You paid someone to build your trade website. Maybe a couple of grand, maybe you did it yourself on Wix or Squarespace. It looks alright. Your phone number's on there. Maybe even a contact form.
But when you Google "electrician Brisbane" or "plumber Gold Coast" or whatever your trade is in your area, you're nowhere. Page 2. Page 5. Not even indexed.
You're not alone. We've audited hundreds of Australian trade websites and the same problems come up over and over. Here are the seven most common reasons your site isn't ranking, and exactly how to fix each one.
1. Your site has almost no content
This is the big one. Most trade websites have four pages: Home, About, Services, Contact. The homepage has maybe 150 words. The services page lists what you do in bullet points.
Google can't rank what it can't understand. If your entire website has fewer words than this article, Google has nothing to work with. It doesn't know what you specialise in, where you work, or why someone should pick you over the next bloke.
The fix: Each service you offer should have its own page with at least 500 words of genuine, useful content. If you're an electrician who does switchboard upgrades, ceiling fan installation, and safety inspections, that's three separate pages. Describe what's involved, how long it takes, what it costs roughly, and why it matters. Write like you're explaining it to a customer over the phone.
2. You're not targeting local keywords
Your website says "we provide quality electrical services." Great. So does every other sparky in the country. Google doesn't know if you're in Cairns or Canberra.
The fix: Every page needs your location. Not just on the contact page. Your title tags should read "Electrician in [Suburb] | [Business Name]" not just "[Business Name] | Electrical Services". Mention your service areas naturally in your content. "We service the greater Brisbane area including Redcliffe, Caboolture, and North Lakes" gives Google clear geographic signals.
3. No Google Business Profile (or a neglected one)
If you haven't claimed your Google Business Profile (the old Google My Business), you're missing the single most important local ranking factor. That map pack that shows up at the top of local searches? That's driven by your Business Profile, not your website.
The fix: Claim it at business.google.com. Fill out every single field. Add photos of your work (real photos, not stock images). Post updates monthly. Respond to every review. Google rewards active, complete profiles.
4. Your site is slow
Trade websites built on page builders (Wix, Squarespace, WordPress with twenty plugins) are often painfully slow. Google has been using page speed as a ranking factor since 2018, and with Core Web Vitals it matters even more.
A customer on their phone with dodgy mobile reception isn't waiting 8 seconds for your site to load. They'll hit back and call the next result.
The fix: Test your speed at PageSpeed Insights. If you're scoring below 50 on mobile, your site is hurting you. Common fixes: compress your images (most trade sites have 5MB photos straight off the phone), remove plugins you're not using, and consider whether your hosting is up to scratch. A $5/month shared hosting plan from 2019 isn't going to cut it.
5. Not mobile-friendly
Over 60% of local searches happen on mobile devices. If your site doesn't work properly on a phone, Google will penalise you in mobile search results. And since Google uses mobile-first indexing, your mobile experience IS your ranking experience.
The fix: Pull up your website on your phone right now. Can you read the text without zooming? Can you tap the phone number to call? Does the contact form work? If any of those answers are no, that's your priority.
6. No reviews (or no review strategy)
Reviews are a massive ranking signal for local search. A trade business with 50 genuine Google reviews will almost always outrank one with 3, assuming everything else is similar.
But most tradies finish a job, pack up, and never ask for a review. The only customers who leave reviews unprompted are the unhappy ones.
The fix: Build a review habit into your workflow. When you finish a job and the customer's happy, send them a text with a direct link to your Google review page. Make it stupidly easy. "Hey [name], glad we could help with the switchboard. If you've got 30 seconds, a Google review helps us out heaps: [link]". Do this consistently and you'll have 50+ reviews within a few months.
7. No structured data or technical SEO
This is the stuff most web designers skip entirely. Structured data (schema markup) tells Google exactly what your business is, where it's located, what services you offer, your opening hours, and your reviews. Without it, Google has to guess.
Other technical basics that are commonly missing: XML sitemap, proper robots.txt, canonical tags, and meaningful meta descriptions on every page.
The fix: This is where it gets technical, and where most tradies need help. At minimum, your site needs LocalBusiness schema markup with your NAP (name, address, phone) details, a sitemap submitted to Google Search Console, and unique meta descriptions for every page.
Not sure where your site stands? These are just the common issues. Every site has its own combination of problems. The only way to know what's holding YOUR site back is to actually audit it.
The bottom line
None of this is rocket science. But it does take time and consistency. The trade businesses that rank well on Google aren't there by accident. They've got content that answers customer questions, they're active on their Google Business Profile, they ask for reviews, and their site is technically sound.
The good news is that most of your competitors aren't doing any of this either. The bar for trade website SEO in Australia is embarrassingly low. Fix even half the issues above and you'll be ahead of 80% of the competition in your area.
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