How roofers get more local jobs from Google.

How does Google decide which roofers to show?

When someone searches for "roofer near me" or "flat roof repair Guildford", Google shows a map with a few local businesses. Google says these local results are mainly based on three things.

• Relevance: how well your profile matches what the person searched for.
• Distance: how far your business is from the searcher, or from the place they typed.
• Prominence: how well known your business is. Google says reviews and links from other websites play a part.

You can't change distance. You can improve relevance and prominence. Google is also clear that there is no way to request or pay for a better local ranking. Anyone selling a "guaranteed top 3 on Google Maps" is promising something Google itself says can't be bought.

Step 1: Is your Google Business Profile complete and verified?

Your Google Business Profile is the listing that appears on Google Maps and in the map results. For many homeowners it is the first thing they see. Work through this list:

1. Verify the profile. Google says verified businesses are more likely to show up in local results.
2. Use your real business name, exactly as customers see it on your van and invoices. Google's guidelines do not allow extra keywords, taglines or town names in the name.
3. Pick the primary category that best describes the business, such as roofing contractor. Use as few extra categories as you need. Google says categories should describe what the business is, not what it has.
4. If customers don't come to your yard or office, set the profile up as a service-area business and hide your address. Google's guidelines say service-area businesses should do this.
5. Add your service areas by town or postcode. Google allows up to 20, and says the whole area shouldn't stretch much beyond about two hours' drive from your base.
6. Add your opening hours, including special hours for bank holidays and Christmas.
7. List your main services (roof repairs, re-roofs, flat roofs, guttering, chimneys, emergency leaks) with a short, honest description of each.
8. Upload real photos of your own work: before and after shots, your van and your team. Google suggests using photos and videos to show customers what you offer.

If you want help with this, our Google Business Profile service covers the setup and the ongoing care.

Step 2: How do you get more genuine reviews?

Reviews help in two ways. They are part of how Google judges prominence, and they are what homeowners read before they pick up the phone.

The simplest system is to ask every customer, at the end of every job, with a direct link to your review form. Google lets you create a review link and a QR code from your profile.

Two rules matter. Don't offer anything in return for a review, and don't only ask the customers you think are happy. Both are against Google's policies, and fake or incentivised reviews can also break UK consumer law. Our guide to asking customers for reviews the right way has simple SMS and WhatsApp templates.

Reply to reviews, good and bad. Google says replying shows customers you value their feedback. Keep replies short, polite and specific to the job.

Step 3: Does your website back up your Google profile?

Your profile gets you noticed. Your website is where many homeowners decide whether to call. It also gives Google more detail about what you do and where.

• A page for each main service, written in plain language, with photos of real jobs.
• A clear statement of the towns and areas you cover.
• The same business name, phone number and address details as your Google profile. Mismatched details confuse customers and search engines alike.
• A big tap-to-call button and a short quote form, because most of these searches happen on a phone.
• Fast loading on a mobile signal.

Our roofing website checklist goes through this in detail.

Step 4: Should you make a page for every town?

Only if each page is genuinely useful. Google's spam policies name "doorway" pages as a problem: lots of near-identical pages aimed at different towns that all funnel people to the same place.

A good area page has something specific to say: the types of roof common in that area, jobs you have actually done there (with the customer's permission), and how quickly you can usually get there. If you can't write anything specific, one clear "Areas we cover" page is better than twenty copies with the town name swapped.

Step 5: How do you keep the profile working?

• Add new photos after good jobs. A month without changes is normal; a year without changes looks abandoned.
• Update your hours before holidays, so nobody calls a closed business.
• Check your profile every few weeks. Anyone can suggest edits to a listing, so make sure your details are still correct.
• Reply to every new review within a few days.

Step 6: How do you know it's working?

Your Google Business Profile shows how many people called you, asked for directions or clicked through to your website from the listing. Check it monthly. On the website, track calls and form enquiries so you know which jobs came from Google. Our lead tracking service sets this up and sends you a simple monthly summary.

What should roofers avoid?

• Fake reviews, including reviews from friends or staff posing as customers. These breach Google's policy, and since April 2025 UK law explicitly bans posting or commissioning fake reviews.
• Keywords or town names stuffed into your business name.
• Using an address where you don't actually work.
• Buying a "guaranteed ranking" package. Google says local ranking can't be bought.