LaneFirst Guides

Free guides for local business owners.

Short, practical guides to the things that decide who gets the call: your Google profile, your reviews and how AI tools see you. Each one is something you can do yourself this week.

Get my free audit

Free PDF audit in 2 business days: your Maps ranking, reviews vs. competitors, AI search check and your top 5 fixes. See what's in the audit

Written for owners

No jargon Plain steps you can follow between jobs.
Free No sign-up, no email gate.
Kept current Updated when Google changes how things work.

By George, founder of LaneFirst.

All guides

More are on the way. Looking for help with your profile instead? See Google Business Profile management.

Guide How to find your Google review link, and use it

Get the link in about a minute, where to put it, and what to text customers after a job.

Guide How to respond to Google reviews, with 8 templates

Six rules for every reply and templates for 5-star, mixed, 1-star, fake and price-complaint reviews.

Get your free Google visibility audit

We'll check how you show up on Google Maps, in reviews and in AI answers, compare you with the top 3 businesses near you, and send you a PDF with the 5 fixes that would bring you the most calls. Free, within 2 business days, no obligation.

What's in your free audit

  1. 1Your Google Maps ranking map. Where you show up for your top 5 searches across your service area, street by street, next to your top 3 competitors.
  2. 2Google profile scorecard. Categories, services, photos, hours, description and posts, with every missing or wrong item flagged.
  3. 3Reviews vs. your competitors. Your rating, review count and how many new reviews you've had in the last 90 days, side by side with the top 3.
  4. 4AI search check. What ChatGPT and Google's AI answer when someone asks for the best business like yours in your city, and whether you're named.
  5. 5Website check. Is it fast and easy to use on a phone, can people call or request a quote in one tap, and does it have pages for your services and towns? If you have no website, what a site should include.
  6. 6Listings check. Whether your name, address and phone match on Apple Maps, Bing, Yelp and the main directories for your trade.
  7. 7Your top 5 fixes, ranked by impact. Clear next steps, including the ones you can do yourself today.

5 to 7 pages, written in plain English. Yours to keep, whether or not you work with us.

Required

One audit and one follow-up email. No spam.