A local market report sounds like something a chamber of commerce publishes once a year to no particular effect. In practice, an agency that publishes an accurate, data-grounded breakdown of a specific local market becomes the expert on that market almost immediately. The competition for this position is almost zero because producing the report requires actual data, and most agencies do not have a system for generating it.
F! Insights is that system. Bulk scanning a local market produces a scored dataset across every business you scan. That dataset becomes the foundation for a local market report that is specific, verifiable, and genuinely useful to anyone operating in that market.
In This Article
What a Local Market Report Actually Is
A local market report is a data-grounded analysis of a specific business category in a specific geographic market. It answers questions like: what does the average GBP profile look like for a dental practice in your city? What is the median review count for HVAC businesses in the metro area? Which businesses are in the top quartile of the Map Pack and what do they have in common?
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.
Generating the Data
- Choose a specific vertical and geographic market. Specificity matters: “dental practices in Austin, TX” produces more useful data than “health businesses in Texas.”
- Build a prospect list of businesses in that category using Google Maps. Aim for at least 50 businesses for meaningful aggregate data; 100 or more for a credible benchmark report.
- Upload the list to F! Insights bulk scanning and run the full 8-category audit on each business.
- When the batch completes, compile the aggregate findings from your pipeline dashboard.
For the bulk scanning workflow in detail, see Automate Your Agency’s Prospecting With Bulk Scanning.
Structuring the Report
Lead with the most striking data point, then build context around it.
- Executive Summary: the three most significant findings from the scan data, in plain language.
- Market Overview: how many businesses you scanned, the geographic scope, and the category definition.
- Benchmark Data: median and top-quartile scores across the most relevant categories.
- Key Findings: three to five specific observations from the data with your interpretation of what they mean.
- Implications: what the data suggests for businesses in this category.
- Methodology: how the data was collected, what tool was used, and what the scan covers.
What to Include in Each Section
The benchmark data section should include at minimum: median review count, top quartile review count, percentage of businesses with complete GBP profiles (above 70% completeness score), median mobile PageSpeed score, and percentage of businesses with a Competitive Position score below 50. These five metrics give readers an immediately useful reference for where they stand relative to the market.
Publishing and Promoting the Report
Publish the report on your blog as a long-form post. Create a PDF version for download and direct sharing. Title it specifically: “Austin HVAC GBP Benchmark Report: Data From 120 Local Businesses” outperforms “Local SEO Report” in search and in sharing.
Distribution channels that work: direct email to businesses in the category the research covers, LinkedIn posts pulling a single striking finding with a link to the full report, local business associations and chambers of commerce, and referral partners in adjacent fields.
Making It Recurring
A quarterly local market report turns a one-time research project into a recurring content asset. The second report can track movement from the first: which businesses improved their scores, where the market averages shifted, and what new competitive dynamics emerged. For how to use the market research as an authority-building content strategy, see Publish Market Research That Builds Authority.
Ready to start generating the data? Download F! Insights here.