SEO basics for tradespeople: how to get found on Google

You're a plumber, an electrician, a joiner, or a builder. You do great work and your customers recommend you. But when someone in your area searches "plumber near me" on Google, you don't show up. That's costing you jobs.

SEO — search engine optimisation — is how you fix that. It's not as complicated as people make it sound. This guide covers the fundamentals that actually matter for tradespeople in 2026.

1. Claim and complete your Google Business Profile

This is the single most important thing you can do. When someone searches "electrician Edinburgh" or "plumber near me," Google shows a map pack — three local businesses with reviews, phone numbers, and directions. That's your Google Business Profile.

If you haven't claimed yours, do it today at business.google.com. Fill in everything: your business name, address, phone number, opening hours, service area, and a clear description of what you do. Add photos of your work — real photos, not stock images.

2. Get your name, address, and phone number consistent everywhere

Google cross-references your business details across the web. If your website says "07700 900123" but your Facebook says "0770 090 0123" and your Checkatrade listing has a landline, Google gets confused.

Pick one format for your business name, address, and phone number (known as NAP) and use it identically everywhere: your website, Google Business Profile, Facebook, Yell, Checkatrade, MyBuilder, and any other directory you're listed on.

3. Put your location in your website content

Google can't guess where you work unless you tell it. Your website should mention your location naturally throughout the content — not stuffed in awkwardly, but in sentences like:

• "We provide emergency plumbing services across Edinburgh and the Lothians"
• "Based in Glasgow, serving the Central Belt"
• "Local electrician covering Falkirk, Stirling, and surrounding areas"

Your page title (the text that shows in the browser tab and Google results) should include your trade and location. For example: "John Smith Plumbing | Emergency Plumber in Edinburgh."

4. Get Google reviews — and respond to them

Reviews are one of the strongest ranking signals for local search. A tradesperson with 40 five-star reviews will almost always outrank one with 3 reviews, even if their website is worse.

After every job, send a review request. A simple text or email with a direct link to your Google review page works well. You can automate this — our workflow automation service can trigger review requests automatically when a job is marked complete.

Respond to every review, good or bad. Google rewards engagement.

5. Make sure your site works on phones

Over 70% of local searches happen on mobile. If your website is slow, hard to read on a phone, or has buttons too small to tap, visitors leave — and Google notices. A mobile-responsive site isn't optional in 2026. It's the baseline.

You can test your site at pagespeed.web.dev — Google's own free tool. It scores your site on performance, accessibility, and SEO, and tells you exactly what to fix.

6. Create a page for each service you offer

Don't put everything on one page. If you're a plumber who does boiler installations, bathroom fitting, and emergency repairs, create a separate page for each service. This gives Google more content to index and more chances to match your pages to specific searches.

Each page should have a clear title ("Boiler Installation in Edinburgh"), a description of the service, your service area, and a way to get in touch.

7. Add schema markup

Schema markup is code that tells Google structured information about your business — your name, address, services, price range, and opening hours. You can't see it on the page, but Google reads it. It helps you appear in rich search results with star ratings, price ranges, and contact details.

If you're not technical, don't worry about this one — any decent web developer should include it as standard. All of our website design plans include schema markup from day one.

What matters most

If you only do three things from this list, do these: claim your Google Business Profile, get reviews after every job, and make sure your website mentions your trade and location clearly. Those three things alone will put you ahead of most tradespeople in your area.

SEO isn't a one-time fix — it's an ongoing process. But the basics are free, and they compound over time. The sooner you start, the sooner customers find you.

Need a website that does this for you?

Every website we build includes on-page SEO setup, mobile-responsive design, and schema markup as standard. Book a free strategy call and we'll have you live in days, not weeks.