Why Your Local Business Isn’t Ranking on Google And How to Fix It

If you’re a local service business – plumber, roofer, attorney, landscaper, med spa, dentist – and you’re not showing up on Google, you’re leaving money on the table. 

I sat down with Liana Ling at DigiMarCon to break this down – how any local business can rank with just a phone and a $1/day budget.

People aren’t searching for you by name. 

They’re typing “roof repair Gilbert AZ” or “plumber near me” or “best cosmetic dentist Frisco TX.” 

If your website doesn’t show up with proof you do what you say you do, in the cities you say you serve, you’re invisible

But here’s the good news: You don’t need to spend thousands a month on “SEO agencies.” You just need to prove to Google you’re real.

That’s what we do using the Content Factory. It’s four steps:
Produce → Process → Post → Promote.

Let’s walk through what this looks like, using real examples from our clients.

Fix Your Digital Plumbing

Before you do anything with content or ads, your digital plumbing needs to be in place.

That means:

• Claiming and verifying your Google Business Profile
  
• Creating a public figure page on Facebook
  
• Linking your Facebook pixel and Google Analytics to your site
  
• Making sure your name, address, and phone number are consistent everywhere
  
• Installing Google Tag Manager so you can track leads (form fills, calls, chats)
  

We call this digital plumbing. Most “SEO” problems are really plumbing problems.

Brandon Cody of Professional Power Washing and Maintenance owns a power washing company in San Ramon. When we first looked at his site, none of his service pages linked to his Google Maps listing. 

His Facebook profile wasn’t connected to his business. He didn’t even have retargeting set up.

We fixed the plumbing in under a week. He didn’t touch any of it—we did it all for him.

Dennis Yu explains how to set fix your digital plumbing

Produce Raw Content

We tell clients: “Document, don’t create.” Don’t hire a videographer. Just pull out your phone.

If you’re on a job site, record a 1-minute video.
If a client gives you a compliment, ask if you can record it.
If you get the same question every week, answer it in a short video.

That’s what Nilson Silva does.

He owns Master Touch Outdoor Living in Parkland, FL. Every week, he films:

• Before/after shots of patios and pergolas
  
• Videos answering common homeowner questions
  
• Team values: why they show up early, how they deal with rain delays
  

His team uses iPhones. No fancy gear. Just honest videos.

We also had him record a WHY video about how he started the business after coming to the U.S. from Brazil. That one video drove more conversions than any blog post or coupon.

Brady Sticker of ChurchCandy Marketing helps churches fill Sunday services using geo-targeted video ads. His campaigns ask, “Looking for a new home in [City]?” and feature real members from that exact area—so locals instantly relate, and Facebook does the targeting for him.

Dennis Yu explains the importance of producing RAW content

Process with AI + Virtual Assistants

Once you’ve recorded a few one-minute videos, hand them off to your VA.

They’ll:

• Run the videos through Descript to clean up the audio and transcribe it
  
• Create blog posts using the transcript (with EEAT formatting)
  
• Pull quotes for image posts (we use Canva templates)
  
• Tag people and locations using Google Photos metadata

Our team turned these into a Content Library — organized by topic, platform, and performance.

Now we never run out of content. We just reuse and amplify what’s working.

Marko S. Sipilä runs an agency focused solely on epoxy and concrete coating businesses. With over 120 clients, Marko S. Sipilä spends millions monthly on ads and consistently drives leads for just $20–$40 each by dialing in on one niche — shiny garage floors.

Post to All Your Channels

We post content across:

• Facebook (profile + public figure page)
  
• Google Business Profile
  
• YouTube Shorts
  
• Instagram Reels
  
• TikTok
  
• LinkedIn (optional for B2B or high-trust services)
  
• The company blog
  

Each post follows a broetry format – 1 sentence per line. Easy to read on mobile. High engagement.

Brandon Cody posted in a local Surprise, AZ Facebook group offering $120 tree trimming with his phone number. No graphics, no fluff – just a direct offer and a call to action. 

That one post brought in over a dozen leads in a weekend. 

We boosted it for $1/day and added it to his Content Library.

Promote with Dollar-a-Day

We take the top 3–5 organic posts and boost each one for Dollar a Day on Facebook.

Targeting:

• 5-10 mile radius
  
• Homeowners
  
• People interested in related services (e.g. outdoor living, renovation, gardening)
  
• Custom audiences from your website or email list
  

We boosted Nilson Silva’s storm post showing before/after from a patio rebuild after hurricane flooding.

Spend: $70
Leads: 42
Average job value: $12,000+

We also ran retargeting to people who watched >50% of the video. Facebook automatically builds that audience for us.

You don’t need fancy funnels. Just boost the best content to the right audience.

Perform Using MAA (Metrics > Analysis > Action)

MAA is a requirement to measure the success of your work and what needs to be done to ensure happy clients and a thriving business.

Every week, we look at:

• Cost per lead
  
• Click-through rate
  
• Engagement rate on posts
  
• Video watch time
  
• Top-performing content by topic or format
  

Then we take action:

• Pause underperforming posts
  
• Re-boost the winners
  
• Add best posts to the Content Library
  
• Identify common themes to repeat
  

MAA Report for Plumbing Pros LLC

GCT: Always Know Your Goal, Content, and Targeting

GCT stands for Goals, Content, and Targeting.
It’s how we reverse-engineer every successful marketing campaign.

• Goal = What result are you trying to get? (e.g. phone calls, form fills, booked jobs)
  
• Content = What real content do you have to support that goal? (videos, testimonials, photos)
  
• Targeting = Who needs to see this content to make that goal happen? (location, demographics, intent)
  

If you know your GCT, you’ll know exactly what content to produce and how to amplify it.
If you don’t, you’re just posting randomly—and hoping it works

Build Your Content Library

Think of your content like music.

You don’t need to produce a new song every day. You just need a greatest hits album.

Our Content Library tracks:

• Videos
  
• Articles
  
• Social posts
  
• Positive mentions
  
• Press
  
• Client reviews
  

We score each asset using the 3 Components of Authority:

• What was said
  
• Who said it
  
• Where it was said

Want to Get Started? Do These 3 Things Today

1. Record a WHY video – tell us why you do what you do. Use your phone. No editing.
   
2. Answer 5 customer questions – shoot one-minute videos with clear answers.
   
3. Set up your plumbing – claim your GMB, connect your Facebook, and install your pixel.
   

Once you’ve done that, send your content to your VA or content team and run it through the Content Factory.

Want leads like Brandon, Marko, and Brady?

If you’re a local service business — plumber, roofer, dentist, or anything in between — we’ll do a quick audit to show exactly what’s working and what’s broken in your marketing.