What does it actually mean to rank in the Map Pack?

The Map Pack is the block of three business listings that appears at the top of Google search results for local queries. Appearing in the Map Pack requires strong GBP signals, consistent citation data, positive review velocity, and a website with supporting topical authority content. SEO Local builds all four simultaneously.

How is SEO Local different from BrightLocal or Whitespark?

BrightLocal and Whitespark are tools. They show you what is happening with your local SEO. SEO Local is an engine. We run the execution for you: building citations, optimizing your GBP, creating your website content, generating your reviews, and building AEO content that positions you for AI citation.

What is Answer Engine Optimization and why does it matter for local businesses?

AEO is the practice of structuring your content so AI systems like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews cite your business as the answer to local service questions. SEO Local builds this into every page.

How long does it take to see results?

Map Pack movement begins within 60 to 90 days for medium-competition markets and 90 to 180 days for highly competitive markets. AEO citation begins to appear within 30 to 60 days of content deployment.

Do you offer white-label services for agencies?

Yes. Agencies can access the full SEO Local platform under their own brand, with outputs delivered in their own templates and dashboards.

Speakable Schema Markup for Local Business

Speakable Schema Markup: The Technical Signal That Tells AI What to Cite

Speakable schema is structured data introduced in schema.org v3.3 that marks page content for AI extraction and text-to-speech reading. Google requires speakable content to be concise and relevant to the page topic, not advertising. Implementation uses a cssSelector referencing a specific CSS class. The Rich Results Test validates it but produces no visual rich result in search.

schema.org v3.3 speakable introduced

1-3kb schema block size

10 min implementation time

Of all the structured data types available to local business websites, speakable is the only one explicitly designed to signal AI systems. FAQ schema, Organization schema, and LocalBusiness schema are all valuable, but they were designed for Google's Knowledge Graph and rich results, and AI citation is a secondary use. Speakable was designed with AI and voice reading as the primary use case.

How Speakable Schema Works

Speakable schema is implemented in JSON-LD and tells Google's systems: "the content at this CSS selector is the best representation of what this page is about, and it is structured for extraction and reading." Google's voice assistants and AI systems use this signal to select which content to surface when answering queries related to the page's topic.

The schema lives in the page's @graph block, alongside the WebPage, BreadcrumbList, and FAQPage entries. It references a CSS class, .aeo-nugget in SEO Local's implementation, and the content with that class is what gets read and cited.

Implementation Code

Add this to every page's @graph block:

JSON-LD Schema

{
  "@type": "WebPage",
  "@id": "https://[domain].com/[slug]/#webpage",
  "speakable": {
    "@type": "SpeakableSpecification",
    "cssSelector": ".aeo-nugget"
  }
}
                

Then show the HTML usage example:

HTML Usage

<p class="aeo-nugget">
  Speakable schema is a structured data type in the schema.org vocabulary,
  introduced in version 3.3, that explicitly marks page content for text-to-speech
  reading and AI extraction...
</p>
                

Every page on every website SEO Local builds uses this exact implementation pattern, validated through Google's Rich Results Test before launch.

What to Put Inside the Speakable Element

The content marked as speakable should meet five criteria:

Direct answer

It answers the primary question implied by the page's URL and H1 in the first sentence. No preamble, no "great question," no setup.

Hard fact

It contains at least one verifiable measurement, timeframe, cost figure, technical specification, or regulatory reference. Generic statements are not citation-worthy.

Forty to sixty words

Long enough to provide context, short enough to read in under 20 seconds. AI systems prefer extractable chunks, not paragraphs.

No promotional language

"Call us today" or "We offer the best service" in the speakable element actively reduces citation probability. The speakable element is informational, not promotional.

Natural sentence structure

AI systems reading text aloud or extracting for citations perform better with simple, declarative sentences than with complex nested clauses.

Common Implementation Errors

Three errors appear most frequently in speakable implementations reviewed by SEO Local.

The speakable element is too long

Paragraphs over 100 words or entire sections marked as speakable dilute the signal. Mark only the AEO nugget paragraph.

The speakable element contains promotional content

If your opening paragraph starts with "At [Business Name], we pride ourselves on..." it will not be cited. Rewrite as direct factual content.

The schema references a CSS class that does not exist on the page

The JSON-LD says ".aeo-nugget" but the HTML uses "aeo_nugget" or the class is not applied to any element. Validate with the Rich Results Test.

speakable schema JSON-LD implementation code showing cssSelector targeting aeo-nugget class

Speakable Schema Is a Ten-Minute Implementation With Long-Term Returns.

Every page that lacks speakable schema is a missed citation opportunity. SEO Local implements speakable schema on every page we build as a non-negotiable standard, not an optional enhancement.

Let Us Build Your AEO-Native Site

No contracts · Free assessment · Results in 60-90 days