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Search checklist for trade businesses
Checks 1–5
Google Business Profile
1.Pick the right main category
Why: Google and AI tools use it to decide which searches you fit.
How: Choose the category for the work you want most, not the broadest one. Add the others as extra categories.
5 minutes: Open your profile, tap Edit profile, check the first category.
2.List every service you want work for
Why: A service that isn't listed is a service you're rarely shown for.
How: Add each one with a short description in your customers' words: "boiler replacement", not "heating solutions".
5 minutes: Add your top 3 paid services today.
3.Set the area you actually cover
Why: Answers name firms near the customer. A vague area loses local questions.
How: List the towns and districts you work in. Don't add places you won't travel to.
5 minutes: Check your service area matches where your last 20 jobs were.
4.Add photos of real jobs
Why: Real photos show you exist and what you do. Stock photos show nothing.
How: After each job, add one photo with a plain caption: the job, the product and the area.
5 minutes: Upload 3 photos from recent jobs.
5.Ask every customer for a review
Why: Reviews that describe the job are what AI quotes. "Great service" gives it nothing.
How: Ask every customer, not just the happy ones (picking who to ask breaks Google's rules). Ask them to mention the job and the town.
5 minutes: Text your last 5 customers the review link today.
Checks 6–9
Your website
6.One page per main service
Why: AI answers are about one job. A page about everything answers nothing.
How: Give each paid service its own page: what it is, roughly what it costs, the homes you do it in, a few real jobs.
5 minutes: Write down your 3 best services. Do they each have a page?
7.Answer the questions customers ask before they call
Why: In our Leeds test, a firm with a page on almost every topic was named in 0 of 24 first answers to research questions. It only appeared once the customer asked who could do the job.
How: Put prices, timings and what suits which home on the page, in plain words, near the top.
5 minutes: Add a "How much does it cost?" paragraph with a real price range.
8.Same name, address and phone everywhere
Why: If your site, Google and directories disagree, AI can't be sure they're the same business.
How: Use one business name and one customer-facing address across your site, Google, directories and social profiles.
5 minutes: Search your business name and check the first 5 listings match.
9.Say where you work in page titles
Why: A title without a town loses local searches.
How: Page titles like "Boiler Replacement in Leeds | Your Firm". Keep each under 60 characters.
5 minutes: Check your home page title mentions your main town.
Checks 10–12
AI answers
10.Be listed where AI looks
Why: In our Leeds test the firm was named 4 of 4 times through its Which? Trusted Traders listing.
How: Keep one or two trusted directories complete and current: Which?, Checkatrade or similar in the UK; BBB or Angi in the US. Make their categories match what you sell.
5 minutes: Open your main directory listing and fix anything out of date.
11.Describe your videos
Why: Search and AI tools read a video's title and description. In our Leeds test, its three most-watched videos, each with over 100,000 views, had no description.
How: Title each video with the job, product and town. Write 2–3 lines saying what was done and where. Do the same for Shorts.
5 minutes: Add a description to your most-watched video.
12.Ask AI about yourself, the way a customer would
Why: You can't fix what you haven't seen.
How: Ask ChatGPT and Gemini "Who does [your best job] in [your town]?" and one research question, like "How much does [job] cost in [town]?". Note who's named and which sites are used.
5 minutes: Ask both questions now and write down who's named.
Where to start
If you only do three
Ask every customer for a review that mentions the job and the town (5). Make sure your best service has its own page with a real price range (6, 7). Then ask AI about yourself and see what changed (12).
Why being named matters more than being cited: AI mentions vs citations.
Written by Alex at Nelvant. Last updated 22 October 2026. Questions or corrections: alex@nelvant.com
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The free report runs check 12 properly and lists what to fix first.