What the map pack is and why it beats the "normal" top
Search "dentist" in your area — above the results, Google shows a map with three businesses. That's the map pack, and it sits above the first organic result. For local businesses — clinics, builders, solicitors, salons — being in that three often brings more enquiries than all the rest of SEO combined.
Pillar 1: a 100% complete Google Business Profile
Google picks the three it knows most about. Categories (primary and secondary), services with prices, opening hours, photos — real ones, not a logo on white. A half-filled profile competes at half strength. Completing it is free, and it's the best effort-to-result ratio in local SEO.
Pillar 2: reviews — volume, freshness, replies
The rating matters, but Google looks wider: how often new reviews arrive, whether they mention the service and the area, whether the business replies. The working process is simple: ask for a review right after the visit (a QR code at reception works), and reply to every one — including the negative ones, calmly and to the point.
Pillar 3: NAP consistency
Name, Address, Phone — they must match character for character everywhere: your site, your Google profile, directories, socials. "10 Shevchenko St" in one place and "Shevchenko 10b" in another reads as doubt to Google — and doubt costs positions.
What your website must do
- A page per location with its own address, map and phone number
- Schema.org LocalBusiness / MedicalOrganization — markup Google reads directly
- The area and city in the copy naturally: "a Shoreditch dental clinic", not keyword spam
- Speed: a slow site drags the map ranking down too
A 30-day plan
- Week 1: complete the profile to 100%, add 10+ real photos
- Week 2: reconcile NAP on the site and top directories
- Week 3: start the review engine (QR + a request after each visit)
- Week 4: location pages and markup on the site — then just keep the rhythm