EAGLE SOLUTIONS
When someone types "dentist Odorheiu Secuiesc" or "online shop development Miercurea Ciuc", they are not browsing – they want to buy. These local searches are the most valuable ones for a small business, and the good news is that in Székely Land there are still few well-optimised competitors. Five steps that I have gone through on my own site as well.
1. Google Business Profile: the free foundation
Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is what appears on Maps and on the right-hand side of the search results. Fill it in completely: the exact category, opening hours, phone number, website, a list of services, photos. In the description, say where you work and for whom. Check that the address, phone number and business name appear exactly the same way as on your website.
2. Reviews: the strongest local signal
Google looks at the number of reviews, how recent they are, and your replies. Ask every satisfied client for a review – a direct link to the review form multiplies the response rate. Reply to every one of them, calmly, including the negative ones. Five recent reviews are worth more than fifty from three years ago.
3. Local keywords on your website
Google only ranks you for a city if the city appears on your website. An address in the footer is not enough: the place you work in should appear naturally in the home page title, on the service pages and in the copy – "website development in Miercurea Ciuc", "accounting for businesses in Harghita County". If you work in several cities, it is worth creating a separate page for the important ones, as I did with my Miercurea Ciuc and Odorheiu Secuiesc pages.
4. Bilingual content
In Székely Land half of local searches arrive in Romanian, even when the searcher is a native Hungarian speaker – especially for services and products. A Hungarian-only site simply does not appear for Romanian searches. A multilingual website is therefore a local SEO matter too, not just a courtesy.
5. Structured data: so that Google and AI understand you too
Your website's code can state, in a machine-readable form, the name, address, phone number and opening hours of the business, the area it serves and the services it offers (schema.org LocalBusiness). This feeds Google's rich results and the answers of AI-based search engines – it is how ChatGPT and Google's AI Overviews understand whom to recommend for a search in your area. It comes as standard on every business website I build.
How long until you see results?
Changes to your Business Profile go live within days, website changes take weeks to be picked up by the search engine, and the effect of reviews is continuous. After three months it is worth checking in Search Console which local phrases you appear for, and writing more around those.
If you would like me to review your Business Profile and your website's local settings, send me the links on the contact page – the first review is free.
