How to Rank in Another City (Affordably)

and more local SEO advice

February 09, 2026

Oh, fancy seeing you here!

Care for a recap of the most valuable local SEO content from last week? 👇️

1. Quick Google Business Profile tip

Google Posts are not social posts. They’re free advertising space.

The people looking at your Google Posts aren’t your customers (yet). They don’t care that it was Debbie’s birthday in the office.

They care about:

  • What your business does

  • Why they should choose you and not your competitor

  • Whether you’re trustworthy

One of the best Google Posts you can publish is this:

  1. Take one of your strongest Google reviews.

  2. Screenshot it.

  3. Highlight a key quote.

  4. Publish it as a Google Post.

☝️ And don’t forget: You’re speaking directly to people who are already considering hiring your business. Use that space to convince them. That’s the entire point of Google Posts.

Share your thoughts on LinkedIn.

2. Rankings change drastically when the business opens/closes

Here’s what this means for your rank tracker’s settings 👇️

Instagram Reel

3. How to rank in other cities (for cheap)

If you want to rank in a new location, there’s only one way to do it: you need a real office there. But opening a new office can be very expensive.

Here is my go-to approach for getting cheap office space 👇️

4. Catch up on the pod

In last week’s episode of The Whitespark Local Update, Claire and I discussed one of the most important local SEO articles of 2026.

Namely, Claudia Tomina’s discovery that Google’s local algorithm considers the combination of your primary category and your business name to determine your eligibility to rank 🤯 

We talk about her evidence in this episode, plus:

  • Ranking in Google's AI Results in 2026 with Mike King (Sterling Sky Inc)

  • Franchise Website Migration & Improved Local SEO For BTDT (Kick Point)

  • Analyzing 236 SEO, Content, Social, and Digital PR case studies (Rise at Seven)

  • The Ultimate Guide to Local Business Reputation Management (Miriam Ellis)

  • The Future of Brand Visibility: Optimizing for AI Citations (Patrick Hathaway)

  • How To Contact GBP Support (Stefan Somborac)

Watch the episode here 👇️

🎧 Or if you prefer listening, find it on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

The only geo-grid rank tracker that tracks to 💯

Get a better view of the competition and a clearer picture of your visibility, with industry-leading ranking granularity.

🤔 Can you name 10 signals that still impact local rankings in 2026?

I’ll be joining the brilliant Joy Hawkins and Elizabeth Rule for a LocalU webinar called Google Maps Ranking 2026: 10 Proven Signals That Still Work.

We’ll break down the 2026 Local Search Ranking Factors and discuss:

  • Which Google Maps ranking signals still matter in 2026

  • Which classic tactics are holding up, and which ones are fading

  • Practical takeaways you can apply right away

Feb 19 (Thursday)
12:30pm EST

See you there!

Darren

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