Best Local SEO Plugin for WordPress Web Designers 2026

by | May 21, 2026 | Clients, Local SEO Tools

The best local SEO plugin for WordPress web designers in 2026 is one you control. Cloud platforms charge per location, per month, and your client data lives on their servers. A self-hosted plugin flips that model: one license, your server, no per-client markup. This article breaks down what to look for and how F! Insights compares to BrightLocal, Whitespark, and AgencyAnalytics.

For a broader cost analysis across platforms, see also why local SEO agencies are moving off BrightLocal in 2026.

In This Article

  1. What makes a local SEO plugin right for web designers?
  2. Does it work with Elementor, Divi, and Gutenberg?
  3. How does this compare to BrightLocal, Whitespark, and AgencyAnalytics?
  4. Can you manage multiple clients from one license?
  5. What does it actually cost per month?

What makes a local SEO plugin right for web designers?

Most local SEO platforms are built for dedicated SEO agencies. Web designers have different requirements:

  • No SEO background required: The tool surfaces data and writes the copy. You manage the client relationship and approve output.
  • Shortcode embed: The scanner lives on any page without dev work. One shortcode works in Elementor, Divi, Gutenberg, Beaver Builder, and any other builder.
  • White-label branding: Reports and outreach emails carry your name, not the plugin vendor’s.
  • Built-in client billing: Stripe integration inside the plugin removes the need for a separate invoicing tool.
  • Setup under 15 minutes: If it takes a full day to configure, most web designers will not deploy it for clients at scale.

Once the plugin is set up, you can also offer GBP audits to clients from the same tool without adding a second platform.

Does it work with Elementor, Divi, and Gutenberg?

Yes. F! Insights is shortcode-based, which means the scanner works on any WordPress page regardless of which page builder or theme you use. No block editor conflicts, no builder-specific setup, no additional extensions. Paste the shortcode on any page and the scanner is live: Elementor, Divi, Gutenberg, Beaver Builder, and Bricks all work identically.

How does this compare to BrightLocal, Whitespark, and AgencyAnalytics?

Feature F! Insights BrightLocal Whitespark AgencyAnalytics
Hosting Self-hosted Cloud SaaS Cloud SaaS Cloud SaaS
Per-location fee None Yes Yes Yes
Data ownership Your WordPress DB Vendor platform Vendor platform Vendor platform
License model Annual flat fee Monthly SaaS Monthly SaaS Monthly SaaS
Built-in client billing Yes (Stripe) No No No
Shortcode scanner embed Yes No No No

The structural difference is cost scaling. On a per-location SaaS model, 10 clients at 3 locations each means 30 location charges per month plus a base platform fee. With F! Insights, 10 clients at any number of locations is one flat license cost.

Can you manage multiple clients from one license?

One license, unlimited client workspaces. Each workspace has its own GBP OAuth connection, Stripe subscription, lead dashboard, and scan history. Switching between clients is a single dropdown selection. No per-client licensing fee and no additional cost as your client count grows. For how this plays out in practice, see how WordPress freelancers add local SEO without new hires.

What does it actually cost per month?

Plugin license: $300/month or $3,000/year. API usage: $0.01 to $0.05 per scan billed directly by Google and Anthropic. No per-location fee, no per-client fee, no markup on API calls.

At 10 clients, BrightLocal’s per-location pricing typically reaches $500 to $900 per month before add-ons. F! Insights stays at $300 per month regardless of client count. The breakeven point for most web designers is two to three clients.

See the full pricing breakdown and what each plan includes.

How to Add a GBP Audit Scanner to Your WordPress Site

by | May 19, 2026 | Getting Started, Local SEO Tools

A GBP audit scanner on your WordPress site lets any visitor check a Google Business Profile score in real time. Drop one shortcode on a page, connect two API keys, and site visitors can run live audits within seconds. This guide covers everything from a blank plugin install to a working scanner that captures leads automatically.

If you already have your Google Cloud and Anthropic accounts set up, skip to the installation steps. The F! Insights setup guide covers both API accounts in under 15 minutes with screenshots for each step.

In This Article

  1. What is a GBP audit scanner?
  2. What do you need before you start?
  3. How to install and configure the plugin
  4. How to add the scanner to a page
  5. How does lead capture work once it is live?
  6. How much does each scan cost?

What is a GBP audit scanner?

A GBP audit scanner is a shortcode-powered form on any WordPress page. A visitor types a business name, the plugin pulls live data from Google via the Places API, runs it through an AI model, and returns a scored report across eight categories: ratings, review velocity, photo count, business hours, website health, Core Web Vitals, competitor benchmarking, and an AI action plan with prioritized fixes.

No coding is needed on the visitor’s side. They type a name, submit their email to receive the report, and the lead appears in your dashboard with scores and pain points already populated. You can also offer GBP audits directly to clients using the same underlying plugin once it is set up.

What do you need before you start?

Two API accounts are required. Both are free to create and billed pay-as-you-go per scan:

API What it pulls Approx. cost per scan
Google Places API GBP data: rating, reviews, photos, hours, competitors ~$0.01–$0.02
Anthropic Claude Haiku AI diagnosis, action plan, plain-language summary ~$0.01–$0.03
Google PageSpeed Insights Core Web Vitals, LCP, CLS, INP, performance score Free

Have both API keys ready before starting plugin configuration. The step-by-step API key guide walks through both accounts in under 10 minutes.

How to install and configure the plugin

  1. Download the F! Insights plugin zip from your account dashboard.
  2. In WordPress, go to Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin and select the zip.
  3. Click Install Now, then Activate.
  4. Go to F! Insights > Settings > API Config.
  5. Enter your Google Places API key and Anthropic API key.
  6. Click Save Settings.

The plugin validates both keys on save. If either fails, a specific error message identifies which key and why. Confirm that your Google Cloud project has the Places API enabled and that your Anthropic key is active.

How to add the scanner to a page

Create a new WordPress page with a clear title such as “Free GBP Audit” or “Google Business Profile Check.” Paste this shortcode in the editor:

Publish the page and run one test scan. A dedicated scanner page outperforms an embedded widget on an existing services page for both SEO indexing and conversion rate. Once confirmed, link to it from your services page, portfolio, and your own Google Business Profile. For a complete setup walkthrough of the full tool stack, see how to set up local SEO tools for clients.

How does lead capture work once it is live?

When a visitor scans a business, the plugin gates the full report behind an email submission. That submission immediately creates a lead record in your WordPress dashboard with:

  • Business name and location
  • Overall GBP score (0 to 100)
  • Eight category scores
  • Top three flagged pain point categories
  • Competitor names and their relative scores

No third-party CRM is needed. One-click AI-generated outreach is available from each lead record, personalized to that business’s specific scan data.

How much does each scan cost?

Each scan costs approximately $0.01 to $0.05 using the Claude Haiku model. Charges come from Google (Places API) and Anthropic at their standard rates. The plugin adds no markup. Token caching reduces costs on repeat scans of the same business, keeping your effective cost closer to $0.01 per scan for a regularly used scanner page.

See how F! Insights turns your WordPress site into a local SEO lead machine.

Google Maps Rank Trackers for Agencies: Beyond the Heatmap Score

by | May 18, 2026 | Agency Workflow, Clients, Local SEO Tools

What Google Maps Rank Data Actually Measures

A Google Maps rank position is not a single number. It is a function of the searcher’s location, the search query, the device, and the time of day. When a rank tracker returns “position 3 for HVAC near me,” it means position 3 from a specific coordinate point, for a specific keyword, in a specific moment. From two miles away, the same business might rank 12.

To learn more about the full client workflow behind this, visit Client Content Calendar With Funnel Mapping. If you are also working on a related step, Run a Keyword Content Sprint for a Local SEO Client covers that in detail.

The agencies that get the most out of Google Maps rank data understand this. They do not report “we rank number 3.” They report “we rank in the top 3 across 68% of the scan grid.” The second statement is a coverage metric. It describes how much of the accessible market the business is visible to, which is what actually correlates with calls and direction requests.

Geogrid vs. Single-Point Tracking

Single-point rank tracking checks a business’s position from one fixed location. It produces a number per keyword. It tells you where you rank when someone searches from that specific point.

Geogrid rank tracking checks a business’s position from dozens or hundreds of points across a geographic grid. It produces a map of where the business is visible and where it is invisible, from the perspective of actual searchers in actual locations.

A roofing contractor that ranks number 2 from their business address but ranks outside the top 10 from the three largest residential neighborhoods in their service area is effectively invisible to their most valuable potential customers. That pattern only shows up in a geogrid. Single-point tracking would report a strong position 2 with no indication of the coverage problem.

How to Translate a Dead Zone Into an Action Plan

The dead zone — the red and orange cells on the geogrid — tells you where the problem is. It does not tell you why. Diagnosing the cause requires looking at the dead zone pattern against the profile audit scores and the competitive landscape in that geographic area.

Reading dead zone patterns: cause and first intervention by type
Dead Zone PatternMost Likely CauseFirst Intervention
Close-range (within 0.5 mi)Profile completeness gapsCategory fix, description update
Directional (one side of the pin)Competitor clusteringReview velocity, post cadence
Full outer-ringLow overall authorityReview count, citation consistency
Spotty (random grid points)Keyword-specific ranking gapsCategory alignment, service keywords
Competitor-shapedAuthority differentialBacklink and citation comparison

Close-range dead zones within half a mile of the business address are almost always profile-level problems. Profile completeness fixes — category selection, description quality, attribute completeness — typically produce movement within two to four weeks. For more on translating geogrid results into action plans, see how to read a geogrid result and build an action plan.

What Rank Data Looks Like in a Client Report

Rank data in a client report needs to answer one question: did coverage improve? The most effective format for presenting geogrid data to clients is a side-by-side heatmap comparison with a coverage percentage above each map. “Last month: 34% of the scan grid in the top 3. This month: 51% of the scan grid in the top 3” is a concrete, legible improvement metric any non-technical client can understand.

Two things that make rank data less useful in a client report:

  • Single-keyword reporting without context about how that keyword performs across the service area
  • Rank position numbers without a prior baseline — a current position of 4 means nothing unless the client knows whether they were at 8 last month or at 4 last month

The Workflow That Turns Rank Data Into Retained Clients

  • Week 1: Run the monthly geogrid scan. Compare against last month’s baseline. Identify dead zones that improved, held, or appeared.
  • Week 2: Run the GBP profile audit. Identify which profile gaps correlate with persistent dead zones. Generate the action plan for this month.
  • Week 2 to 3: Implement the action plan changes on the live profile. Document what was changed and when.
  • Week 3: Pull the GBP Insights engagement data for the month: profile views, clicks, direction requests, calls.
  • Week 4: Generate the white-label monthly report combining the geogrid comparison, the profile activity log, and the engagement data. Send 24 hours before the client call.

This workflow produces a report that answers the three questions every client has at the start of each billing cycle: did the ranking improve, what did we do to make it improve, and is more business coming from the improvement? Answering all three with specific data is what justifies the retainer and makes cancellation feel like a step backward. For more on the reporting workflow, see how to use a GBP progress report to justify the monthly retainer.

See F! Insights in Action

Run a geogrid scan on any local business below to see the ranking coverage map and dead zone analysis:

F! Insights is the only self-hosted option. One flat rate, unlimited clients. See the pricing.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many keywords should I track per client per month?
Start with the primary service keyword and one secondary service keyword. Two geogrid scans per client per month gives you enough data to identify whether dead zones are keyword-specific or geographic-wide. If both scans show identical dead zone patterns, the issue is profile authority and proximity. If the dead zones differ between keywords, the issue is keyword and category alignment.
How often do geogrid results change significantly?
Ranking movement in the Map Pack typically occurs on a two-to-four-week lag after profile changes are made. Running scans more frequently than every two weeks rarely shows meaningful movement between scans. For new clients where active optimization is happening, monthly scans with a mid-month spot check on one or two specific dead zones is a reasonable cadence.
Does Google penalize businesses for being scanned frequently?
No. Geogrid scans query the Google Places API for publicly available local search results. The API calls are the same type of query a user would make when searching for a local business. There is no mechanism by which Google could identify or penalize a business for being the subject of frequent API queries.

White-Label GBP Audit Software That Actually Works for Agencies

by | May 16, 2026 | GBP Management, Local SEO Tools

What White-Label Actually Means for GBP Audit

White-label in the context of a GBP audit tool gets defined differently by different vendors. The minimum definition is logo replacement: your agency logo appears on the PDF instead of the tool’s logo. The stronger definition is platform invisibility: the client never sees any evidence that a third-party tool generated the report, and the audit output is fully attributable to your agency’s analysis.

To learn more about the complete GBP audit and optimization process, visit Run a GBP Profile Audit Scored Across 8 Categories. Build a Service Page Architecture From a GBP Category and Generate and Push GBP Optimizations for Any Client cover adjacent steps in detail.

The difference matters more than it seems. Clients who see “Powered by BrightLocal” or “Generated by Local Falcon” on a report they are paying your agency to produce have a direct view into your toolstack. A resourceful client can subscribe to the same tool and produce the same report themselves. A report that appears to come entirely from your agency’s own platform has higher perceived value and creates less commoditization of your services.

The Three Outputs Every White-Label GBP Audit Needs

  • The diagnostic score: A category-by-category breakdown of where the profile stands relative to competitors and benchmarks. This answers “where are we now?” The score needs to be specific enough to be credible but readable enough for a non-technical client.
  • The action plan: A ranked list of specific interventions, ordered by estimated ranking impact. This answers “what are we going to do about it?” Without it, the score is just a number.
  • The progress report: A comparison of this month’s scores against last month’s across all eight categories. This answers “what did we accomplish?” The progress report is what justifies the retainer in month two, three, and beyond.
White-label GBP audit report: minimum vs. best practice
Report Element Minimum for Client Presentation Best Practice
Branding Agency logo on cover Agency logo, colors, domain throughout
Scoring Summary score Category-by-category breakdown with benchmarks
Recommendations Listed Prioritized by estimated ranking impact
Competitor context Optional Top 3 competitors scored for comparison
Historical comparison None Prior month score for each category
Language Technical terms Plain language, outcome-focused

How White-Label Audit Data Becomes a Sales Tool

The most underused application of a white-label GBP audit is as a prospecting tool. Running a prospect audit before the sales call gives you two things no pitch deck can replicate:

  • A specific, data-backed answer to “why should this business work with you?” — the audit shows exactly which profile gaps are suppressing their visibility and costing them customers
  • A visual demonstration of your diagnostic capability — arriving at the meeting with a scored audit of their profile signals a different level of preparedness than a generic capabilities deck

The prospect audit does not need to be a full white-label report. A clean one-pager showing the 8-category score, the two or three highest-impact gaps, and a specific estimate of what closing those gaps would do to their Map Pack ranking is enough to anchor the conversation on data rather than features. For more on the prospect workflow, see how to build a prospect hit list from local scan data.

Data Ownership and White-Label Defensibility

There is a version of white-label that is defensible and a version that is not. The non-defensible version is a SaaS platform report with your logo on it. Any client who asks the right questions, or who works with a competing agency using the same tool, can identify where the report actually came from.

The defensible version is an audit produced from your own scan data, run through your own installation of the tool, presented through your own report template. When the data comes from your database and the report is formatted by your system, the output is genuinely yours. There is no third-party platform to identify.

The F! Insights White-Label Audit Workflow

  • Add the client profile to the Client Workspace
  • Run the 8-category audit from the admin panel
  • Review the scored output and auto-generated action plan recommendations
  • Approve the recommendations you want to include in the client-facing report
  • Export the white-label report with your agency branding
  • Schedule the follow-up audit for 30 days out

The full cycle from first audit to client-ready report takes under 30 minutes per client. For ongoing retainer clients, the monthly audit cycle adds 10 to 15 minutes per client once the initial setup is complete.

See F! Insights in Action

Run a live GBP scan below to see the audit output that feeds the white-label report workflow:

F! Insights is the only self-hosted option. One flat rate, unlimited clients. See the pricing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I customize the white-label report template with my agency branding?
Yes. F! Insights white-label reports support agency logo, color scheme, and contact information. The report template is configurable from the admin settings panel. Set the default branding once and it applies to all client reports generated through your installation.
Does the audit run automatically on a schedule or do I trigger it manually?
Both options are available. You can set up automated monthly audit runs for each client profile in the Client Workspace, which will generate a new audit and flag any significant score changes for review. You can also trigger manual audits at any time from the admin panel for on-demand diagnostic work or pre-sales prospect audits.
What if a client asks about the specific scoring methodology?
F! Insights scores each category based on completeness benchmarks for the business primary GBP category. You can describe the methodology to clients in plain terms: each category is scored based on how completely the profile fills in the available fields and how that compares to similar businesses in the same market. The underlying benchmark data comes from aggregate analysis of GBP profiles in the same category.

What to Look for in a GBP Audit Tool Before Your Agency Buys

by | May 15, 2026 | GBP Management, Local SEO Tools

What a GBP Audit Actually Needs to Cover

Most GBP audit tools score a profile on a handful of visible signals: review count, photo count, whether the profile is claimed. That is the surface layer. The scoring systems that actually correlate with ranking performance go deeper, across eight distinct profile categories:

To learn more about the complete GBP audit and optimization process, visit Run a GBP Profile Audit Scored Across 8 Categories. Build a Service Page Architecture From a GBP Category and Generate and Push GBP Optimizations for Any Client cover adjacent steps in detail.

  • Business description quality and keyword relevance
  • Primary category selection and secondary category completeness
  • Services and products listings
  • Photo and video count, recency, and type distribution
  • Post frequency, recency, and post type mix
  • Attribute completeness for the available attribute set
  • Review response rate and response quality
  • Q and A completeness and seeded FAQ presence

A profile with significant gaps in any one of these categories is almost certainly underperforming relative to its potential, and the audit should tell you which gaps are most likely causing the underperformance.

The Gap Between Scoring and Acting

The most common failure mode of GBP audit tools is producing a score with no prescription. A score of 62 out of 100 is not actionable. “You scored 62 because your post frequency is in the bottom quartile for your category and your attribute completeness is missing seven applicable fields” is actionable.

The difference between a score and a diagnosis is context: what is the benchmark for this category in this market, which gaps are most likely to produce ranking movement if addressed, and in what order should the fixes be implemented? An audit tool that scores without prescribing leaves the agency to do the diagnostic interpretation manually, which is time-consuming and inconsistent across clients.

What White-Label Audit Output Requires

For a GBP audit to be usable in a client presentation, the white-label output needs to meet four criteria:

  • Agency branding throughout: Your logo, your color scheme, your domain in any links. No third-party platform names visible.
  • Plain-language scoring: The client should be able to read the audit without knowing what a “citation consistency score” is. Scoring needs to be explained in terms of what it means for the business.
  • Specific, prioritized recommendations: “Add 10 photos in the next 30 days, starting with interior and staff photos” is useful. “Photo score: 45/100” is not.
  • Before-and-after tracking: The audit output needs to support month-over-month comparison. A single-point-in-time audit is a sales tool. A recurring audit with comparison data is a retention tool.

How Audit Data Feeds Into Monthly Reporting

The GBP audit is not a standalone deliverable. For a retainer agency, the audit is the diagnostic layer that sits between the geogrid scan (which shows where the client ranks) and the monthly report (which shows what changed and why):

  • Geogrid scan reveals dead zones in specific geographic areas
  • GBP audit identifies which profile gaps are most likely contributing to those dead zones
  • Action plan specifies which gaps to address this month based on estimated ranking impact
  • Implementation happens on the live profile
  • Follow-up scan four weeks later measures movement
  • Monthly report connects the audit gaps addressed to the dead zone reduction observed

For a detailed look at the reporting workflow, see how to use a GBP progress report to justify the monthly retainer.

The F! Insights 8-Category Audit Walkthrough

F! Insights 8-category GBP audit: what each category measures
Audit Category What It Measures Common Gap
Business description Completeness, keyword relevance Generic or empty description
Categories Primary and secondary category selection Wrong primary category, no secondaries
Services and products Completeness of service listings Missing services, no pricing signals
Photos and videos Count, recency, quality indicators Low count, outdated, stock images
Post activity Frequency, recency, post type mix No posts or sporadic posting
Attributes Completeness of available attributes Blank fields for applicable attributes
Review response rate Percentage of reviews with a response No responses on negative reviews
Q and A Questions answered, seeded FAQs present Unanswered questions, no seeded FAQs

Each of the eight categories is scored on a 0 to 100 scale benchmarked against businesses in the same primary GBP category and geographic market. A score of 70 or above is sufficient for most competitive local markets. Scores below 50 in any category represent a structural gap that is likely suppressing rankings. Running a full 8-category audit on a client profile takes under two minutes from the F! Insights admin dashboard.

See F! Insights in Action

Run a live audit scan below to see the 8-category scoring output on any local business profile:

F! Insights is the only self-hosted option. One flat rate, unlimited clients. See the pricing.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is the F! Insights GBP audit score calculated?
F! Insights scores each of the eight audit categories based on the presence and completeness of the relevant profile elements compared to benchmarks for the business primary GBP category. Photo score, for example, is calculated based on current photo count relative to the median for businesses in the same category and market.
Can I run a GBP audit on a business I do not own or manage?
Yes. F! Insights audits pull from publicly available GBP data via the Google Places API. You can run an audit on any business with a claimed GBP profile, including competitor profiles and prospects you are evaluating for outreach. Running audits on prospect businesses before the sales call is one of the primary use cases.
How frequently should I run GBP audits on active clients?
Monthly for new clients in the first three months while the profile is being actively optimized, then quarterly once the profile reaches a stable high-scoring state. Run a fresh audit any time you make a structural change to the profile — new category selection, description rewrite, or attribute addition — to confirm the change registered correctly.

The Only Geogrid Rank Tracker Built as a WordPress Plugin

by | May 14, 2026 | Agency Workflow, Clients, Local SEO Tools

There Is Exactly One

Every geogrid rank tracker you have used runs on someone else’s servers. Local Falcon, Local Dominator, BrightLocal’s Local Search Grid — all SaaS products. You log in, you scan, you view results on their platform, and your data lives in their database. That is how every geogrid tool in this category has worked since the category was invented.

To learn more about the full client workflow behind this, visit Client Content Calendar With Funnel Mapping. How to Read a Geogrid and Build a Local SEO Action Plan and Run a Keyword Content Sprint for a Local SEO Client cover adjacent steps in detail.

F! Insights is the only geogrid rank tracker built as a WordPress plugin. It is also, as of this writing, the only self-hosted local SEO tool that stores scan data in a WordPress database rather than on a vendor’s servers. If you have searched for a geogrid rank tracker WordPress plugin, you have found the one answer.

Why Geogrid Tools Defaulted to SaaS

The SaaS default in geogrid tooling was not a deliberate choice so much as an infrastructure assumption. Running geogrid scans requires repeated API calls to the Google Places API across a grid of coordinate points. In 2018 when Local Falcon launched, the path of least resistance was to build a centralized API gateway, run all scans through it, store results in a managed database, and sell access to the output.

That architecture made sense for the vendor and for early buyers. The assumption that self-hosted was not viable was never really tested. Nobody built a WordPress plugin that did what Local Falcon did, so nobody had evidence that it would work. F! Insights is that test, and it works.

What a WordPress-Native Geogrid Tool Changes

For agencies already running on WordPress, a native geogrid tool changes three things:

  • Where you work: Geogrid scans, audit results, and client reports all live inside your WordPress admin dashboard. No second platform to log into, no tab-switching between your WordPress site and a SaaS portal.
  • Where the data lives: Every scan result, audit score, and ranking data point is written to your WordPress database. It does not disappear if you change plans or cancel a subscription. It is in the same database as the rest of your WordPress site data.
  • What you can embed: F! Insights includes a live scanner shortcode that you can place on any page of your WordPress site. Site visitors can run a live GBP scan directly from your website — a lead generation tool built directly into the same plugin that runs your agency’s scan workflow.

How Scan Data Stored in Your DB Compounds Over Time

Scan data that accumulates in your WordPress database is not just a record of past scans. It is a historical market intelligence dataset that no competitor without the same scan history can replicate:

  • 3 months: Before-and-after data for every profile change on active clients. You can demonstrate that specific interventions produced specific ranking movement.
  • 6 months: Seasonal ranking patterns for client profiles. You can anticipate when ranking typically drops or rises in their category.
  • 12 months: A full year of ranking data across all clients. You can produce a market intelligence report with specific, citable statistics for an entire local market or niche.
  • 24 months: A genuinely proprietary dataset. No SaaS vendor can sell this to a competitor. No new entrant can acquire it without running two years of the same scans.

For more on what this dataset represents as a business asset, see how to turn 10 GBP scans into a publishable industry report.

Setup and What the Workflow Looks Like

Installing and configuring F! Insights takes 15 to 30 minutes:

  • Install the F! Insights plugin on any WordPress site you manage
  • Create a Google Cloud project and enable the Places API
  • Add your API key to the F! Insights settings panel
  • Run a first scan on any local business to verify the connection
  • Add clients to the Client Workspace and configure their GBP profiles for ongoing monitoring

After setup, the daily workflow runs entirely from your WordPress admin. Scans are initiated from the admin panel. Results appear in your dashboard. Reports are generated from the same interface.

SaaS geogrid tool vs. WordPress-native geogrid plugin
Aspect SaaS Geogrid Tool WordPress Plugin (F! Insights)
Where scans run Vendor servers Your WP hosting
Where data is stored Vendor database Your WP database
Access on cancel Lost Always yours
Integration with WP site Embed or link Native
Live scanner widget No Yes (
shortcode)
Admin workflow Separate platform login WP admin dashboard
Custom reporting Within vendor platform Direct DB access
API key Vendor-managed Your own Google API key

See F! Insights in Action

Run a live GBP scan below. This is the same scanner that installs on your WordPress site via the

shortcode:

F! Insights is the only self-hosted option. One flat rate, unlimited clients. See the pricing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can F! Insights be installed on any WordPress site including shared hosting?
Yes. F! Insights installs on any WordPress site running PHP 7.4 or higher. Shared hosting works for most agency use cases. The plugin uses the Google Places API for scan data rather than running local computation, so server processing requirements are minimal.
Does using my own Google API key cost extra?
Google provides $200 of free API credit per month, covering roughly 4,000 geogrid scan points at standard pricing. For most agencies running monthly scans on 20 to 30 clients, the free tier covers the full scan volume. Higher volumes incur Google API charges beyond the free tier, typically $10 to $30 per month at realistic agency scan frequencies.
What happens to scan data if I change WordPress hosting providers?
Your scan data is stored in your WordPress database. When you migrate your WordPress site to a new host, the database migrates with it using standard WordPress migration tools. Your scan history follows the database, not the hosting environment.