Google Places Software and Free Local SEO Tools
&
Free Local SEO Tools
This page features a variety of local SEO tools I hope will help make the job of optimizing for Google Places easier. My favorite 3 tools are on top, followed by some great FREE tools, then links to other great tools and resources below that.
FEATURED GOOGLE PLACES SOFTWARE RED HOT – Places Scout – Local Rank Tracking, Competitive Analysis, Citation Finder – Your swiss army knife local SEO must-have tool! Advanced Places rank tracking PLUS competitive analysis to help you rank your clients higher PLUS lead generation to help you find new clients PLUS citation finder PLUS reputation management to a degree and lots more, all in one VERY INEXPENSIVE software program. Even shows rankings VISUALLY on the map. (Warrior Special Offer – Price goes up end of May, so grab it now!) Check out videos and screenshots. My review here.
NEW Reputation Management Software with Google Places Review Backups, Review Alerts and More. More details and screen shots here.
BEST Small Business WordPress Theme – This theme is SUPER high ranking and includes everything you need for great LOCAL search rankings. Even includes a mobile version of your web site. Many versatile layout options. Plus if you do design or local SEO, there is a developer’s license so you can build as many web sites as you want for clients. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! Developed by my friend Don Campbell, who used to work for Microsoft.
HOT – GP Scraper – Competitive Ranking Analysis, lead generation, huge time-saver.
(Output = Pure Organic – NO Local Results)
Enter City + Keyphrase or Keyphrase + City
Note: Default set to 5 results. Click the 3rd little icon to see a bigger list
Find the latitude and longitude of a point on a map
Note: I have a lat/long trick I use for optimization and teach in my Advanced Google Places Training. This tool makes getting lat/long easier than trying to get it manually from G maps.
Credit: Built by Simon Willison – Get Lat Long
Have not tested this one much, but was accurate on KWs I tried
FEATURED LOCAL SEO TOOLs RED HOT – Places Scout – Local Rank Tracking, Competitive Analysis, Citation Finder – My new swiss army knife local SEO must-have tool! Advanced Places rank tracking PLUS competitive analysis to help you rank your clients higher PLUS lead generation to help you find new clients PLUS citation finding PLUS reputation management to a degree and lots more, all in one VERY INEXPENSIVE software program. Even shows rankings VISUALLY on the map. (Warrior Special Offer only $97 but going up to $197 so grab it now!) Check out videos and screenshots. My review here.
BEST Small Business WordPress Theme – This theme is SUPER high ranking and includes everything you need for great LOCAL search rankings. Even includes a mobile version of your web site. Many versatile layout options. Plus if you do design or local SEO, there is a developer’s license so you can build as many web sites as you want for clients. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! Developed by my friend Don Campbell, who used to work for Microsoft.
HOT – GP Scraper – Competitive Ranking Analysis, lead generation, huge time-saver.
Links to some other good Google Places tools
Local Search Rank Checker from BrightLocal. Awesome, can’t live without it tool. See my review and write up here.
New Free Google Places Competitive Analysis and Prospecting Software Read my review, then watch the video and download the free app.
WhiteSpark Local Citation Finder (Title says it all) by Darren Shaw
GEO Sitemap, KML files and Schema Generator From 51 Blocks
Local Search Toolkit from seOverflow – Pulls the top Google Places listings and shows you at a glance: the business name, the web site title tag, # of citations, # of reviews, # of images, whether it’s claimed and distance from city center. Then you can even download and analyze citation sources, review sources and categories! And did I mention it’s FREE? How cool is that???
Google Places Category Tool (Title says it all) by Mike Blumenthal
Generate Local Adwords & Keyword Lists – This is made for Adwords but is handy when you need to build a list of local keyword permutations to enter in your fav rank tracking program.
I often am asked to Beta test new software so keep an eye on this page for cool new solutions.
Let me know of other tools you’d like to see here and I’ll try to find an embeddable version. OR if you find other GP tools that should be listed here, let me know. I’m sure I missed a few.
Love, love, LOVE to hear your comments below.
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I couldn't believe my results! Went from #44 to #1 (Chiropractor Washington)
#1 Susan wrote on July 6, 2011 :
Hi Linda,
Excelllent post with valuable tools. We use some of the tools you have listed – Local Search Ranker, Local Search Toolkit and Mike Blumenthal’s category tool.
I recently started using Google’s Wonder Wheel but they took it down. I’m not sure when it will be back up, but I liked how they displayed the keyword relationships graphically.
Anyway, Thank you! I can’t wait to try out the ones I’ve not used yet.
Susan
#2 Linda Buquet wrote on July 6, 2011 :
Thanks for commenting Susan!
I figured most who have been in the biz for awhile know about the tools down in that bottom link section. But at the last minute I realized that if I’m going to try to have a complete tools resource page, I should probably add them all, in case there are some newbies that didn’t know about them.
#3 Yam regev wrote on July 7, 2011 :
Great pile of tools, Linda!
Hope that in the near future we’ll be able to see more tools that will help us analyze Local results in the UK.
Keep it up!
#4 Bin Liners wrote on July 11, 2011 :
Very useful list of tools thanks. Be great to see the UK listings showing up with tools that can do that.
Keep up the good work.
#5 Jane @ Economy Car Hire wrote on July 11, 2011 :
Awesome tools Linda! Many thinks that local SEO is a walk in the park but I say it needs the right strategy to get your online business a face in the serps. Google place is a sure fire way to do this, thanks!
#6 Dino wrote on July 11, 2011 :
Just in time! Getting bogged down working on my own so new tools are always welcome. Very cool, Linda. I will give you more feed back when I have a moment to catch my breath – by the way, i love your collection of Scoopit news.
#7 Linda Buquet wrote on July 13, 2011 :
Sorry for late replies. Have been fighting a hacker and all kinds of tech probs for days.
You are all very welcome. Glad you like the tools. I have more to share if/when I ever get caught up.
#8 ..je wrote on July 13, 2011 :
Linda,
I just about fell out of my chair after reading through your Survey, and now this page. Your willingness to openly share “the how to” in this space, is a testament to the good nature of people.
Need some help with the hacker drop me a note at my address of record.
..je
#9 Linda Buquet wrote on July 13, 2011 :
Wow ..je thanks for the offer!
I have my hosts entire security team on it and my forum admin who is INCREDIBLE and leading the fight with Vbulletin tech team to try to figure this out. Been going on for WEEKS, but just really escalated over the weekend.
At this point it looks like we may have stopped it. But we’ve thought that several times before. Fingers crossed we blocked the hole that they were getting in.
THANKS!
#10 Easy Local SEO WordPress Plugin – Optimizes Contact Us Pages to help with Google Places Optimization - Google Places Optimization Blog wrote on July 20, 2011 :
[...] add it to my Google Places and Local SEO tools page. Have a couple other cool tools to add when I get time, so bookmark it and check back often. Local [...]
#11 Chris Bradley wrote on July 25, 2011 :
Hi Linda,
i just spent the last few hours here
.. great stuff, something ive been searching for…sidenote..found you via warrior forum bc i saw you had such great posts so i followed your links. glad i did bc you just dont know what to get over there.
do you have a link to the paid software you referenced in another thread and an update on new tool you mentioned in this post?
will be contacting you soon for a free consultation bc we are just starting to go into the local market and i was looking for someone i can go to for some consulting for and glad i found you! so many dont seem to get it and leave a lot of money on the table or just seem to do a “few” things and in the long run its not best for the client so one answer you had in WF convinced me you really get it!
#12 Linda Buquet wrote on July 25, 2011 :
Wow Chris, thanks so much for the positive feedback! The info over there is pretty iffy at times, I agree, so I do my best to post when I can.
Yes I’ll send you the link via email when I can. SWAMPED with all the crazy update issues.
#13 Stephanie Priester wrote on August 19, 2011 :
Hi Linda,
I across your site and very impressed on the resources that you have made available. Thanks!!
#14 Aaron dwyer wrote on September 7, 2011 :
Have you checked out my desktop tool for tracking local rank in google places? Called Local Rank Tracker. Aaron
#15 Linda Buquet wrote on September 8, 2011 :
Hi Aaron,
I think so but am not sure. I try so many programs plus just got back from vaca so my mind is blurry trying to play catch up on so many issues. Please email me a link and I’ll check it out.
#16 Aaron Dwyer wrote on September 8, 2011 :
Sorry I forgot to put the link to local rank tracker in the URL field of the comment.
PS there is a google maps API warning that pops up when I visit this page?
Aaron
Aaron Dwyer recently posted..Version 1.05 has been released
#17 Marcus wrote on September 16, 2011 :
There are 3 hidden software tools one of them free as well – Pack Finder Software (Free), Citation Finder Software and Google Places Rank Tracker Software – all available from the pathetic looking site http://www.localseoaustralia.com – but the softwares are not pathetic, they really work very well and the support is very good.
#18 Just Launched – Google Local Results Tracking Added to SEOmoz PRO Rank Tracking Software - Google Places Optimization and Local SEO Blog wrote on January 10, 2012 :
[...] sure to also check out my Google Places Software & Free Local SEO Tools page which has other dynamite tracking solutions for Google [...]