Start by checking what ChatGPT, Google, and AI answers say about your business. Review your Google Business Profile, plus answers from Perplexity and Google AI Overviews. Then check the work meant to help customers find you, called search engine optimization (SEO). Look at business details, review requests, page content, and purchased links before buying more work.
Google states in its spam policies, updated August 28, 2026: “Sites that violate our policies may rank lower in results or not appear in results at all.” Google’s spam policies explain which practices can cause these problems. Use this guide to review your website or an agency’s proposal. Ask what needs fixing, who will fix it, and how you will check the work.
What Google’s spam rules mean for your business
In brief: Google’s spam policies explain which practices can make your website harder to find, so check what your provider plans to do before buying more pages or links, with particular attention to work whose main purpose is to manipulate your position in search results.
Google Search Central’s spam policies (2026) explain how Google enforces these rules.
“We detect policy-violating practices both through automated systems and, as needed, human review that can result in a manual action. Sites that violate our policies may rank lower in results or not appear in results at all.”
Google states in its spam policies, updated August 28, 2026: “Sites that violate our policies may rank lower in results or not appear in results at all.” A manual action follows a review by Google’s human reviewers. These policies describe possible consequences, without putting a dollar value on lost business.
Check your provider’s proposed methods against Google’s spam policies before approving the work. Keep the explanation with the proposal so you can check whether the provider delivers the promised work.
Repeating keywords until your pages stop sounding natural
In brief: Repeating service names or town names to manipulate Google rankings can count as keyword stuffing, so read your titles, headings, and page text aloud to find phrases you would never say to a customer and replace them with accurate details about the work you do.
Google’s spam policies (2026) define keyword stuffing as follows.
“Keyword stuffing refers to the practice of filling a web page with keywords or numbers in an attempt to manipulate rankings in Google Search results.”
These hypothetical examples show how a plumber could replace repeated keywords with useful details:
| Hypothetical wording | Suggested edit | Editorial purpose |
|---|---|---|
| “Our plumber offers plumber services for customers needing a plumber.” | “We repair leaking faucets and explain the proposed work before starting.” | Replace repeated service names with useful details |
| “Choose drain cleaning from our drain cleaning team for drain cleaning.” | “Tell us which drains are affected when you request a visit.” | Replace repeated drain cleaning wording with a useful next step |
| “Our Austin plumber provides Austin plumbing for Austin plumbing customers.” | “Ask whether your address falls within our plumbing service area.” | Replace repeated town names with a coverage question |
Source: Google Search Central, spam policies, 2026. Examples and edits are suggestions from RankVisibly.
Use only details that accurately describe your own business.
Buying links just to move up in Google results
In brief: Buying links mainly to manipulate rankings falls under Google’s link spam rules, so ask your provider where each link will appear, why the publisher would include it, whether anyone receives payment, and how the link code will identify advertising or sponsorship before you approve it.
Google’s spam policies (2026) give the following definition.
“Link spam is the practice of creating links to or from a site primarily for the purpose of manipulating search rankings.”
Google allows advertising and sponsorship links under the following conditions.
“It’s not a violation of our policies to have such links as long as they are qualified with a rel=”nofollow” or rel=”sponsored” attribute value to the <a> tag.”
These are labels your provider adds to the link’s code.
A relevant topic alone does not make a link compliant with Google’s rules.
| Placement | What to check | Suggested question |
|---|---|---|
| Links sold for ranking manipulation | Primary purpose matches the spam definition | What is the purpose beyond changing rankings? |
| Relevant editorial coverage | Purpose, editorial context, and any payment | Why would this publisher cover our business? |
| Advertising or sponsorship | Required labels in the paid link’s code | Will the link use nofollow or sponsored? |
Source: Google Search Central, spam policies, 2026. Questions are editorial advice.
Publishing city pages that all lead to the same place
In brief: Pages for different towns can violate Google’s doorway rules when they target similar searches and send visitors through less useful pages, so ask what each page helps a customer learn about your services before paying for another version with a different town name.
Google’s spam policies (2026) explain when pages become doorways.
“Doorway abuse is when sites or pages are created to rank for specific, similar search queries. They lead users to intermediate pages that aren’t as useful as the final destination.”
Useful pages about the areas you serve are not automatically violations. Check whether the page answers questions customers in that town would ask.
For example, an electrician could name the towns they serve and describe a job they completed nearby. Confirm the information with the person who schedules the work.
| Page approach | What the visitor gets | Editorial check | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Actual coverage and service details | Information about where the business works and what it offers | What can a customer learn here? | Google spam policies, 2026; editorial example |
| Pages targeting similar searches that funnel visitors elsewhere | An intermediate page less useful than the final destination | Does the page match the doorway definition above? | Google spam policies, 2026 |
Source: Google Search Central, spam policies, 2026. Comparison questions are suggestions from RankVisibly.
Publishing pages that add nothing useful for customers
In brief: Google’s scaled content rule covers creating many pages mainly to manipulate rankings without helping readers, so check what each proposed page explains, who needs that information, and which accurate service details your writer will include before approving a batch written with or without ChatGPT.
Google’s spam policies (2026) give the following definition.
“Scaled content abuse is when many pages are generated for the primary purpose of manipulating search rankings and not helping users.”
Google Search Central’s helpful-content guidance (2026) offers these self-assessment questions:
- “Does the content provide original information, reporting, research, or analysis?”
- “Does the content provide a substantial, complete, or comprehensive description of the topic?”
- “Does the main heading or page title provide a descriptive, helpful summary of the content?”
- “Does the content provide substantial value when compared to other pages in search results?”
For example, a service page could show real job photos and explain what the service excludes. It could also tell customers what happens after they request a visit.
The same Google policies (2026) also cover misuse of expired website addresses.
“Expired domain abuse is where an expired domain name is purchased and repurposed primarily to manipulate search rankings by hosting content that provides little to no value to users.”
Google also restricts outside content published mainly to benefit from an established website’s rankings.
“The site reputation policy applies where third-party content is published on a host site mainly because of that host’s already-established ranking signals, which it has earned primarily from its first-party content. The goal of this tactic is for the content to rank better than it could otherwise on its own.”
These rules do not ban every expired website address, outside writer, or page written with ChatGPT.
Adding sales keywords to your Google business name
In brief: Your Google Business Profile should use the business name customers know from your storefront, website, and stationery, so compare those details with your profile, check for added service names or promotional words, and review the address separately for information unrelated to your physical location.
Google’s business guidelines explain how to represent your name.
“To help customers find your business online, accurately represent your business name. Your name should reflect your business’s real-world name, as used consistently on your storefront, website, stationery, and as known to customers.”
The same guidelines explain what unnecessary name additions can cause.
“Including unnecessary information in your business name isn’t permitted, and could result in the suspension of your Business Profile.”
Google gives a separate rule for your business address.
“Do not include information in address lines that doesn’t pertain to your business’s physical location, like URLs or keywords.”
Suspending your Google Business Profile is different from removing your website from Google’s search results.
| Hypothetical entry | Example | Editorial check |
|---|---|---|
| Actual name | Oak Street Plumbing | Confirm this is the consistently used real-world name |
| Added promotional words | Oak Street Plumbing Best Emergency Plumber | Remove additions that are not genuinely part of the name |
| Address information | Website address or service keywords in address lines | Include only details about the business’s physical location |
Source: Google, business representation guidelines, checked 2026. Examples are hypothetical.
Offering review rewards or asking only happy customers
In brief: Google prohibits rewards for reviews and requests aimed only at happy customers, so check the messages your staff and software send, remove any offers of discounts or free services, and let customers choose their own words and rating when you ask for honest feedback.
Google’s review policy, checked October 16, 2026, prohibits these practices:
- “Offer incentives – such as payment, discounts, free goods and/or services – in exchange for posting any review or revision or removal of a negative review.”
- “Discourage or prohibit negative reviews, or selectively solicit positive reviews from customers”
Google gives this warning about reviews and other contributions: “Fake engagement is not allowed and will be removed.” Google permits requests for reviews under the following conditions.
“Solicit or encourage the posting of content that does represent a genuine experience, without offering incentives to do so or attempting to influence the rating or the contents of the review.”
Sending the public review link only to happy customers means asking selectively for positive reviews.
| Practice | Issue | Proposed neutral alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Discount for any review | Incentive | Request honest feedback without a reward |
| Public link only for happy customers | Asking only happy customers for reviews | Use a consistent request regardless of satisfaction |
| Free service for removing criticism | Incentive for negative-review removal | Address the concern without bargaining over the review |
Source: Google, prohibited and restricted content, checked 2026. Alternatives are editorial advice.
Proposed review-request script: “Would you share an honest Google review about your experience with our business? Please describe the service you received in your own words.”
Letting reviews go stale or unanswered
In brief: BrightLocal’s survey describes how consumers view review counts, recent feedback, and business replies, so assign someone to keep asking for honest reviews and responding to concerns, with time to read what customers actually say instead of treating old positive reviews as a completed task.
BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 describes its sample below.
“The Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 was conducted using a representative panel of 1,002 US adult consumers via SurveyMonkey.”
Ask the person handling reviews to address the actual concern in each response.
| Finding | What it measures | What the finding does not mean | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| “47% of consumers won’t use a business with fewer than 20 reviews, and only 9% are willing to use one with five or fewer.” | Reported willingness to use a business | A Google minimum of 20 reviews | BrightLocal, 2026 |
| “74% seek reviews written in the last three months.” | Consumers seeking recent reviews | A measured loss of sales | BrightLocal, 2026 |
| “80% of consumers say they’re likely to use a business that responds to all of its reviews.” | Reported likelihood of using a business | An 80% sales increase | BrightLocal, 2026 |
Source: BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026, published February 11, 2026.
Leaving slow or unstable mobile pages unfixed
In brief: Google’s guidance covers loading speed, responses to taps, and unexpected page movement, so ask your website provider for measurements from real visitors on phones and computers separately, then compare those results with Google’s targets to identify the part of the page experience that needs work.
Google web.dev’s Web Vitals guidance, updated October 31, 2024, supplies the thresholds below.
Largest Contentful Paint measures how long the main content takes to load. Interaction to Next Paint measures how quickly the page responds to taps or other interactions. Cumulative Layout Shift measures unexpected movement on the page.
Google recommends checking the 75th percentile of page loads separately for mobile and desktop. If that value meets a target, at least three quarters of measured page loads meet that target. A single simulated test cannot replace measurements from real visitors.
| What visitors experience | Metric | Google’s target | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main content loads slowly | Largest Contentful Paint | Within 2.5 seconds of when the page first starts loading | Google web.dev, 2024; checked 2026 |
| Page responds slowly to a tap | Interaction to Next Paint | 200 milliseconds or less | Google web.dev, 2024; checked 2026 |
| Content moves unexpectedly | Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.1 or less | Google web.dev, 2024; checked 2026 |
Source: Google web.dev, Philip Walton, Web Vitals, 2024; checked October 16, 2026.
Choosing the cheapest offer without checking the work
In brief: When comparing offers to help customers find you on Google, ask each provider for the proposed tasks, methods, examples, account access, reports, and exclusions before judging the price, and reject any promise of a guaranteed first place regardless of how much the work costs.
Google Search Central’s provider guidance (2026) gives owners this warning: “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.” Google also warns about misleading content created on your behalf: “If an SEO creates deceptive or misleading content on your behalf, your site could be removed entirely from Google’s index.”
Google suggests asking providers the following questions before hiring them: “What kind of results do you expect to see, and in what timeframe? How do you measure your success?” Ask the provider to answer those questions in writing.
Ask each provider to quote for the same tasks so you can compare proposals. Ask the provider to list what the quote excludes.
| Comparison point | What the provider proposes | Question to resolve |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | List of tasks | Which pages or accounts will you work on? |
| Methods | How each task will be done | How does this work fit Google’s policies? |
| Examples | Work the provider can show | Can you explain a relevant example? |
| Account access | Who can use each account | What access will our business have? |
| Reporting | Results and measurement plan | What will each report tell us? |
| Exclusions | Work left out of the quote | What would need a separate agreement? |
Source: Google Search Central, provider guidance, 2026. Comparison points and questions are buying advice from RankVisibly.
Never checking what ChatGPT and Google say about you
In brief: BrightLocal’s survey reports increased use of ChatGPT and other AI tools for local recommendations, so record what ChatGPT and Google say about your business, compare the answers with your actual services, and give someone responsibility for investigating mistakes in the sources those answers cite.
BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 reports how consumers use AI tools for local recommendations.
“Use of ChatGPT and other generative AI tools for local recommendations has grown rapidly, rising from 6% last year to 45% and becoming the third most popular source of business recommendations.”
Here, “last year” refers to 2025 in the 2026 report.
The percentages cover consumers using ChatGPT and other AI tools for recommendations, not ChatGPT’s share of searches. The survey used a representative panel of 1,002 US adults via SurveyMonkey.
| Year | Reported use for local recommendations | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 6% | BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 |
| 2026 | 45% | BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 |
Source: BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026. Figures group ChatGPT with other generative AI tools.
Record the date, tool, exact question, and answer in a shared document. Add the cited source, incorrect detail, and person responsible for investigating it. Compare the answer with your business information before requesting a correction.
Small business SEO checklist: what to check first
In brief: Start by stopping practices that break Google’s policies, then check whether your website is easy to use and gives customers accurate information, assigning each issue to a named person who can inspect the evidence, make the change, and show you what they fixed.
This is our suggested order, not an official Google recovery plan. Attach the actual page, message, or proposal that needs attention. Ask the person responsible to record the change and supporting evidence.
If a provider cannot explain a method, request clarification before approving it.
| Check | Evidence | Assigned person | Next action | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profile name and address | Profile compared with actual business identity | Owner | Review unnecessary additions | Google business guidelines, checked 2026 |
| Review incentives and selective requests | Messages and request settings | Customer service lead | Remove rewards and positive-only filtering | Google review policy, checked 2026 |
| Fresh feedback and replies | Recent reviews and responses | Customer service lead | Keep asking for honest reviews and replying to concerns | BrightLocal, 2026; consumer preferences |
| Useful pages and natural wording | Titles, headings, copy, and helpful-content questions | Writer | Replace repetition with accurate service details | Google spam and helpful-content guidance, 2026 |
| Location pages | Purpose and usefulness before the next click | Website provider | Check city pages against Google’s doorway rules | Google spam policies, 2026 |
| Links and provider promises | Link addresses, purpose, paid link labels, and proposal | Owner | Question manipulation and ranking guarantees | Google spam and hiring guidance, 2026 |
| Mobile experience | Measurements from real visitors, grouped by device | Website provider | Compare with published thresholds | Google web.dev, 2024; checked 2026 |
| ChatGPT and Google answers | Question, answer, and cited-source log | Marketing lead | Investigate incorrect business details | BrightLocal, 2026; suggested checks from RankVisibly |
Source: Google spam policies (2026); business guidelines (checked 2026); review policy (checked 2026); helpful-content guidance (2026); hiring guidance (2026); Google web.dev (2024); BrightLocal (2026). Roles, actions, and order are editorial recommendations.
Frequently asked questions about SEO mistakes
What SEO mistakes should I fix first?
Fix practices that break Google’s policies before paying for more marketing work. Google states in its spam policies, updated August 28, 2026: “Sites that violate our policies may rank lower in results or not appear in results at all.” Google’s warning concerns your website’s visibility in search results. Google may suspend a Business Profile for unnecessary additions to its name. Stop offering review rewards or asking only happy customers to post reviews. We suggest this order; Google does not prescribe it.
Is cheap SEO always bad for a small business?
A low price alone cannot tell you whether an agency’s work will help your business. Google’s provider guidance (2026) includes this warning for owners: “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.” It also warns about deceptive or misleading content created on your behalf: “If an SEO creates deceptive or misleading content on your behalf, your site could be removed entirely from Google’s index.” Ask about expected results, timeframe, and how success will be measured. Compare the methods, tasks, and exclusions in each written quote.
Can I use ChatGPT to write my service pages?
You can use ChatGPT to help write pages that follow Google’s spam policies (2026). Google’s scaled content rule covers many pages created mainly to manipulate rankings without helping readers. Supply accurate service details before asking ChatGPT for a draft. Check the result against Google’s helpful content questions (2026) and correct unsupported statements. For example, a plumber could explain which jobs they do not handle. The page could also explain how customers can request a visit.
Can I offer customers a discount for a Google review?
Google prohibits offering a discount in exchange for any review. Its review policy, checked in 2026, also prohibits incentives for revising any review or removing a negative review. You can ask customers to review their real experience without rewards or pressure. Remove rewards from your request messages and staff instructions. Ask customers to describe their experience in their own words. Let customers choose their own rating and what they write.
Do I need 20 Google reviews before my business can rank?
BrightLocal’s 2026 survey measures consumer preferences, not how many reviews Google requires for rankings. BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 reports these consumer preferences: “47% of consumers won’t use a business with fewer than 20 reviews, and only 9% are willing to use one with five or fewer.” BrightLocal surveyed a representative panel of 1,002 US adults through SurveyMonkey. Ask for honest feedback consistently and assign someone to respond to concerns.
Should I create a separate page for every town I serve?
Check whether each town page gives customers useful information before creating it. Google’s doorway rules (2026) cover pages targeting similar searches that send visitors through pages less useful than the final destination. Review the towns you serve, relevant job details, and service information on each page. Ask what someone learns without having to visit another page. Use accurate coverage details instead of simply changing the town name. These checks guide your review without guaranteeing compliance with Google’s rules.
Can an SEO agency guarantee first place on Google?
No agency can guarantee that your business will rank first on Google. Google Search Central’s provider guidance (2026) gives owners this warning: “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.” Ask the agency for its work and measurement plan instead. Request the proposed changes, reporting approach, and explanation of expected results. Keep those details available when reviewing what the provider delivers. Judge the offer by the work the agency commits to completing.
Sources
- Google Search Central, Spam policies for Google web search, updated August 28, 2026.
- Google, Guidelines for representing your business on Google, checked October 16, 2026; publication date not supplied.
- Google, Prohibited & restricted content, checked October 16, 2026; publication date not supplied.
- BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026, published February 11, 2026.
- Google Search Central, Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content, updated October 5, 2026.
- Google web.dev, Philip Walton, Web Vitals, updated October 31, 2024; checked October 16, 2026.
- Google Search Central, Do you need an SEO?, updated June 5, 2026.
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