By implementing strategic local SEO, we helped a cleaning business increase its Domain Rating (DR) from 1.7 to 4 and boost organic traffic to their site by 92%. They began generating qualified leads as well and all it happened within just 6 months.
Today, we are going to share every single detail, how we started, proceeded and achieved it all.
Without further ado, let’s get started!
Month 1. Initial (One-time) Setup, Issue Identification & Strategic Planning
The campaign started by setting up all the essential tools, including Google Analytics and Google Search Console. At the same time, we ensured the client had full access to these platforms, keeping everything transparent from day one.
Then, we moved to identifying the existing issues in the site using Ahrefs, where the tool showed the site had a health score of 47. Using the tested SEO audit practices, we found the site had multiple problems, including – broken links, missing meta tags, crawl errors, and issues with the robots.txt file.
Based on these findings, here’s what we planned to do next:
- Keyword Research – We focused on finding the exact terms people search when they are ready to hire a contractor in the Connecticut region. (To learn how to identify local and service-specific keywords, you can check our dedicated blog on – how to do local keyword research for SEO)
- Keyword & URL Mapping – Once the keywords were finalized, we mapped each one to the most relevant page on the website to ensure proper targeting and avoid overlap.
- Content Optimization – The existing content lacked depth and wasn’t giving users a strong reason to convert. So, we rewrote and optimized the service and location pages to add clarity, relevance, and conversion intent.
- GBP Optimization – Google Business Profile is often the first thing a potential customer sees, even before the website. So, we performed a deep optimization of the Connecticut listing to improve visibility and engagement. (You can also check out our blog on GBP optimization, where we’ve covered easy-to-implement strategies in detail)
- NAP Consistency – We noticed inconsistent business information of the client across directories, which was confusing Google and affecting local rankings. We fixed them and standardized the NAP details across all platforms.
- Google Map Embed – To strengthen location signals, we added a Google Map embed on the client’s Contact page, helping both users and search engines better understand their business location.
Challenges We Faced During This Phase
a. The first challenge we came across was a new learning for us. Since the client’s website was built on Squarespace, verifying it on Google Search Console was slightly different compared to other platforms. So, we adapted quickly and followed a different approach to get it done
b. The next challenge was that many of the identified issues required backend-level changes. Coordinating this initially took some effort, but the client was very cooperative and open to collaboration. They allowed us to work closely with their developer, which helped us execute everything smoothly.
Overall, the collaborative support from the client made it a smooth and valuable experience for us.
Outcomes
- A strong SEO foundation for the website was established.
- The website’s health score improved from 47 to 98.
- Client’s GBP for better local visibility was optimized.
- All the essential tracking systems (analytics, search console) were properly set up and validated.
Month 2. Authority Building
During this phase, our focus was to build credibility and improve relevance for the client’s website in Google’s eyes. Here’s how we did it exactly–
- Citation Cleanup – We fixed all the inconsistent listings and ensured no bad data across directories work against the client’s local rankings.
- New Citation Building – We submitted the client’s business information to the high-quality directories we had in our database with an intention to strengthen local signals and give Google more consistent data points to work with. (Our blog on how to build local citations includes all the key and required details. If you’d like to know more, you can take a look there)
- Paid Guest Posting – We acquired niche-relevant backlinks from authoritative websites with real traffic for the client’s site.
- Organic Link Building – Along with paid placements, we ensured the client’s site linked to the websites that are open to connect and have a good DA score.
- Blog Content Publishing – Based on SEO insights, our team built a content strategy and started publishing optimized blogs focused on service and local keywords.
- GBP Posting – We posted regular relevant posts on the client’s GBP and signaled Google that the business is engaged and relevant.
- Social Media Posting – To support brand presence and reinforce local SEO signals, we even posted useful posts across client’s social media platforms.
Challenges We Faced
a. Over the course, in this phase, we identified many inconsistent citations. Some of them had outdated information while others had incorrect contact details.
b. Another complication was that the client did not have direct access to those listings. To sort this issue out, we had to reach out to the respective directory support teams ourselves and do the cleanup.
Outcomes
- With our efforts, we kept all the important citations in place.
- Through strategic guest posting and organic link building, we increased referring domains to the client’s website, which further boosted their DA.
Month 3 & 4. Ranking Growth
In this phase, we kept all the activities ongoing, which included:
- Guest posting
- Blog content publishing
- Citation building and Organic link building
- GBP Posting
- Social media posting
What We Observed
At this stage, we started noticing strong ranking improvements, especially for Connecticut-related keywords.
Along with ranking growth, we saw a visible improvement in keyword positions and impressions for location-specific searches.
Client’s Reaction
This is the snapshot of the chat that we had with our client. They actually validated the impact of our efforts. Based on their confirmation, we continued focusing on and scaling efforts around Connecticut-specific SEO.
Outcomes
- We saw ranking improvement for Connecticut-based keywords.
- The client validated lead generation from organic search.
Month 5 & 6. Scaling
During this phase, we kept the same activities ongoing and that’s when we started seeing our SEO efforts compounding.
Rankings became more stable across key service and location-based keywords, especially in Connecticut. Organic traffic showed growth, and visibility across search results also improved.
Outcomes
- The client saw increase in call and direction requests (also visible in the above screenshots)
- They noticed consistent growth in organic traffic (from 52 to 100 ~ 92% increase).
- Got stable rankings for primary service and Connecticut-based keywords.
- Domain authority and backlink profile got stronger
What Comes Next
We saw solid improvements, and now our focus is on identifying higher-converting keywords. Going forward, for every task, we will focus more on maximizing the quality of traffic, not just increasing the numbers.
Just like our client, if you want our expert team to handle your project and help you move from building a strong foundation to generating consistent leads, contact us today. One of our team members will get in touch with you within 24 hours.
