The undisputed Queen of Local SEO, Joy Hawkins, joins Navneet Kaushal on The Agency Insider Show to break down what's actually happening in local search in 2026 — and why most agencies aren't ready for it.
Joy is the founder & CEO of Sterling Sky, owner of LocalU, a Google Business Profile Product Expert, and a contributor to Search Engine Land. With 43 employees, zero sales team, and 100% inbound leads, she's built one of the most respected local SEO agencies in North America.
In this episode, Joy doesn't hold back. We get into:
→ Why your clients are ranking #1 but their phones have stopped ringing
→ How AI Local Packs are killing click-to-call and what to tell clients
→ Why rank tracking is going out the window in 2026
→ The press release tactic that can hijack an entire AI Overview overnight
→ How she runs a 43-person agency with no KPIs, no quotas, and no sales team
→ The review extortion scam every agency owner needs to know about
→ Why YouTube is the most underrated ranking signal for 2027
→ The brutal advice she gives to anyone trying to start an agency today
If you run an SEO agency, manage local clients, or are trying to figure out where local search is heading — this one is essential.
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⏱ CHAPTERS
00:00 Cold open
00:03 Welcome & introducing Joy Hawkins
01:11 What Joy is testing right now: 2025 core updates hitting local
02:49 The biggest story in local search: AI Local Packs replacing 3-packs
03:19 What an AI Local Pack actually looks like for users
05:23 The dramatic decline in clicks & call buttons
06:59 Ranking #1 but the phone isn't ringing — how to explain it to clients
08:54 The pay-to-play shift: should agencies add Google Ads & LSAs?
10:35 Do PPC and SEO actually compound?
12:09 Building a local SEO empire: Sterling Sky, LocalU, Ranking Academy
14:21 From maternity leave to 43 employees: hardest inflection point
16:25 Why Sterling Sky has no KPIs, no sales quotas, no financial projections
18:49 The education business model — why events break even on purpose
20:04 Hiring for a 100% remote agency — the #1 trait Joy looks for
21:52 Why Sterling Sky has no separate sales team
24:00 Review extortion scams — what they look like & how to handle them
26:23 The "Most Relevant" reviews algorithm — how to influence it
28:22 Minimum review count, the "10 reviews" ranking boost
29:29 Review velocity vs total count — what really matters
32:29 Content strategy in the age of AI — finding gaps competitors missed
34:53 GBP services — do you really need a page for each?
36:43 Entity creation, schema, and what actually moves the needle
38:15 Local SEO for AI & LLMs — Gemini, AI Mode, AI Overviews
40:16 The press release comeback — why they shine for AI
42:39 Press release frequency, distribution services & map embeds
45:15 Is local SEO a growing or shrinking industry?
47:14 The #1 ranking signal Joy is betting on for 2027
49:31 Trust, consistency & execution — winning local SEO in 2026
50:44 Rapid Fire Round
54:36 Joy's #1 advice for agency owners feeling stuck
55:48 Wrap up
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🔗 CONNECT WITH JOY HAWKINS
Sterling Sky: https://www.sterlingsky.ca
LocalU: https://localu.org
Local Search Forum: https://localsearchforum.com
Search Engine Land column: https://searchengineland.com/author/joy-hawkins
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🎙 THE AGENCY INSIDER SHOW
Hosted by Navneet Kaushal — Founder & CEO of PageTraffic, an SEO agency serving 10,000+ clients across 36+ countries since 2002.
🔔 Subscribe for new episodes every week with the world's top SEO and digital marketing leaders.
🌐 PageTraffic: https://www.pagetraffic.com
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/navneetkaushal
🐦 X (Twitter): https://x.com/navneetkaushal
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#LocalSEO #JoyHawkins #SEOAgency #AgencyInsiderShow #GoogleBusinessProfile #SterlingSky #SEO2026 #LocalSearch #AIOverview #DigitalMarketing
