For the small-business owner along the lake who knows the foot traffic is out there but isn’t sure how to catch the people searching on their phones first. This free evening in Port Colborne covers the handful of things that actually help you get found, in plain language, with nothing to buy.
If you run a business in Port Colborne and you want more people to find you when they search, this evening is built for you. Get found online in Port Colborne on Wednesday, November 4, 2026 from 6:30 to 8:30 PM is a free, in-person seminar on local search engine optimization (SEO), which is just the work of helping search engines show your business to the people nearby who are already looking for what you sell.
Port Colborne has a main street that runs down to the water and a marina at Sugarloaf that brings people in from elsewhere. Some of your best customers are standing on the boardwalk right now with a phone in their hand, deciding where to eat or shop based on what comes up. I have taught small-business owners across Ontario how to be what comes up, and most of them walked in feeling about as technical as a cup of coffee. That turned out to be fine.
Let me set expectations honestly. Getting found locally is not a dark art, and it is not a monthly fee you owe a stranger forever. It is a short list of plain tasks you can learn in an evening and keep for good. I have been building and teaching on the web since 1996, I am completing an MA at Royal Roads University, and the most useful thing I bring to a room like this is taking the mystery out of the work so you can carry it yourself.
How the evening runs
It is two hours, beginner-friendly, and hands-on wherever I can make it. Bring your phone, or a laptop if you prefer. We begin with what “showing up in search” actually means, including the little map with three businesses pinned at the top that most people see and never think twice about. Then we work through Google Business Profile, which does more for a local business than anything else you can fix in one sitting, and I will show you how to claim yours and fill it in properly.
From there we get into the quiet things that hurt you without your noticing: your business name, address, and phone number not matching across the web, how reviews work and how to ask for them without feeling awkward, and the plain-English basics of what your own pages should say so a search engine and a real human both understand you. We wrap up with a simple monthly routine that keeps it all healthy.
What you will leave with
You will leave with a one-page local-SEO checklist you can act on the next morning. The evening is free. If you would like a seat, send me a note through the contact form and I will hold one for you. The venue is to be announced, and your registration is how I let you know exactly where to come.
By the end of the evening, you will be able to
- Read a local search result and understand why some businesses appear and others do not
- Claim and fill in your Google Business Profile so you turn up when people search nearby
- Check that your name, address, and phone number match everywhere they appear online
- Ask happy customers for reviews in a way that feels natural rather than pushy
- Follow a short monthly routine that keeps you findable without taking over your day
Come for the evening, leave with a plan, and start being easier to find the very next day.