"Why doesn't my SEO work?" Even When I’m Doing Everything Right
Short Answer
SEO usually fails because Google misunderstands the primary service or location. When pages, Google Business Profile, and reviews describe different things, rankings stall. SEO works once all signals reinforce the same meaning.
Diagnostic Explanation
Most websites contain multiple competing descriptions of the business.
Google then distributes visibility across competitors instead of committing to one.
Common causes:
- broad service pages
- mixed keywords
- unclear service area focus
- review topics unrelated to target services
SEO succeeds when ambiguity is removed, not when more keywords are added.
Once the real issue is identified, the next concern becomes timing — how quickly things should stabilize after correction.