01Distance is fixed, so the work is relevance and prominence
Google says local results are based mainly on relevance, distance and prominence. Distance you cannot change: the gym is where it is, and a competitor two streets closer to the searcher has that advantage. Relevance is how well your Business Profile matches what someone typed, and Google says businesses with complete and accurate information are more likely to show up. Prominence is how well known you are, and reviews feed it: more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking. So the work splits cleanly. Fix what is incomplete or inconsistent first, then build a record of reviews, and expect it to take months.
- Distance: not yours to change, so do not chase it
- Relevance: a complete, accurate profile and a site that says what you offer
- Prominence: reviews and being known; both take time
- Order of work: fix what is incomplete first, then collect reviews
02The Business Profile mistakes a gym makes
Google's guidelines say the name should be your real-world name, as used on the storefront, website and stationery, with no taglines, hours, phone numbers or service descriptors added. So a profile called 'Gym Sector 3 Cheap Membership' breaks the rule, however tempting it is. The same guidelines say to use as few categories as possible and to give your regular customer-facing hours, and Google's category help asks for a specific primary category. Choose the category from Google's own list instead of guessing, write the hours members really see, and keep name, address and hours identical on the site. A contradiction between profile and site is the cheapest thing to fix.
- Name: exactly what is on your sign and your site, with no keywords, taglines or hours added
- Category: one specific primary category from Google's list, and as few extra ones as possible
- Hours: your regular customer-facing hours, the same as on the site
- Check that the profile and the site say the same about name, address and phone
03A site with the timetable as text, a page per class and the right markup
On a phone, check first that a visitor can find what it costs, when the classes run and where to park. If the price list is a photo and the timetable a PDF, the visitor must zoom or download, and every change means a new file. Put both on the page as text, and give each class its own page: what it is, who it suits, the coach, how to book a trial. Google's SEO guide says a good title is unique to the page and accurately describes it, which one 'Classes' page cannot be for six disciplines. Google's local business documentation adds that you should use the most specific LocalBusiness subtype, with HealthClub among its examples, and can mark up opening hours, phone and address.
- Prices and timetable as text on the page, not a photo or a file
- One page per class or discipline: what it is, who it suits, the coach, how to book a trial
- A location page: address, how to get there, parking, landmarks
- A unique, accurate title on every page, plus LocalBusiness markup with the HealthClub subtype
04Reviews: ask everyone, offer nothing, reply where it adds something
Reviews are the part of prominence you control. Google's help page says you can ask customers to visit a Google link or scan a QR code, and that offering incentives such as free or discounted goods or services in exchange for reviews is prohibited. That matters for gyms, where it is tempting to offer a free week or a guest pass for a five-star review. Do not. Google's policy also bars selectively soliciting positive reviews, so ask every member the same way, not only the ones who just hit a personal record. Reply to reviews, and focus on replies that add something useful: keep each one clear and polite, and leave out any personal detail about the member.
- Give every member the same Google review link or QR code
- No free week, guest pass or discount in exchange for a review
- Do not ask only the happy ones
- Reply to reviews, focusing on replies that add something useful, politely, with no offers and no personal detail
05Where PROOF48 is the wrong choice for a gym
We have not written up a gym at /work, and none of our eight builds is one. FOUND, at 297 EUR a month, includes Google Business Profile management, local SEO for 5 target keywords, 2 AI blog posts a month, schema and a monthly ranking report, plus competitor and review monitoring. It is the wrong choice if you need members this month: SEO takes months and no position can be promised, so a launch offer or paid ads are the faster route (ad management sits in GROWTH, at 1,497 EUR a month plus ad spend). Five keywords are few for a gym with eight disciplines in three neighbourhoods. And if you have no website at all, the profile is only half the job. The profile and the review habit cost only your time.
- No gym among our eight published builds
- Need members this month: SEO takes months; paid ads (GROWTH, 1,497 EUR plus ad spend) are faster
- FOUND covers 5 target keywords: few for a gym with many disciplines in several neighbourhoods
- A tight budget: the profile, a page per class and the review habit cost only your time
Not a gym: a salon with a page per service
None of our eight builds is a gym. The closest is SCP Shine & Style, a salon in Sector 3, Bucharest, where we gave every service its own page with its own copy and media, put a landmarks line on every page for local search around Dristor and Titan, and added VideoObject and Person schema. For a gym, the same pattern means a page per class and a landmarks line members would recognise. We do not publish the salon's revenue or booking counts, because we do not measure them, and we have no gym ranking data to quote.
See the build: SCP Shine & StyleQuestions, answered
Can I put 'gym' and my neighbourhood in the Business Profile name?
Only if it is part of the name on your sign and your site. Google's guidelines say the name should reflect your real-world name and do not allow taglines, hours, phone numbers or service descriptors.
Can I give a free guest pass to members who leave a review?
No. Google's help page treats free or discounted goods or services in exchange for reviews as prohibited. Ask every member the same way and offer nothing in return.
How long before a gym ranks better?
We promise no position and no date. Our SEO page says technical fixes reach Google within days, while content authority builds over quarters.
Does a gym need a page for every class?
Each class you want to be found for benefits from its own page. Start with the three that bring the most trial visits, which you know better than we do, and add the rest one at a time.
Where PROOF48 fits
A gym's local ranking rests on a profile with its real name, one specific category and true hours, a site with the timetable and prices as text and a page per class, and reviews asked of every member with nothing offered in return. Nobody can promise a position. PROOF48's FOUND plan, at 297 EUR a month, covers the profile, schema and keyword work, and it is the wrong tool if you need members this month.
Cosmin Tiu · Founder, PROOF48
Cosmin has worked in online marketing and software development since 2018, and has built with AI every day since January 2023. He still writes code from scratch daily, in Python, React, Rust and C#. PROOF48 ships business websites in 48 hours and invoices afterwards, so every opinion on this blog was paid for in real builds, not in theory.