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I'm Jahed Hasan, a local SEO and AI visibility specialist working with business owners across Canberra. For the last two years I've focused on one problem: helping local businesses get found by the people actually searching for them whether that search happens on Google Maps, in a normal Google search or inside an AI generated answer from ChatGPT or Gemini.
Canberra's local search results are a mix of national agencies and smaller local operators, which makes it easy for a genuinely good local business to get lost behind a generic website.
My work centres on the things that actually affect local visibility: a properly optimised Google Business Profile, consistent citations, on-page content that matches how your customers search, and technical SEO that lets both search engines and AI systems understand what you do and where you do it.
Local SEO Services in Canberra
Local SEO isn't one task, it's a set of connected pieces that need to work together. Here's what's included:
Google Business Profile Optimisation
Getting your categories, service areas, business description, photos and posts set up correctly, since this is usually the first thing a potential customer sees before they ever visit your website.
Keyword Research & Content Planning
Working out what your actual customers type into Google (and ask AI tools) before recommending what your website should say and which pages it needs.
On-Page Optimisation
Making sure your website's titles, headings and content clearly match your services and location, without stuffing keywords in a way that reads badly to real visitors.
Technical SEO
Fixing the crawlability, indexing and page-speed issues that quietly stop search engines from ranking a site, even when the content itself is good.
Local Citations & Link Building
Making sure your business name, address and phone number are consistent across the directories and sites Google checks, and building the kind of local links that support your rankings.
Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO)
Structuring your content so it can be pulled out and used as a direct answer in Google's AI Overviews and similar features.
Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)
Making sure AI assistants like ChatGPT and Gemini have clear, accurate information to draw on when someone asks them for a local recommendation.
Why Local SEO Matters Across Canberra
A tradesperson in Gungahlin and a retailer in Woden are chasing different searches, even though both fall under “Canberra.” Someone in Belconnen looking for a service will often add their suburb to the search, or Google will infer their location and lean toward businesses nearby. That’s true whether the search happens in the regular Google results or through an AI assistant asked the same question. Local SEO has to account for how people actually search in each part of Canberra , Belconnen, Gungahlin, Woden, Tuggeranong, Molonglo Valley and the surrounding areas rather than treating “Canberra” as a single keyword to repeat on every page.
The other shift worth understanding: Google’s AI Overviews, and tools like ChatGPT and Gemini, are increasingly answering local questions directly, sometimes before a searcher clicks through to any website at all. That’s part of why I treat traditional local SEO and AI visibility as one connected job rather than two separate services. A business that’s easy for Google to understand is usually easier for an AI system to recommend, too.
Why Work With Jahed Hasan
Direct Access
You work with me personally there's no handoff to a junior team member you've never spoken to.
A Specialist Focus, Not A Generalist Package
Local SEO and AI visibility is the specific area I work in, rather than one service among a long list.
Combined Local SEO & AI Visibility Approach
Google Business Profile, citations and on-page work sit alongside AEO and GEO from the start not as an afterthought.
Straightforward About Timelines
No promises of instant or guaranteed rankings, just a realistic view of what's achievable and when.
Suburb Aware, Not Just City Aware
Canberra's districts behave differently in search, and the strategy reflects that.
Plain Communication
You'll get clear updates on what's been done and why, without jargon standing in for a real explanation.
Certifications & Professional Training
Local SEO and AI visibility work moves fast, so staying current matters as much as client experience. This is backed by certifications from Google (Google Business Profile management and search fundamentals), SEMrush Academy (SEO, keyword research and technical audits) and HubSpot Academy (content marketing). These reflect the same skills applied daily auditing Google Business Profiles, fixing on-page and technical issues, structuring content for both search engines and AI driven answers.
How The Process Works
Conversation & Business Review
A short discussion about your business, your customers and where you currently stand in local search.
Local SEO & Google Business Profile Audit
A look at your current listing, website and citations to find what's missing or holding you back.
Strategy & Keyword Plan
A plan built around your actual services, service areas and the way your customers search.
Implementation
Google Business Profile fixes, on-page updates, technical corrections, citation building and content work.
Monitoring & Reporting
Ongoing tracking of your visibility, with honest reporting on what's changed and what's next.
What This Looks Like in Practice
Here's a simplified, general example of how this process tends to play out not a specific past client result, just an illustration of the approach.
A typical starting point is a Canberra service business that's listed on Google but rarely appears in the map pack for its own suburb. The first step is auditing the Google Business Profile: category selection, service areas, photos, business description, and how consistent the business's name, address and phone number are across the web. Inconsistent or thin listings are one of the most common reasons a genuinely good business doesn't show up for "near me" searches.
From there, the website gets reviewed for on-page relevance does it clearly explain what the business does and where it operates, in language that matches how customers actually search? Technical issues that block indexing or slow the site down get fixed, and citations get corrected or built. Every business's starting point is different, so the actual mix of work and the timeline both depend on where things stand when we start.
Areas Served Around Canberra
My local SEO work is centred on Canberra, with particular focus on Belconnen, Gungahlin, Woden, Tuggeranong and Molonglo Valley.
If your customers are searching for your type of business in any of these areas, or across the ACT more broadly, that's the kind of local visibility this work is built around.
If your business operates somewhere nearby that isn't listed here, get in touch — the same local SEO principles apply.
Cost of Local SEO in Canberra
Local SEO pricing depends heavily on where a business is starting from. A business with no real Google Business Profile activity and a thin website needs more upfront work than one that already ranks reasonably well and wants to extend into more suburbs or improve its AI visibility. Factors that typically affect cost include:
- How competitive your industry and suburb are for local search
- Whether your Google Business Profile needs to be built up from scratch or just corrected
- How much on-page and technical work your website currently needs
- How many locations or service areas you want to target
- Whether your local citations already exist and need fixing, or need to be built from zero
Rather than quote a flat number that might not reflect your situation at all, the more useful next step is a conversation about where your business currently stands.
Some of My Clients Real Testimonials
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Jahed Hasan?
I'm a local SEO and AI visibility specialist who has spent the past two years helping business owners improve how they show up in Google Search, Google Maps and AI-driven answers. My focus is Canberra local businesses, including Belconnen, Gungahlin, Woden, Tuggeranong and Molonglo Valley.
How do I get local SEO for my business?
The first step is usually a short conversation about your business, your current Google Business Profile, and where you do or don't show up for the searches that matter to you. From there, I put together a plan covering your Google Business Profile, on-page content, technical SEO and citations, based on what your business actually needs rather than a generic package.
How much does local SEO cost in Canberra?
It depends on your starting point how competitive your industry and suburb are, how much work your Google Business Profile and website currently need, and how many areas you want to target. A conversation about your specific situation gives a far more useful answer than a generic price.
How long does local SEO take to show results?
Local SEO builds over time rather than overnight. Some changes, like Google Business Profile corrections, can show movement within weeks, but consistent map pack visibility and stronger rankings typically take a few months of ongoing work, depending on your industry and how competitive your suburb is.
What's the difference between local SEO and general SEO?
Local SEO focuses on visibility within a specific area your Google Business Profile, local citations and location-based search terms and matters most if you serve customers in a defined region. General SEO focuses on ranking more broadly in search results, which matters more for businesses without a specific geographic focus.
Do you help with AI search and ChatGPT visibility?
Yes. Answer engine optimisation (AEO) and generative engine optimisation (GEO) are part of how I approach local SEO now, because a growing share of local questions are being answered directly inside AI tools rather than through a traditional list of links. That means making sure your business information and service descriptions are clear enough for both search engines and AI systems to use with confidence.