Local SEO for electricians in Sydney.

Pages built around what people actually search, fast on a phone, set up so Google can read them, and checked in Search Console. It's a job in itself. Here's what it takes, roughly in the order I do it:

• Find the searches worth chasing. Before writing a page, check what people actually type and how many of them there are. Ahrefs (paid) shows monthly searches for any phrase and a difficulty score for how hard it is to get into the top results. Google's Keyword Planner is free, but you need a Google Ads account with billing details and a campaign set up to use it. Look for real numbers and low difficulty, for jobs you want: a few hundred people a month searching for one job in your area is worth a page.
• Use the words people search, naturally. Write "switchboard upgrade" if that's what customers type, in your headings and your text. Don't cram it in: Google counts keyword stuffing as spam.
• A title and description for every page. The title is the headline people see in Google's results, so it should say what the page is and where you are.
• Fast on a phone. Google says its ranking systems look to reward a good page experience, and it uses Core Web Vitals (how quickly a page loads, responds and settles) in ranking.
• Photos sized for the web. Google says images are often the biggest part of a page and can make it slow. Keep them sharp but small, give them short names that say what they are (switchboard-upgrade-dee-why.jpg, not IMG_0023.jpg), and a line of alt text.
• Your details marked up for Google. A bit of code called LocalBusiness structured data tells Google your hours and contact details in a form it reads directly.
• Secure (https). Google lists a secure site as part of a good page experience.
• Google Search Console. It's free from Google. It shows which searches your site turns up for, how often people click, and where you sit, and it emails you when Google finds a problem with your site. Without it you're guessing.
• A sitemap, handed to Google. A file listing every page on your site, submitted in Search Console. Google says a new site with few other websites linking to it is exactly the kind that benefits, since Google might not find its pages otherwise.

None of it is a one-off. New pages go up, photos get added, Google changes how it measures things, and Search Console turns up new problems. It's a lot to keep on top of after a day on the tools, and it's the part my clients hand to me.

Get listed on 20 or more other websites that link to you: directories, your trade association, local business groups, awards. Google says part of how well known you are comes from how many websites link to your business. Agencies call these backlinks. It means your own site isn't the only one that counts: the more decent local websites that link to you, the better. Where to start:

• Directories. Yellow Pages (the basic listing is free), True Local, Hotfrog and the rest.
• Your trade association. Master Electricians' "Find a Master Electrician", if you're a member.
• Local business groups. Your chamber of commerce's member directory. On the Beaches that's Business Northern Beaches or the Manly Business Chamber.
• Awards. The Local Business Awards. The Northern Beaches round had more than 2,150 applicants in 2026.
• The same details everywhere. Exactly the same business name, address and phone number on every one, matching your Google listing. Not "Beaches Electrical Co" on one and "Beaches Electrical Pty Ltd" on the next, or an old mobile on a listing you set up years ago and forgot about.

Each one means signing up, proving it's your business, writing a description, adding photos and hours, and checking back now and then so an old number doesn't creep in. Twenty of them is a lot of evenings. It's one of the first things I do for a new client.

On your website, and in any other ad. In NSW this one's the law. Clause 33 of the Home Building Regulation 2014 says a contractor licence holder has to put their name (or registered business name) and licence number in any advertisement of any kind, and electrical wiring work is covered. The maximum fine is $1,100 for a sole trader or $2,200 for a company, and NSW Fair Trading's guidance says the internet counts.

So your licence number goes in the footer of every page. Anyone comparing electricians can see straight away that you're licensed.

By saying it in plain words, on its own page and in your listing's description and services. There's no Google category for Level 2, so the words have to do the work.

Only accredited companies can do Level 2 work in NSW: running or changing the service line from the street and connecting the power to new or upgraded supplies. Customers look for it by name. Going by Ahrefs, about 250 people a month search "level 2 electrician northern beaches" alone. Link to the NSW Government's search of accredited providers so people can check you're on it.

Set your real opening hours on Google and keep "24/7" off your site. Google decides which electricians to show on the map by how well you match the search, how close you are, and how well known you are, which is where reviews come in. In late 2023 Google also said whether a business is open had become a stronger signal for a lot of searches (and that it might change). So your hours do real work.

List yourself as open 24 hours and you'll get the 2 am "the power's gone out" calls. If you'd rather do chargers and switchboards in business hours, your real hours are the way to get there. Google asks for your regular hours anyway.

Ask every customer, before you've packed up the van, and make it a ten-second job for them. That's what the Google Review Sign is for: they tap their phone on it and they're on your review page.

More reviews and good ratings can help your local ranking, Google says. What you can't do is steer them. Google's rules say a business can't ask for specific content, can't offer anything in return, and can't pick out only the happy customers to ask.

With a tracked number on your site and listing that rings straight through to your mobile. It shows where every call came from, so you can see whether the EV charger page is earning its keep. Your Google listing on its own counts taps on its call button and nothing else: not the people who ring from your website, not the ones who saved your number for later.