Franchise SEO – Luke Bastin Explains How To Beat Franchisee Competitors
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What Does “Franchise SEO - Luke Bastin Explains How To Beat Franchisee Competitors” Talk About?
This episode of the James Dooley Podcast features a focused conversation between host James Dooley and franchise SEO specialist Luke Baston on the specific strategies franchises need to outrank their competitors in search. The discussion opens with the core insight that Google treats franchise locations like proximity-based businesses, meaning ranking success starts with dominating a tight geographic radius of three to five miles around each location. Luke walks through practical tactics including auditing competitor Google Business Profile categories, ensuring consistency in opening hours across the website, schema, and GBP, and why these simple fixes can deliver immediate ranking improvements.
The episode goes deeper into the concept of expanding beyond the typical two-asset approach of a website and Google Business Profile. Luke explains how franchises can build out YouTube videos, image galleries, secondary websites using partial or exact match domains, and comparison content to claim more SERP real estate across different query types and formats. The conversation also covers competitor research using tools like Ahrefs and Semrush alongside AI platforms such as ChatGPT, Grok, and Perplexity, with Luke emphasizing that beating competitors often means identifying what they are not doing rather than copying what they are.
A particularly detailed segment explores Luke's manual content technique called sharding, where he collects high-performing local SEO page structures, feeds them into a large language model, and adapts them for different services and locations. He contrasts how national franchise pages require more advanced algorithmic considerations while local location pages primarily need comprehensive coverage of all relevant business attributes. The episode wraps with James endorsing Luke's approach of first reflecting the SERP and then moving beyond it through information gain.
“Often beating competitors is about identifying what they are not doing rather than copying what they are doing.”
— Luke Baston
Who Are the Guests on “Franchise SEO - Luke Bastin Explains How To Beat Franchisee Competitors”?
Luke Baston is a franchise SEO specialist with deep practical experience helping franchise businesses compete at both the local and national level in search. His expertise spans Google Business Profile optimisation, multi-asset SEO strategy, competitor analysis using traditional tools and AI-driven information retrieval systems, and content architecture for franchise websites. He has developed hands-on methodologies including a manual sharding technique that uses large language models to replicate and adapt high-performing local SEO page structures across different services and locations, reducing reliance on correlation-based tools.
James Dooley is the host of the James Dooley Podcast and is himself an experienced digital marketer and SEO professional. Throughout the episode he brings his own perspective on visual SEO, information gain, and holistic marketing, helping to draw out the most actionable insights from Luke's expertise. James is known for his direct interviewing style and his ability to bridge technical SEO concepts with practical application for franchise businesses and in-house teams.
What Are the Key Takeaways From “Franchise SEO - Luke Bastin Explains How To Beat Franchisee Competitors”?
Here are the key points discussed in this episode:
- Franchise businesses should focus their initial SEO efforts on dominating a tight three to five mile radius around each location before attempting to expand further, because Google treats each franchise location as a proximity-based business.
- Auditing competitor Google Business Profile categories regularly can reveal relevant secondary categories that are being overlooked, and adding these can immediately help a franchise match and then outperform local rivals.
- Franchises that rely solely on their main website and Google Business Profile are limiting themselves to just two assets, and expanding into YouTube videos, image galleries, secondary websites, and comparison content significantly increases overall SERP coverage.
- Competitor research should go beyond traditional tools like Ahrefs and Semrush to include querying AI platforms such as ChatGPT, Grok, and Perplexity, because these reveal content gaps, customer feedback themes, and opportunities that competitors are missing entirely.
- Local franchise location pages do not require the same content depth as national pages and instead need comprehensive coverage of all relevant business attributes, which can be efficiently produced using a manual sharding technique with large language models.
“What I do now is a manual technique I call sharding. If I find an excellent local SEO page set for a service and location, I collect that content and feed it into a large language model. I then ask it to recreate the same structure and attributes for a different service and location.”
— Luke Baston
Is “Franchise SEO - Luke Bastin Explains How To Beat Franchisee Competitors” Worth Listening To?
This episode is genuinely worth listening to for anyone managing or advising franchise businesses on their digital presence. Luke Baston does not deal in vague generalities. He works through a clear, sequenced framework starting with geographic dominance, moving into GBP optimisation with categories and opening hours, then expanding into multi-asset strategies that most franchise operators have never considered. The sharding technique alone, where existing high-performing local page structures are adapted for new services and locations using large language models, is a practical methodology that could save significant time for agencies and in-house teams scaling franchise SEO at volume.
What also sets this episode apart is the discussion around using AI information retrieval systems for competitor research. The idea of querying ChatGPT, Grok, and Perplexity alongside traditional tools to surface content gaps and understand how competitors are being represented across the broader information ecosystem is a forward-thinking approach that reflects where search is heading. Combined with James Dooley's sharp follow-up questions about image ranking, BM25, and correlation tools, the episode covers a wide range of SEO considerations in a tight and accessible format that rewards both experienced practitioners and franchise owners trying to understand the fundamentals.
Who Should Listen to “Franchise SEO - Luke Bastin Explains How To Beat Franchisee Competitors”?
This episode is ideal for:
- Franchise business owners and multi-location operators who want to understand why their locations are being outranked and what practical steps they can take to improve visibility in local search.
- In-house SEO managers and digital marketing teams working within franchise networks who need scalable content and optimisation frameworks that do not require enterprise-level budgets.
- SEO consultants and agency professionals who work with franchise clients and want to update their local SEO playbook with techniques that go beyond traditional correlation tools and standard GBP optimisation.
- Entrepreneurs and small business owners in competitive local markets who want to apply franchise-level SEO thinking, including multi-asset strategies and competitor gap analysis, to their own businesses.
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What Are Listeners Saying About This Episode?
“The sharding technique Luke describes is something I had never heard articulated so clearly before. I manage SEO for a cleaning franchise with 30 locations and this episode immediately gave me a practical framework I could start using the next day. The point about opening hours consistency across the website, schema, and GBP alone was a wake-up call.”
“Really appreciated how Luke explained the difference between national franchise pages and local location pages in terms of what the algorithm is actually looking for. That distinction is something a lot of SEO content glosses over. The conversation about using AI tools like Grok and Perplexity for competitor research was also a fresh angle I hadn't considered.”
“James asked exactly the right questions here. The part about expanding beyond two assets and using secondary websites, videos, and images to divide and conquer territory made total sense once Luke explained it through the lens of covering different query intents. Concise, practical, and worth rewinding a few times.”
**James Dooley:** Hi, today I’m joined with Luke Baston and today’s topic of conversation is how to beat your franchise competitors. So you’ve got a franchise website and one or two other franchises. Think of Starbucks beating Costa Coffee, a pizza shop beating another pizza franchise, or a gutter cleaning company beating another gutter cleaning franchise. How do you go about beating competition when you’ve got a franchise website? **Luke Baston:** Hey James. The example you gave with coffee shops is a great place to start because in virtually every industry where franchises exist, the algorithms treat you at Google Business Profile level as if you are a local coffee shop. Proximity and how close the searcher is to the business location is one of the biggest ranking factors. One of the first things you can do is focus all your SEO efforts on the immediate vicinity of where you are based. Typically a three to five mile radius in dense cities, sometimes even less. You want to dominate that local area first. The way to do that is to identify all competitors in that target zone and analyse what they are doing well, badly, and poorly. You often find competitors using Google Business Profile categories that you are not using but which are highly relevant. Adding secondary categories you may have overlooked can immediately help you match and then outperform them. Clarity and consistency also matter. I’ve worked on national franchise websites where opening hours were inconsistent or unclear. Google Business Profiles are influenced by opening hours and businesses shown as open are served more often than those shown as closed. If your website, schema, and Google Business Profile all clearly show extended or accurate opening hours, you can gain a simple but powerful advantage. Another key tactic is using more than one asset. Many franchises rely only on their website and Google Business Profile. That limits them to two assets. You can expand far beyond that. YouTube videos answering common questions, showcasing your business, or demonstrating services all become additional assets. Each video can target a different query. You can also use more than one website. A main brand website plus a partial or exact match domain can help divide and conquer territory. All these tactics allow you to cover more ground and beat competitors more consistently. **James Dooley:** That’s great advice. I’ve got some quickfire questions. You mentioned doing more than just the website and Google Business Profile, including secondary websites and videos. As a holistic marketer, are you a big believer in ranking images as well? **Luke Baston:** Yes, because different queries have different search intent. Some searches clearly imply a visual result, whether that’s images or video. You can cover image intent with standalone images, image galleries, or even videos that use image slideshows. If you have ten images showcasing your business, those images can rank individually in Google Images, appear in AI overviews, be surfaced in large language model results, and sit on your website. You can also turn them into a video, which becomes another asset. One set of images can easily give you ten or more pieces of search real estate. The key is matching the format to the intent of the query. **James Dooley:** I completely agree. Before and after photos, designs, and bespoke work perform incredibly well, especially in visual industries. When it comes to comparing against competition, are there any specific tools you prefer for keyword and competitor research? **Luke Baston:** I use tools like Ahrefs and Semrush mainly for ideation and understanding competitor strategies. You might discover competitors ranking comparison pages, infographics, or content formats you had not even considered. Seeing demand behind those ideas helps prioritise opportunities. Beyond that initial phase, I look at what information retrieval systems are saying about competitors. I search Google, ChatGPT, Grok, Perplexity, and other large language models using a consistent set of queries. I compare what they say about competitors, including reviews, pricing, themes in customer feedback, and content gaps. Often beating competitors is about identifying what they are not doing rather than copying what they are doing. **James Dooley:** I love that focus on information gain. What about algorithms like BM25 at a local level. Do you believe in reflecting the SER first, using correlation tools like Surfer SEO or similar, or are you doing something different now? **Luke Baston:** It depends on page type rather than site type. Franchise websites are complex. National pages often rely on more advanced algorithms, while local location pages behave differently. At local level, you do not need the same depth of content as national pages. You need comprehensive coverage of all relevant business attributes so any local query is answered clearly. I used to use tools like Surfer SEO and I still think they are good. What I do now is a manual technique I call sharding. If I find an excellent local SEO page set for a service and location, I collect that content and feed it into a large language model. I then ask it to recreate the same structure and attributes for a different service and location. For example, plumbing in Chicago becomes roofing in Denver. Large language models are excellent at this. They understand attributes better than most tools. You then refine for local regulations or nuances. Done properly, you often do not need correlation tools for local pages. **James Dooley:** That makes sense, although that level of experience is not easy for in-house teams. If someone wants to hire you to reverse engineer competitors or get access to your franchise templates, how can they get in touch? **Luke Baston:** The easiest way is through my website at lukebaston.com. I’m also active on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram. Any of those channels work. **James Dooley:** Anyone watching this, Luke Baston is an absolute legend when it comes to franchise SEO. Reflect the SER, then move beyond it with information gain. If you want to beat franchise competition properly, make sure you reach out.
Creators & Guests
Host
James Dooley is a UK entrepreneur.
Guest
Luke Bastin is a fractional in-house Search Engine and LLM Visibility Lead known for his work in entity-first SEO and search visibility systems. He specialises in technical SEO, semantic SEO,…