top Competitor
Google's Core Web Vitals are ranking signals. A slow website hurts your position in both the map pack and organic results — not because Google penalizes you directly, but because it tracks whether users actually stay on your site after clicking.
A speed audit compares your PageSpeed Insights mobile score against the top-ranking competitor in your market:
- Mobile score vs. competitor — the gap matters more than the raw number; a 65 is fine if your competitor scores 60, but a problem if they score 90
- What scores mean in plain terms — below 50 is poor and will actively suppress rankings; 50–89 is average; 90+ is a competitive advantage
- The most common causes of slow scores for contractor websites — WordPress sites bloated with page-builder plugins, unoptimized images above the fold, and cheap shared hosting that throttles on traffic spikes account for the majority of slow contractor sites in DFW
A Plano roofing site we reviewed scored 38 on mobile. Their top competitor scored 91. Google sees that gap before a single person reads either website.
3. Where You Actually Rank Right Now
Most business owners think they know where they rank. They search their own business name and see it near the top. That tells you nothing useful — Google personalizes results, and your business name is not what customers type.
A ranking audit shows you:
- How to check your own ranking — use an incognito window and search the service + city ("roof repair Plano") from multiple devices; better yet, use a rank-tracking tool that shows position by zip code
- Why map pack position matters more than organic for contractors — the three map pack listings receive over 44% of all clicks on a local search; position 1 in organic below the map pack gets less traffic than position 3 in the pack
- What competitor comparison reveals — knowing that your closest competitor ranks in the top 3 for 12 keyword variations while you rank for 2 tells you exactly how much ground you need to close
We documented this exact gap in our pool builder SEO case study, where a brand-new page targeting Plano pool builder searches outranked a national agency with 20 years of domain authority within 4 days, simply by being more specific and locally relevant.
4. Your Citation Consistency Score
Citations are any online listing that shows your business name, address, and phone number (NAP). They exist on directories like Yelp, Angi, BBB, Facebook, and dozens of industry-specific platforms. Google cross-references these listings to verify that your business is legitimate and located where you say it is.
A citation audit checks:
- What NAP consistency means — your business name, address, and phone number must appear identically on every platform; Google compares these across hundreds of sources
- The most common inconsistencies — phone number format ("214-555-0100" vs "2145550100"), suite numbers included on some listings but not others, business name variations ("ABC Plumbing" vs "ABC Plumbing & Drain" vs "ABC Plumbing LLC"), and old addresses from a previous location that were never updated
- Which 5 directories matter most — Google Business Profile, Yelp, Facebook, Apple Maps, and Bing Places carry the most weight; inconsistencies here hurt the most
One character difference in your phone number across directories is enough to split your ranking authority in Google's eyes.
5. Your Reputation Velocity
Reviews are a ranking signal, but most business owners track the wrong metric. Total review count matters less than recent review velocity — and a stagnant profile with 200 old reviews will often rank below a profile with 40 reviews earned in the last six months.
A reputation audit covers:
- Star rating threshold — Google actively suppresses businesses below a 4.2 average; listings between 4.2 and 4.7 rank most reliably; the sweet spot isn't a perfect 5.0 (which looks suspicious) but consistent 4-star-and-above reviews with a high volume
- Review velocity vs. total count — a business that earned 5 reviews last month outperforms one that earned 5 reviews last year, even if the second business has 10× more total reviews
- Response rate as a ranking signal — Google uses owner response behavior as an engagement proxy; responding to every review signals an active, customer-focused business
- Multi-platform presence — reviews on Yelp, Facebook, and industry directories (Houzz, Angi) reinforce your GBP profile; Google cross-references sentiment across platforms
A contractor with 85 reviews earned over 4 years versus a competitor with 40 reviews earned in the last 12 months — the newer profile will typically rank higher, because Google reads the first as stale and the second as actively serving customers.
How Your Business Scores Across All Five
Each of the five categories is scored on a 0–20 scale, giving a total out of 100. Most DFW contractors who request an audit land between 28 and 52. The businesses ranking in the top 3 of the map pack in competitive DFW markets typically score above 72.
The audit tells you exactly which categories are dragging your score down and which fixes will move your ranking fastest — so you're not guessing and not wasting time on optimizations that won't matter for your specific situation.
Want to see your actual score? I'll record a free 5-minute personal video audit covering all five categories for your specific business — delivered to your inbox in 48 hours.