How to write local landing pages that aren't doorways

The problem with town pages

Many local businesses have pages like "Plumber in Leeds", "Plumber in Bradford", "Plumber in Wakefield" and thirty more, each with the same text and only the town name changed. These are doorway pages. Google's spam policies describe doorways as pages created to rank for specific, similar search queries that lead users to pages that aren't as useful as the final destination. Its examples include multiple pages targeting specific regions or cities that funnel users to one page.

They rarely work for long, and they make your site look low quality.

When a local page is justified

A separate page for a place makes sense when you have something genuinely different to say about serving it. For example:

• You have a branch or office there. Different address, team, hours and directions.
• The service differs there. Different response times, different prices, different regulations.
• You've done real work there. Projects, case examples and photos specific to that area.
• Local context matters. Conservation areas, housing types, local authority rules or common problems specific to the area.

If none of these apply, one page listing the areas you cover is better than thirty thin pages.

What a good local page includes

Specific service information

Explain how the service works in that area. For a roofer, that might cover the common roof types in the area's housing stock. For a solicitor, which county court or tribunal handles local cases.

Real proof

Photos and short write-ups of jobs you've done there, reviews from customers in that area (with permission) and local partners you work with.

Practical details

Response times, call-out charges, parking, which postcodes you cover and how to get in touch.

Local knowledge

Things only someone who works there would know. A landscaper in the Cotswolds might talk about local stone and planning restrictions. An electrician in Edinburgh's New Town might cover working in listed tenement buildings.

Unique writing

Every local page should be written separately. If you could swap the town name and the page still made sense, it's not specific enough.

A test for each page

Before publishing a local page, ask:

1. Would someone in that town learn something they wouldn't from the main service page? 2. Does it include at least a few details that only apply there? 3. Would I be happy for a customer there to read it? 4. Could I share this page with a local customer without embarrassment?

If the answer to any of these is no, improve it or don't publish it.

How many local pages?

Fewer than you think. A sole trader serving one town and its surroundings probably needs a strong main page, a clear "areas we cover" section and perhaps two or three pages for nearby towns where they've done lots of work. A firm with four branches needs four branch pages.

Quality beats coverage. Search engines can tell when a site has fifty near-identical pages, and so can customers.

Structure and linking

• Link each local page from a clear "Areas we cover" hub or section.
• Link from local pages to the relevant service pages and back.
• Use a consistent URL pattern, such as /areas/harrogate/.
• Don't put every town in the footer as a list of links. It looks like spam and helps nobody.

A worked example

An electrician based in Swindon had 45 town pages, all with the same 300 words, each targeting a different town within 30 miles. None ranked well, and the site looked spammy.

She reviewed where her work actually came from. Most jobs were in Swindon, with steady work in Marlborough, Chippenham and Cirencester. She deleted 41 pages, redirecting them to an "Areas we cover" page listing the towns she serves. She rewrote the four remaining town pages from scratch. The Marlborough page covered her work on older properties and listed buildings in the town. The Cirencester page covered her work with holiday let owners needing EICRs. Each had real project photos and reviews from local customers.

The site went from 45 weak pages to four strong ones plus a clear area list.

Service-area businesses and the map

For local searches, your Business Profile matters at least as much as town pages. Set your service areas accurately. Town pages won't make you appear in the map for towns far from your base, because distance is a strong factor in local results, as Google explains in its help page on improving local ranking.

Common mistakes

• Swapping the town name in identical text.
• Mentioning landmarks you've never worked near to look local.
• Fake addresses or virtual offices to appear "based" in a town.
• Auto-generated pages for every postcode.
• Local pages that link nowhere and aren't linked from anywhere.