Trusted by 300+ brands, locally and nationally
Sydney local SEO company
Local SEO agency in Sydney, working Australia-wide.
Q Agency is a local SEO agency in Sydney for local businesses that win customers in their area: trades, clinics, hospitality venues, professional services firms and multi-location brands. When someone nearby searches "near me", types a suburb into Google or opens Google Maps, the 3 businesses in the map pack get most of the calls. Our local SEO services put you there, suburb by suburb.
Every local SEO campaign starts with a free SEO audit and a baseline of your map pack position in each suburb. Then we run the work in order: Google Business Profile optimisation, local citations and reviews, then the suburb and service pages behind them. Local SEO is one part of our SEO services in Sydney, so the same team runs the technical SEO, content and link work behind it, and your report shows profile calls and direction requests alongside enquiries.
Our head office is in Penrith, where we rank first for our own category, and we meet clients by appointment at Martin Place in the Sydney CBD. Most of our local clients are Sydney businesses across Western Sydney and Greater Sydney, from Penrith and Parramatta to the Hills, the Inner West and the Northern Beaches, with multi-venue groups across New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. Lexicon Electrical went from unranked to first for "commercial electrician Penrith", and Mountain Culture grew organic search traffic to its 5 venue listings 13x in 12 months.
- 3listings in the map packAbove every normal result for a local search.
- 4 in 5people use search to find local informationMost of them on a phone, most of them ready to call.
- 76%of "near me" searches lead to a visit within a dayLocal intent is buying intent.
- 28%of those visits end in a purchaseThe map pack is the closest thing search has to foot traffic.
Sources: Google consumer research, BrightLocal local search surveys. Figures are industry estimates, not Q client data.
Single or multi-location
For single shops and multi-location brands.
Pick the one that sounds like you. Both start with the same audit.
One location
You are not in the map pack.
- A competitor 2 suburbs over shows up for your street.
- Your profile is half filled in and the reviews stopped in 2023.
- The website has an "areas we serve" page and nothing else.
First step: Audit the profile, citations and map positions for every suburb that matters, then fix the profile and reviews in the first month.
Several locations
No location ranks well on its own.
- Venues, clinics or branches share one website and one profile.
- Each ranks a little in its own suburb; none ranks well.
- You cannot tell which location the calls come from.
First step: Give every location its own profile and landing page, linked properly and tracked separately, so you get 5 numbers instead of one average.
Local SEO vs national SEO
The map pack ranks on different signals.
Most agencies run local SEO with a national playbook. The signals that decide the local map pack are not the ones that decide the rest of the search results.
| National SEO | Local SEO | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you appear | The standard search engine results: 10 blue links, ranked by relevance and authority. | The local map pack: 3 listings above the links, ranked by proximity, prominence and profile quality. |
| What Google reads | Your website: content, links, technical SEO. | Your Google Business Profile first, then citations, reviews, and the site behind them. |
| Unit of competition | The whole country, or the whole category. | One suburb at a time. Penrith and Parramatta are separate contests. |
| What moves fastest | Content and links, over 6 to 12 months. | Profile completeness, review recency and consistent business details, in weeks. |
| How we report | Rankings, sessions, enquiries. | Map pack position per suburb, profile calls, direction requests, enquiries per location. |
What is local SEO?
Local SEO (local search engine optimisation) is the work that gets a business found for searches with a place attached: "plumber Penrith", "accountant near me", "brewery Katoomba". Those searches return a local map pack of 3 businesses on Google Maps, above the normal search results, and most people choose from the 3.
Search engines rank those results on different signals from national SEO: your Google Business Profile, your reviews, whether your business details match across the web, and whether your site has a real page for each suburb and service. Fix those and your local search rankings move; ignore them and a competitor with a worse website will sit above you on the map.
- 4 to 8weeks for profile and citation fixes to show on the map.
- 1 pageper suburb and service, or the suburb does not rank.
- Not youif you sell nationally with no service area. See ecommerce SEO or the main programme.
Your business
Competitor
Competitor
Everything below this is the normal results. Most local searchers never get there.
Local SEO services, in running order.
Our local SEO strategy runs in this order, and the order matters. Your Google Business Profile comes first, because it is the listing people see. Pages come last, because they need the profile to rank.
Part 01 of 06
Google Business Profile optimisation
Categories, services, hours, photos, posts and Q&A, kept current. Your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is the listing people see on Google Maps before your website, and Google reads it as a signal of a real, active business. Google Business Profile management is monthly, and for multi-location businesses we run one profile per venue with a shared standard.
What it changes: An optimised Google Business Profile shows up in the map pack for the suburbs you serve, not just for your own business name.
Part 02 of 06
Suburb and service pages
A page for each area you serve and each thing you do, built from local keyword research, with the on-page SEO done properly, and written for the person searching, not for a template. Penrith and Parramatta are different searches with different intent; one generic "areas we serve" page ranks for neither.
What it changes: Each suburb has a page that can rank on its own, so you stop competing with yourself on one generic page.
Part 03 of 06
Reviews and reputation
Review volume, recency and replies all affect map pack position. We set up a review request that fits how you actually work, reply to every review in your voice, and track sentiment alongside rankings.
What it changes: More reviews, answered faster, which lifts map pack position and closes more of the people who find you.
Part 04 of 06
Local citations and NAP consistency
Your name, address and phone number, identical across every directory that matters in your industry. Boring, and one of the first things we fix, because inconsistent local citations are a trust problem for Google.
What it changes: Google stops seeing 3 versions of your business and starts trusting one, which steadies your rankings.
Part 05 of 06
Local content and link building
Sponsorships, local press, supplier pages, community events: the links a genuinely local business earns. Plus content that answers the questions your area asks, in the words your local customers use.
What it changes: You become the obvious local choice for potential customers who are ready to buy.
Part 06 of 06
Tracking for each location
Calls, direction requests, form fills and bookings for each of your physical locations, against the baseline from month 1. If you have 5 venues, you get 5 numbers, not one average.
What it changes: You can see which location is producing enquiries and which one needs attention this month.
AllNow reporting
Calls, directions and enquiries, reported by suburb.
AllNow, our own reporting platform, puts map pack positions and local search rankings per suburb, profile calls and direction requests, enquiries and revenue in one place, with a short note each month on what changed.
Local SEO process
Your first 90 days of local SEO.
Profile and citation fixes land in month 1; suburb pages and reviews compound from there. Local SEO moves faster than national SEO because the competition is smaller.
Step 01 · Weeks 1 to 2
Audit and baseline
Local keyword research, map pack positions in every suburb that matters, profile health, citations, reviews, and the technical SEO of the pages behind them.
You get: a suburb-by-suburb baseline and a clear view of what to fix first.
Step 02 · Weeks 2 to 4
Profile and citations
Google Business Profile completed and optimised, business details made consistent everywhere, review request set up.
You get: a complete profile and a review cadence that fits how you work.
Step 03 · Months 2 to 3
Suburb and service pages
Location and service pages written for the person searching, published and linked from the profile and the site.
You get: a page for every suburb and service that matters.
Step 04 · Month 3 onward
Reviews, content and reporting
Monthly review replies, local content and, where it helps, local links, and a report of your local search results per location against the baseline.
You get: a monthly report per location.
Google reviews
What our clients say
on Google.
225+ 5 star reviews
Verified Google Business Profile
As seen in
Highly recommend Q Agency. They set up the branding for our small business and managed to execute our vision perfectly. They take the time to really listen to what you are after and have excellent attention to detail. We would be lost without their team.
Q Agency understood the reason why we exist and as a marketing agency is helping us get the messaging across. High five to Cassandra and Michael, they and the agency really care.
We are extremely pleased with the work done on our website. The team demonstrated professionalism and expertise throughout the process, we could not be happier with the outcome.
Josh and the team are very professional, friendly, and work hard to ensure you are happy and get exactly what you are after. Very happy with the website Q Agency delivered and will continue to use their five star service.
Consistently blown away by the speed, quality and cost-efficiency of the team at Q Agency. They have levelled up the humii website 10x since we started with them and we're stoked with the outcome.
I can't tell you the impact that working with Q Agency has had on my business. They don't just do marketing, they become part of your business, understanding your goals and driving real results.
Exceptional team to work with. We have used their services for web design, SEO and email marketing so far and the quality of work has been great and timely.
Steph has been awesome to work with on our Google Ads. Super professional, transparent, and actually delivers results. She genuinely cares about the business and always keeps me in the loop.
Q helped us upgrade our website, developing best practice UX and UI for better user journeys and to drive lead volume. They care about our results and know the right levers to pull to get us the outcomes we need.
Steph and the team at Q Agency are amazing to work with. Excellent communication and very helpful from start to finish, and delivered our project to a high standard.
Came to Q for a Shopify refresh and they absolutely delivered. The new website is faster, cleaner, and way easier for customers to use.
The head of digital at Q Agency has legitimately been the best to work with. Actively tries to grow our business and gives common sense advice rather than marketing jargon.
It has been great to work with the team at Q Agency. Smooth and fast process, we love our new website.
Our paid ads are performing better than ever, and communication has been clear and proactive throughout. Highly recommend them for anyone wanting real results from their ad spend.
The SEO team were amazing to work with and took the time to understand me and my business. I have already had great feedback about the new website and just could not be happier.
Q Agency and Steph have been excellent to work with. Steph has been very knowledgeable, understanding and thorough in assisting with our new website build.
Could not ask for anything more from this incredible company. They come to you with innovation, commitment and consistency. Their knowledge and implementation is helping me to scale my business beyond what I ever thought would be possible.
The team went above and beyond to understand our business goals and create a digital marketing strategy that truly delivered results.
Highly recommended, very professional.
Thanks for the dedicated and tailored work to create exactly what we were after.
Thanks for the dedicated and tailored work to create exactly what we were after.
Highly recommended, very professional.
The team went above and beyond to understand our business goals and create a digital marketing strategy that truly delivered results.
Could not ask for anything more from this incredible company. They come to you with innovation, commitment and consistency. Their knowledge and implementation is helping me to scale my business beyond what I ever thought would be possible.
Q Agency and Steph have been excellent to work with. Steph has been very knowledgeable, understanding and thorough in assisting with our new website build.
The SEO team were amazing to work with and took the time to understand me and my business. I have already had great feedback about the new website and just could not be happier.
Our paid ads are performing better than ever, and communication has been clear and proactive throughout. Highly recommend them for anyone wanting real results from their ad spend.
It has been great to work with the team at Q Agency. Smooth and fast process, we love our new website.
The head of digital at Q Agency has legitimately been the best to work with. Actively tries to grow our business and gives common sense advice rather than marketing jargon.
Came to Q for a Shopify refresh and they absolutely delivered. The new website is faster, cleaner, and way easier for customers to use.
Steph and the team at Q Agency are amazing to work with. Excellent communication and very helpful from start to finish, and delivered our project to a high standard.
Q helped us upgrade our website, developing best practice UX and UI for better user journeys and to drive lead volume. They care about our results and know the right levers to pull to get us the outcomes we need.
Steph has been awesome to work with on our Google Ads. Super professional, transparent, and actually delivers results. She genuinely cares about the business and always keeps me in the loop.
Exceptional team to work with. We have used their services for web design, SEO and email marketing so far and the quality of work has been great and timely.
I can't tell you the impact that working with Q Agency has had on my business. They don't just do marketing, they become part of your business, understanding your goals and driving real results.
Consistently blown away by the speed, quality and cost-efficiency of the team at Q Agency. They have levelled up the humii website 10x since we started with them and we're stoked with the outcome.
Josh and the team are very professional, friendly, and work hard to ensure you are happy and get exactly what you are after. Very happy with the website Q Agency delivered and will continue to use their five star service.
We are extremely pleased with the work done on our website. The team demonstrated professionalism and expertise throughout the process, we could not be happier with the outcome.
Q Agency understood the reason why we exist and as a marketing agency is helping us get the messaging across. High five to Cassandra and Michael, they and the agency really care.
Highly recommend Q Agency. They set up the branding for our small business and managed to execute our vision perfectly. They take the time to really listen to what you are after and have excellent attention to detail. We would be lost without their team.
Your local SEO team
Sydney local SEO specialists, led by Sophie Darr.
Sophie Darr, our Head of SEO, leads the work. Your dedicated account manager runs the plan and the meetings, and the local SEO specialist doing the work is in every one of them. You can call either. Everyone is in Sydney.
FAQ
What local SEO costs, and how long it takes.
Anything else, ask us on the call.
How do I get into the Google map pack?
Complete and optimise your Google Business Profile, make your business details consistent across the web, earn recent reviews with replies, and have a real page on your site for the suburb and service. Proximity to the searcher matters too, which is why multi-location businesses need a profile per location.
How long does local SEO take?
Profile and citation fixes show in the map pack within 4 to 8 weeks. Suburb pages and reviews compound over 3 to 6 months. We baseline every suburb in month 1 so you can see the movement.
We have several locations. Do we need a page for each?
Yes. Every location gets a profile and landing page with its own address, hours, reviews and tracking. A single "locations" page ranks for none of them.
Do reviews affect local ranking?
Yes. Volume, recency, rating and whether you reply all feed the map pack. We set up a request that fits how you work and reply to every review in your voice.
What is the difference between local SEO and normal SEO?
Local SEO targets searches with a place attached, including "near me", and the map pack that appears for them. It relies on your Google Business Profile, citations and reviews as much as the website. National SEO is content and authority at scale.
Should I run Google Ads as well?
Often, at the start. Local ads bring calls this month while the profile and pages build. The same keyword research runs both and they report into one dashboard.
Who owns the Google Business Profile?
You do. It sits in your Google account; we are added as a manager and removed if we part ways.
Do you work outside Sydney?
Yes. We run local SEO across Australia from Sydney. Most of our multi-venue clients have locations in New South Wales and Queensland, and the process is the same in any town or city.
What is Google Business Profile optimisation?
Completing and maintaining your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) so Google trusts it and shows it: the right categories, services, hours, photos, posts and Q&A, kept current, with every review answered. For multi-location businesses we run one profile per location with a shared standard.
What does a local SEO agency do each month?
Monthly local SEO services cover profile updates and posts, review replies, citation fixes, new suburb and service pages, local content and, where it helps, local links, and a report per location against the month-one baseline.
How much do local SEO services cost?
SEO starts from $3,000+GST a month. The final fee depends on how many locations and suburbs you need to rank in, how competitive your category is, the state of your profile and site, and whether local link building is part of the plan. We confirm it with you after the free local SEO audit, before you commit to anything.
Is local SEO right for my business?
Yes, if your customers come to you or you go to them: trades, clinics, venues, shops and professional services. If you sell online across Australia with no service area, national or ecommerce SEO fits better.
Can you get my business to the top of Google Maps?
Nobody can promise a position, because Google decides rankings. What moves you up Google Maps is the profile, reviews, consistent business details and suburb pages, and we measure your position in each suburb from month 1 so you can see it move.
What does a local SEO consultant do?
A local SEO consultant works out why you're missing from the map pack and fixes it in order: profile, citations, reviews, then pages. On your account that is a local SEO specialist, with Sophie Darr, our Head of SEO, setting the strategy.
Can I do local SEO myself?
Yes, the basics: claim and complete your Google Business Profile, ask every happy customer for a review, and keep your business details the same everywhere. Our free 22-point local SEO checklist covers it. Bring in local SEO experts when you have several locations, a competitive category or a site that needs suburb pages.
Not ready to call? Read this first
Check your own local SEO in 22 steps.
Run all 22 checks on your own business before you talk to anyone: profile, citations, reviews and pages, in the order we do them.
Thanks. The guide is on its way to your inbox.
That did not send. Please try again.
Local SEO across Sydney
Local SEO near you.
225+ Google reviews
Local SEO strategy call
Book a call with a specialist.
Talk to our local SEO team about your locations and competitors, and we'll map out the plan to get you into the map pack.
