A guest on a dock or in a hotel lobby types “sunset cruise San Diego” or “helicopter tour Kauai”. Google shows a map with a few pins, star ratings and photos. They tap one, check the hours and book. A wrong category, old photos or no booking link make you less likely to be the pin they tap.
Picture the other version. A guest taps your pin and sees every trip, your booking link and today’s hours. That listing is the strongest ad you’ll never pay for. Google calls it your Business Profile.
How Google decides who shows up on the map
Google says local results are based mainly on three things:
- Relevance: how well your listing matches what the guest searched for.
- Distance: how far you are from where the guest is searching.
- Prominence: how well known you are. Google ties this to things like links from other websites, your reviews and your ratings.
You can’t change distance. You can work on the other two. Google also says there is no way to pay for a better local ranking. Source: Google Business Profile Help, improve your local ranking.
How to show up better on Google Maps: basics for today
Google’s own tips are short, and you can start on them tonight:
- Verify your business on Google.
- Keep your address, hours and category complete and correct.
- Reply to your reviews. You may ask guests for one by link or QR code. Google doesn’t allow incentives, like a free or discounted trip, for reviews (Google Business Profile Help, reviews).
- Add photos and videos that show what guests get.
If any of those are missing, start there. Charter owners can go deeper in our guide to Google Maps for charter boats. Doing it all yourself? See the tools we’re building for operators.
What we do, inside every plan
The basics are the start. Here is what we add, in order.
Your Google listing, fixed in month one
We check your listing against Google’s rules and fix what’s off. Two of Google’s rules matter most here. Your business name should match your real-world name, with nothing extra added. And you should use as few categories as possible. Source: Google Business Profile Help, guidelines for representing your business.
Then we fill it in: every trip, your booking link, photos and hours. Where you meet guests changes Google’s rules. Google sets up a place guests visit differently from a business that travels to them. We check that first.
To start, we need access to your Google listing and a few photos. We do the work.
Reviews that count
Reviews now help decide whether Google and AI show you at all. In month one, we build your reviews into your site and line them up with your Google listing. That way they count.
Your site and your listing agree
Your name, address, hours and phone should match on your site and your Google listing. When they disagree, guests and Google get mixed signals. We line them up.
Trip pages that back up the map
Your listing sends guests to your website, and the site has to back it up. We build or rebuild your main trip pages (2, 3 or 4, by plan). Each says what the trip is, where it runs, what’s included and how to book. A guest who searched for a trip in a place should land on the page that matches.
Checked every month
Each month you get a report and a short video. From month four, they include a check of how you show up on Google and in AI answers. After month six, you can keep these checks going month to month.
Why it comes with every plan
A fixed listing with a weak website is a nice storefront on a road nobody can find. One piece at a time, done between trips, doesn’t add up. So the local work sits in the same plan as your trip pages, tracking and content.
There’s no setup fee. You own everything we build, and you can stop after month six and keep it. See what each plan includes on our plans and pricing page.
The free call is where we start. We look at your Google listing with you, and you keep your Snapshot whether or not you hire us.
What local SEO won’t do
- It can’t promise a ranking or a number of bookings.
- It won’t work overnight. Google takes months to send new traffic.
- It doesn’t replace ads. Ads are an add-on we take on after the six-month program.
Who it’s for
Established companies with high-ticket trips: boat charters, helicopter and aerial tours and adventure trips. If guests find you by searching a trip and a place, this is for you.