Google+ Local Is Dead. Local SEO Isn't.

Between 2013 and 2015, this site had several posts about Google+ Local:

“How to Create a Google Plus Local Review in 5 Easy Steps”
“How to Choose the Right Categories for Your Google Plus Local Listing”
“5 Reasons Your Business Needs a Google Plus Local Page Today”
“Understanding the New Google Places”

Google+ is dead. Google Places is dead. But local search? That’s bigger than ever.

What happened to Google+ Local

Google launched Google+ in 2011 as their answer to Facebook. They bolted local business listings onto it, calling it “Google+ Local.” For a few years, if you wanted your business to show up in local search, you had to play the Google+ game — claim your page, get reviews on the platform, post updates.

In 2014, Google started pulling local listings back out of Google+. By 2019, Google+ was shut down entirely. The local listings became Google My Business, then Google Business Profile.

The platform changed names three times. The fundamentals didn’t change at all.

What’s the same

Everything I wrote about in those old posts is still true at its core:

Your business listing needs to be claimed and accurate. It’s Google Business Profile now, but the principle is identical.
Reviews matter enormously. They mattered on Google+ Local. They matter more now. Reviews are your new homepage.
Categories matter. Choosing the right category for your business is still one of the most important local SEO decisions you’ll make. Bad category = invisible.
Consistency across platforms matters. Your name, address, and phone number need to match everywhere. That was true in 2013. Still true.

What’s different

AI is in the map. Google’s AI Overviews are starting to influence local results. “Best plumber near me” might get an AI-generated answer that pulls from reviews, your website, and your business profile. If your content isn’t structured for AI to parse, you’re at a disadvantage.

Reviews moved everywhere. In 2013, Google+ reviews were the game. Now it’s Google, Yelp, Facebook, industry-specific platforms, and increasingly — AI models that synthesize review sentiment. Reputation management is a real discipline now, not just “ask for 5 stars.”

The competition got serious. In 2013, claiming your Google+ Local page put you ahead of 80% of local businesses. Now everyone has a Google Business Profile. The baseline moved. Standing out requires more: better content, better reviews, better technical SEO, better schema markup.

What to do now

If you found this page searching for something about Google+ Local or Google Places, here’s the modern playbook:

Claim and optimize your Google Business Profile. Fill out every field. Choose the right primary category. Add photos. Post updates.
Build a review strategy. Not just “please leave us a review” — a real system for asking, responding, and managing reputation across platforms.
Make sure your website supports local search. Local schema markup, city pages if you serve multiple areas, fast mobile performance.
Think about AI visibility. The next wave of local search is AI-powered. Structure your content so AI models can find and cite you.

We wrote a full guide on this — everything from Google Business Profile optimization to AI search to the new local map. It’s current, detailed, and based on what’s actually working now.

This post replaces several Google+ Local guides that were published on hopp2it.com between 2013-2015. Google+ is gone. The local SEO game is bigger than ever.