Free checklist
These are the checklists we use with clients, written so you can work through them yourself. Start with the one-time setup, use the page checklist whenever you publish, and spend 30 minutes a month on the routine.
Short answer
A small business SEO checklist covers five areas. Setup: Search Console, Analytics, a Google Business Profile and an SEO plugin. Every page: one topic, a clear title, a short answer first, internal links and a call to action. Google Maps: complete profile, consistent details and steady reviews. AI search: consistent facts, clear answers and mentions on trusted sites. Monthly: check enquiries, Search Console, reviews and one page to improve.
Key takeaways
- Do the one-time setup first, it takes an afternoon
- Every page needs one topic, one clear title and one next step
- Google Maps work brings the fastest local results
- AI search rewards consistent facts and clear answers
- 30 minutes a month keeps everything moving
How to use these checklists
Once
The setup checklist. Do it one afternoon and you won’t need to do it again.
Every page
The page checklist. Use it every time you publish or update a service page or blog post.
Every month
The 30-minute routine. Put it in your calendar for the first Monday of each month.
1. One-time setup
- Verify your website in Google Search Console and submit your sitemap
- Set up Google Analytics 4 with your enquiries (forms, calls, bookings) as key events Tracking guide
- Claim and verify your Google Business Profile Profile guide
- Install one SEO plugin on WordPress (we use Rank Math) and fill in your business details
- Make sure your site loads over https and works well on a phone
- Check your site isn’t set to “Discourage search engines” in WordPress settings
- Make sure your robots.txt doesn’t block Google or AI crawlers
- Add your business name, address and phone number to the footer of every page
- Set up one page for each main service and each area you really serve
- Write down the 10–20 searches that would bring you the most work Keyword guide
2. Every page you publish
- One main topic per page, and no other page on your site targeting the same thing
- A title tag under about 60 characters that says what the page is about and where, for example “Boiler Service Navan | Murphy Heating”
- One H1 heading that matches what people search for
- The short answer in the first two sentences
- Prices or price ranges where you can give them
- Real photos of your work, team or premises, with descriptive file names and alt text
- Proof: reviews, accreditations, examples of past jobs
- Links to two or three related pages on your own site
- One clear next step: call, form or booking
- A meta description that makes someone want to click
- Checked on a phone before you hit publish
The one-question test
Read the page as a customer and ask: “Would I ring this business after reading this?” If the honest answer is “maybe”, add a price, a photo, a review or a clearer next step.
3. Google Maps and local SEO
- Primary category set to exactly what you do, plus a few accurate secondary categories
- Every service listed, with a short description
- Opening hours correct, including bank holidays
- At least 10 real photos, with new ones added every month
- Your profile links to the matching page on your website, not just the homepage
- Name, address and phone exactly the same on your website, Google, Facebook and Irish directories Citations guide
- A simple process to ask every customer for a review Reviews guide
- Every review answered, good and bad, within a few days
- A Google post or update at least once a month
4. AI search (ChatGPT, Gemini, AI Overviews)
- Your services, areas and prices described the same way everywhere online
- An About page with real names, experience and qualifications
- Clear question-and-answer sections on your key pages
- Organization, LocalBusiness and Service schema added Schema guide
- Listed on the directories and industry sites AI tools read
- AI crawlers such as OAI-SearchBot and PerplexityBot not blocked
- Ask the AI tools your customers’ questions and note who gets named AEO vs GEO explained
5. Your 30-minute monthly routine
Enquiries (5 minutes)
How many calls, forms and bookings came in, and from where? This is the number that matters most.
Search Console (10 minutes)
Which searches and pages got more or fewer clicks? Check the Pages report for any important page that’s “not indexed”.
Google Maps (5 minutes)
New reviews answered? Photos added? Any edits suggested by Google that you need to check?
One improvement (10 minutes)
Pick one page and improve it: a better title, a new FAQ, a price range, a fresh photo or a link to a new page.
Every 3 months
- Check your site speed on a phone Speed guide
- Look for broken links and pages showing errors
- Update any prices, team members or services that have changed
- Review what’s new in Google and AI search Google updates 2026
- Compare your Google Maps position with the top three competitors
Frequently asked questions
Can I really do SEO myself with a checklist?
Many small businesses can get the basics right themselves, especially Google Maps, reviews and clear service pages. Where people usually need help is technical problems, competitive markets and finding the time to do it every month.
What should I do first?
Your Google Business Profile and reviews. For local businesses, they usually bring in enquiries faster than anything else.
How long until I see results?
Google Maps improvements can show within weeks. Ranking new pages in normal results usually takes a few months, depending on competition.
Rather we did the checklist for you?
Our free audit runs through these checks and sends you a short video with your three biggest fixes.