How does Google decide which tradesmen to show?
For local searches, Google says results are mainly based on relevance, distance and prominence. Relevance is how well your profile matches the search. Distance is how far you are from the customer. Prominence is how well known you are, including reviews and links to your site.
You cannot move your yard closer to every customer. You can make your profile and website more relevant, and you can build prominence one job at a time.
What should a tradesman's website have?
A tradesman's website needs a clear page for each main service and the areas you cover. It also needs an easy way to call or ask for a quote. It should load fast on a phone, because many people search from the job itself, standing beside the leak.
- A page per service, such as boiler repairs, bathroom fitting or rewiring, each with its own heading.
- The towns you cover, written as real places you work, with examples of jobs there.
- Photos of your own work, before and after, with short captions.
- A phone number people can tap and a short quote form that asks for the postcode and the job.
- Proof: genuine reviews and any trade body membership you really hold.
Our guide on how to build a website for a small business walks through the pages in more detail.
How do you set up your Google Business Profile?
Claim your free profile, choose the category that matches your main trade and fill in every field you can: services, areas, hours, phone and website. If you work at customers' homes, you can show a service area instead of your address.
Then keep it alive. Add photos after jobs, answer questions and post when you take on a new service. Our step-by-step guide shows how to rank higher on Google Maps.
Want the service and area pages done for you? We build your trade website free, and you pay nothing for 14 days. No card needed. Get my free trade website.
How many reviews does a trade business need?
There is no magic number, but more recent, genuine reviews help. Google counts reviews as part of prominence, and customers read them before they call. Ask every happy customer, at the moment the job is finished.
Make it easy with a short link sent by text, and reply to every review, good or bad. Our guide on how to get more Google reviews has wording you can copy.
Do tradesmen need to think about AI search?
Yes, a little. More people now ask AI tools questions such as "who can fix a leaking boiler near me?". Those tools read your website and your listings, so plain facts about your services, areas and prices help them name you.
Google's own advice for search applies here too: write helpful, reliable content for people, not for search engines. Our AI search optimisation page explains how we make a site easy for those tools to read.
How much does SEO cost for a trade business?
You can do the basics yourself for free. If you hire help, UK monthly retainers are a big commitment: one agency's SEO packages start from £599 a month plus value added tax (VAT). That can pay off for a firm chasing big contracts, but it is a lot for a sole trader.
Many trades get further by starting with a well-built website and a complete profile. A managed website can include the on-page search work in its monthly fee. Then you are not paying for the site and the search work twice.
What does SEO for a plumber look like in practice?
Take a typical case: the business is invented, the steps are real. A plumber in a market town has a one-page website and no reviews. He adds a page each for boiler repairs, bathrooms and blocked drains, lists the six villages he covers and adds photos from real jobs.
He completes his Business Profile and texts a review link after every job. Within a few months he has a steady stream of reviews. His missed calls also get an automatic text, so callers wait for him instead of ringing the next plumber.
How can Buzzozo help?
Buzzozo builds websites for tradesmen, including plumbers and electricians, with the service and area pages Google looks for. We add the AI tools that win jobs: a chat assistant that answers at night, lead capture into your phone and missed call text back. Our local SEO service handles your Business Profile too.
Want to see it first? Start your free 14-day trial. No card needed. Then compare our plans and prices with what a separate build, hosting and search agency would cost.
Common questions
Can I do SEO myself as a tradesman?
Yes. Claim your Google Business Profile, add a page for each service and area, ask for reviews after every job and keep your details the same everywhere. That covers most of the basics.
How long does SEO take for a trade business?
Profile changes can show within weeks. Website pages usually take a few months to settle in search results, especially for a new site with few reviews.
Do I need a website if I have a Google Business Profile?
It helps a lot. Your profile links to your website, and a site with a page for each service gives Google and customers more reasons to choose you.
Should I pay for Google Ads instead of SEO?
Ads bring calls as soon as you pay and stop when you stop. Search work builds slowly but keeps working. Many trades start with a good site and profile, then add ads for busy seasons.
What is the most important SEO step for tradesmen?
A complete, accurate Google Business Profile with real photos and recent reviews, linked to a clear website that loads fast on a phone.