If it’s not on your radar for getting in front of your customers, it should be.

Now, TikTok is expanding its role in local search with the Local Explorer Program, a new initiative that rewards users for posting place-based reviews. It’s another step toward making TikTok a destination for real-time discovery, giving users more ways to surface local recommendations directly within the app.

For SEOs, understanding how this program works is key to staying ahead of how visibility is shifting across platforms.

What is the TikTok Local Explorer Program

The TikTok Local Explorer Program is for people who love sharing authentic reviews of places they’ve visited. It works similarly to Google’s Local Guide program.

Whether it’s your favorite neighborhood restaurant or a hidden gem you stumbled across while traveling, TikTok wants to hear about it. By regularly posting meaningful, location-based reviews, you can earn experience points (XP), level up through the program, and unlock special perks that give your content more visibility.

This is a community-driven feature designed to help users discover trusted local recommendations on the app. As you contribute more helpful content, TikTok rewards you with perks that help boost your presence on the platform.

Requirements

To participate in the Local Explorer Program, you must be 18 years old or older and not be using a merchant account. This feature is only available in certain regions as of right now (Oct 2025), without specification of those regions in the TikTok documentation.

To get started, you must submit location-based reviews that follow TikTok’s standards:

• You must include text in your review
• Your review should reflect your real, personal experience
• Photos aren’t required but can earn you extra experience points

There are levels within the Local Explorer Program once you start submitting reviews. You’ll start at Level 0 and work your way up by earning experience points (XP) from your approved reviews. There are six levels total:

• Level 0
• Level 1 (20 XP required)
• Level 2 (80 XP)
• Level 3 (200 XP)
• Level 4 (500 XP)
• Level 5 (1,000 XP)

The more XP you earn, the higher your level and the more benefits you unlock, such as badges, access to exclusive communities, and monthly Promote coupons (available in the U.S. starting at Level 5). Another thing to note is that TikTok approves reviews before XP is applied; they state that it usually happens within 24 hours. So, it could take a little bit for the XP to show up in your account.

More on XP

XP is how TikTok tracks your contributions in the program. You earn it by submitting location reviews, and the amount depends on the length and quality of your content.

The maximum XP you can earn per review is 25 XP, which is reached by submitting a review with at least 200 characters and including a photo.

If you submit more than one review for the same location in a single month, they’ll count the highest-earning one and give you the difference as long as it doesn’t exceed the 25 XP cap.

Once you begin earning XP, you can work your way towards Perks. These are automatically unlocked as soon as you reach a new level. At higher levels, you gain access to exclusive communities, receive profile badges, and at Level 5 earn a $2 monthly Promote coupon in the U.S.

This system is designed to reward users who consistently contribute thoughtful, helpful content. So the more value your reviews offer, the faster you level up.

Why TikTok is Even More Important for Local SEO

The Local Explorer Program is one of the strongest signals yet that TikTok is investing in being a destination for local discovery. By encouraging users to post authentic, review-style content tied to specific places, TikTok is shaping how people explore and evaluate businesses in their area. From searchable place tags to location reviews and city-based content feeds.

For SEOs, this is something to pay attention to. The content coming out of the Local Explorer Program provides valuable signals:

• What types of businesses are getting visibility
• Which creators are influencing local discovery
• What language users are using to describe places and experiences

It also creates an opportunity to work more closely with social media teams. By tracking local tags, mentions, and review activity on TikTok, you can bring that data into your broader visibility strategy.

How to Use TikTok to Your Advantage

The Local Explorer Program opens the door for SEOs to take a more proactive role in how local businesses show up on TikTok. While a social media team may be managing the content itself, the insights coming from TikTok reviews and creator activity are valuable for shaping local visibility strategies.

This is where SEO and social can work in sync. TikTok gives you real-time data on what people are engaging with, how places are being described, and which businesses are gaining traction in discovery.

• Monitor what users are saying about your business
• Use reviews from TikTok on the site
• Learn from TikTok reviews and use language from there to write more compelling headings and conversion-friendly content
• Look for content opportunities within the app through filters, others searched for, etc
• Reuse TikToks for your GBP or embed on relevant pages on the site

Explore It, Don’t Ignore It

TikTok gives us direct access to how people are discovering and talking about local businesses. You can use that to your advantage by pulling insights directly from the app to strengthen your SEO strategy.

Just like you would monitor reviews from a GBP or Yelp and use that as social proof on a website, you can do the same with TikTok reviews. Highlight them on the site! Get an overall feel of what users are saying in their reviews and use that to write more conversion-focused content to urge users to take the next step.

Aside from review monitoring, you can use TikTok search itself as a research tool. Let’s use Voodoo Donuts as an example.

You’ll notice the app displays suggested filters under the search bar. Here we see “ASMR” and “Austin” which hint at how people are engaging with the brand. These behavioral patterns can help you uncover content opportunities tied to user intent that you won’t find in traditional keyword tools. In this instance it highlights they’re looking for satisfying sound-driven videos or trying to find information about the closest location.

You can also see “Others searched for” when looking up a specific business as well. This is similar to People Also Ask and can be another way to find content opportunities within the app. So for Sofi Stadium, people are often searching for the purse policy. They want to know what it is and what the actual size of an allowed purse looks like. That’s an opportunity for Sofi to create social and website content for.

Use these search features to better understand what people want to know before visiting a location, then apply that insight to your content. Whether that’s building out an FAQ, adding information to a Google Business profile, or creating website content to address potential concerns, TikTok is giving you real-time demand data.

You can also start by embedding relevant TikToks on high-intent service or location pages or uploading to a Google Business Profile listing to boost engagement, time on page, and to build trust and create social proof with content that feels authentic and relatable.

Set Your Sights Ahead

As search behaviors continue to evolve, SEO strategies can’t rely on Google alone to stay competitive. The rise of AI-generated results has created a growing demand for content that feels personal and trustworthy. People want that human connection, and TikTok allows users to have it.

With its emphasis on real experiences and community-driven content, the Local Explorer Program is just one example of how the platform is moving further into local search. SEOs need to pay attention.

By collaborating with social teams, tracking local activity, and using TikTok data to inform your strategy, you’ll be better equipped to keep up with how people are actually discovering and choosing local businesses today.

This article is from our Agency Growth Handbook—a collection of guides created to help local SEO agencies grow and succeed. It is chapter three of ‘Part 3: Retention & Growth’. 

SEOs are always sharing advice, so if you keep up with newsletters or articles, you’ll be regularly running into something new to try. Whether it’s trying to get your website or businesses included in a new SERP feature, testing out a method to appear in AI Overviews, or even connecting social media posts to SEO strategy. Lots of things are changing, and many SEOs are sharing their insights, testing new strategies, and refining what works in real time.

Clients who like to educate themselves on SEO aren’t ignoring the new information, either. They want to keep up with the times, read about case studies, and see what SEOs with big followings are sharing. There’s nothing wrong with that.

When you’re client-facing, you’ll inevitably have one come to you about a new thing they read about, and they want to know why you haven’t tried this new thing out for them. It causes FOMO (fear of missing out), and whether that new thing is right for them or not, they can make an impulsive decision to do it anyway.

So, how do you cut through the noise and get the client to focus on what really matters? How can you make your point and get the win, both for yourself and the client?

It’s all about education, managing expectations, and preparing for the aftermath if you can’t get the client on board. 

“Shiny new object” syndrome

“Shiny new object syndrome” occurs when businesses jump on new trends without fully evaluating their impact or necessity. With the SERPs and AI changing up the SEO industry on a near-weekly basis, there is a lot more trepidation around what makes for the best approach and a sense of urgency to hop on to the latest new thing someone’s shared. Many companies see a new approach, hear a success story, and assume they must implement it immediately without considering whether it fits their needs.

A great example of this is programmatic SEO (a method that uses automation and technology to create search-engine-optimized web pages at scale). As of December 2024, ChatGPT had 300 million weekly active users worldwide. With the possibility of making things easier, faster, and more efficient, you’ve likely had or will have clients who want to figure out how to use ChatGPT for everything. The popularity of ChatGPT and the allure of programmatic SEO can lead a client to think that just because this technology exists and works for some companies, it can be the perfect opportunity to use this method for creating hundreds of business location pages, for example, at once.

However, just because you can, it doesn’t mean you should. By blindly following the promise of hundreds of local landing pages created instantly that can rank, clients overlook many factors: no consideration of content quality, risks around duplicate content, and the fact they’re likely to be creating a negative experience for their potential customers. The example below from this excellent guide on the pitfalls of programmatic SEO highlights what can happen after the initial short-term gains.

Another example of “shiny new object” syndrome with local business clients is the rush for SEO testing. The client may have seen a recent case study or even read something you’ve published about another client’s results with testing and want to know why they haven’t been given the same plan. But the truth is that they don’t even have their foundation set up in such a way that testing is justified. It could be a brand new site, or there could be a lot of work to be done just redoing the work of the previous agency. 

When clients are showing you other people’s success and recommendations, managing their “shiny new object” syndrome can be overwhelming. You must be prepared to discuss and handle requests for random things like the examples mentioned. 

How to Say No

Saying no to a client’s idea in the best possible way isn’t just about managing the rejection they’ll feel—it’s about guiding them toward a better decision, too. By approaching the conversation with clear explanations, relevant data, and a focus on their long-term success, you can turn a tough conversation into an opportunity for education and trust-building.

Explain

When a client wants to try something new, the best approach is to help them understand whether it’s truly beneficial for their site. Just because a strategy worked for one business doesn’t mean it will work for another.

The industry they operate in, the current state of their website, and the competitiveness of their market all impact whether a tactic will deliver results. A strategy that helped a large eCommerce brand won’t necessarily translate to success for a small local business.

It’s also important to explain the risks. Some trends might bring short-term success but cause long-term damage. For example, a client might see a case study about a website ranking quickly by purchasing many links and assume they should do the same. 

First, you would want to address the case study, social media post, or idea they’ve shown you. Be specific in your approach to debunking its success, and explain that search engines can detect and penalize manipulative link-building tactics. Cite your sources, and if you can find the same source or publication making a debunking argument, then all the better! Google Search documentation is your friend in explaining away any of these spammy tactics they might bring up. 

Educating clients about the potential consequences of trend-chasing helps them make more informed decisions. If you tell them they’ll lose out on money, they aren’t likely to suggest this again. 

Tie it Back to Business Goals

When clients are uncertain, reassurance always comes from connecting SEO efforts to their business goals. A local business’s goals are to drive local traffic, improve leads, and increase revenue. Showing how the current strategy supports those objectives is key. When they push for a trend that doesn’t align with their goals, put things into perspective by comparing the return on investment of their existing plan versus the new idea. Sometimes, the numbers alone are enough to shift their thinking.

Data-driven insights work wonders in these conversations. Instead of simply telling clients that a strategy won’t work for them, showing them performance trends, competitor insights, and past case studies provides concrete evidence. This shifts the discussion from opinion to fact, making it easier to keep it on track.

Reassure

Managing clients is all about proper communication and developing and executing an SEO strategy that actually works. Part of your job is empathy and understanding your client’s situations and requests. Their SEO budget can be everything to them, especially when you’re working with small-to-medium-sized businesses. Every dollar matters, and they are bringing these new ideas to you because they just want to get a return on their investment as soon as possible. 

When discussing this with the client, keep the client’s perspective at the top of your mind. Remind them of the past results you’ve achieved for them and that they have trusted you before to create the best path forward for them. Align yourself with their point of view and match their communication style in your approach. 

What if they insist?

Even with the best explanations, some clients still insist on trying a new trend. Instead of fighting them on it, finding a middle ground can help them see the reality of their choice without risking their entire SEO strategy.

Compromise  

Sometimes, a client just won’t take no for an answer. In these cases, a compromise can be the best way forward. If the new idea isn’t likely to cause harm, framing it as a test allows the client to explore it while maintaining control over the outcome. Setting clear metrics and a defined time period ensures the results are measurable and actionable.

Going back to our programmatic SEO example, if a client insists on this approach for location pages despite you sharing your concerns, testing a small batch of pages first allows for an assessment of performance without making large-scale changes. If the results are positive, adjustments can be made before expanding further. If they are negative, the impact is contained, and the client can see why the approach may not be the best fit.

Let Them See the “Fruits” of Their Labor

If a client is determined to move forward with a risky idea despite your warnings, sometimes the best approach is to let them see the results firsthand. When performance declines or the expected results don’t materialize, presenting this information objectively makes it easier to guide them back to a more effective approach. 

Letting a client fail isn’t necessarily the best approach, but in some extreme cases, it’s the only way for them to understand a trend’s limitations. Instead of debating opinions, the conversation becomes centered on real-world outcomes, making it easier to refocus on proven strategies.

It’s About Educating, Not Just Explaining

By balancing education, expectation management, and strategic compromise, you can help clients navigate the “shiny new object” syndrome. The goal isn’t just for you to say “no” and have the client accept that—a client engaged with your work and industry is always a good thing—instead, it’s to educate clients with the knowledge needed to make informed decisions that drive real results.

What is a Content Gap Analysis?

A content gap analysis is the process of finding gaps in your content compared to your competitors. Performing one will allow you to find missed opportunities for pieces of content on your website, helping bring in traffic and eventually convert readers to buyers.

A local content gap analysis will form part of your overall local competitor research project.

How Content Gap Analysis is Done

A content gap analysis is done by evaluating your competitors’ data to see how you stack up. What are the keywords they rank for? What keywords do you rank for? Which of those keywords are on the second page, while your competitors are on the first?

By using a tool to scrape your competitors’ data, you can take a detailed look at their content to help inform you of new ways to improve your content strategy. While it won’t involve directly copying what they are doing, using their content should help you think of the following:

• What are they talking about that you’re not? Why are they talking about it?
• What services do they focus on that you’re not? Is there a reason why?
• How are they using blog posts to educate and inspire potential customers?
• Are they focused on just transactional content? Is that all you need to rank?
• Do they guide potential customers through the traditional buyer’s journey or not?

Why You Need to Do Local Content Gap Analysis Differently

Given what we’ve been shown, a “traditional” content gap analysis is for bigger websites and the competition they face. There are some fundamental problems when trying to apply this process to the local space. With a content gap analysis, you are essentially looking to your competitors for advice on how to update existing content, create new content, and more. In the local space, there likely isn’t enough data to work with, nor is the content that great.

There Likely Isn’t Enough Data

If you were to search for a local service area business, there wouldn’t be many businesses with lots of content on their website. Often, you’ll be lucky to see the right information at all, such as the hours of operation, services, etc.

When trying to complete a content gap analysis, you have to be able to pull data from your competitors. In the local space, there is a huge chance that the competition doesn’t have a lot of content on their site or is even ranking for enough keywords to pay attention to.

This can make the content gap analysis process tedious and time-consuming because you need to work a lot harder to be able to grab actionable data compared to enterprise-level businesses.

Local Content Just Isn’t That Great

While you may be able to pull some keywords from a competitor, unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of great local content out there. You can find the keywords, but there isn’t anything to learn from them or recommend your local client does. In local SERPs, thin pages rank all the time simply because there is nothing better.

If the whole point of a content gap analysis is to learn from your competitors and see how you can do it better, why would you want to compare your client’s site to a competitor who isn’t doing its best to meet their potential customers’ search intent?

Find the Gaps with Local Content the Right Way

What we know of the content gap analysis process just isn’t meant for local businesses. Instead, you should identify gaps in user intent on your website by letting your users tell you what they want to see.

This can be done by using first-party data with Google Search Console (GSC) and Google Analytics.

Google Search Console Queries

You can use your GSC data to find opportunities to improve already existing content:

1. Log into the client’s GSC
2. Go to performance
3. Click filter
4. Check impressions

Now you can filter based on how many impressions you would like each query to have. You have the option to enter a number and set the filter to ‘equals’, ‘not equals’, ‘greater than’, and ‘smaller than’.

For the purpose of this content gap analysis, you’ll want to set the filter to ‘greater than’. Depending on the size of your site and how much traffic it already obtains, you’ll have a different number. The site in the photos is small and doesn’t earn a lot of traffic, so I would set it to greater than 100 impressions.

To make going through the data easier, you can click on ‘Clicks’ and make sure that the arrow is facing up.

Now you have filtered so you can see the queries that your client’s site is showing up for in the SERPs and has lots of impressions for, but no clicks. This is valuable because you are able to see where their current content is lacking, allowing you to identify any missed opportunities for keywords that you may not have thought about targeting.

You may also export all this data into Google Sheets or Excel and filter it through there as well. However, for this searching process, I prefer to stay in GSC because, if there’s a particular query that stands out to me, I can click on the pages tab and immediately find what page the query is associated with. You should still always export all the data and sort through it once you find some great opportunities.

Once you have picked a query and see the page associated with that query, there are a few things to think about off the top of your head:

• Does this query make sense for this page?
• Does this query make more sense for a different page on the website?
• Should this query possibly turn into keyword research for new content?

After you’ve done your initial analysis in your head, it’s time to deep dive into your content and the SERP. Search for the query while having your location set to the location of the business. You can do this by using the BrightLocal local search results checker tool or the GS Location Changer chrome extension.

You should also go to the page on your client’s site associated with the query and read it. You can see where the content is lacking based on reading it while comparing it to the query. Listed below are some things to think about as you go through your content and the SERP:

• Are these queries relevant to the URL(s) they show up for?
• Do you need to expand the content on the URL(s) to match the search intent?
• Do these queries serve a different user intent than your current content?
• What are some of the features of the SERP?
• Is your content easily readable?
• Is your content a thin page?
• Are the title tags and meta descriptions optimized for this query?
• Does every competitor mention local-specific information?

After analyzing the SERP, you should come up with recommendations to update your client’s content to better fit the user intent. At RicketyRoo, we like to keep track of all of this work using Google docs where we can easily answer these questions, keep track of anything miscellaneous, make recommendations, and receive client input if necessary.

It’s important to know that, while the skyscraper technique works well in the local space, we as SEOs should do more to create valuable content and gain trust from users. We should go above and beyond the competition by leveraging our clients’ insights and experience in their industry. By doing this, you’ll crush the competition and rank for years to come.

Google Analytics Site Search Data

You can also explore Google Analytics site search data to find out what users are looking for when visiting your site. This can be a sign that the already existing content isn’t easily found or doesn’t exist. However, this only works if your client has site search enabled, unfortunately.

You can read more about how to set up site searches for Universal Analytics on Google’s support forum and luckily if you enable enhanced measurement for your GA4 property, it should already track this.

By going through site search data, you can find out what users are looking for. If there’s something that is searched frequently, there are a few things to think about:

• Is this something that is already covered somewhere on your site?
• Can this information be added to an existing page?
• Should this become a new blog post or FAQ page?

Other Tips to Fill the Gap

While browsing through the SERP, you should take note of all the features: People Also Asked, featured snippets, rich results, etc. This tells you what users want to know when looking up that specific query.

Pay attention to what’s there and see how you can be the best resource for users.

• Consider adding an FAQ section and using FAQPage schema to achieve a rich result in the SERP
• Use the People Also Asked section to come up with headings and subheadings for your content
• Are there any images or videos that show up in the SERP? Maybe you should create an accompanying infographic or video with your written content

While it’s very important to see what’s in the SERP to know what’s missing from your client’s content, it’s also important to step back and think about the query as a user. Maybe there is something missing in the SERP that a user would really benefit from. It can even help to think about it from a consumer perspective, asking yourself: what information would I need to make a purchase/submit a form/place a call?

It can be as simple as expressing your client’s story, their expertise, or their knowledge of the areas they serve. Use your client’s uniqueness as a factor to stand out and really show users that they are the right choice—whether that’s simply for information about their industry or as a service provider.

Conclusion

It’s important to realize that while a “traditional” content gap analysis is not built for the local space, we can change it and make it our own. It provides us with a chance to think outside the box and go beyond the norm to create effective, engaging and relevant local content.