Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Digital marketing agency in Vancouver, built for local service businesses
We run the channels that turn a local search into a phone call: the Google Map Pack, your website, paid search and the reviews that hold them together. Measured on a map, not on a traffic chart.
A digital marketing agency in Vancouver plans and runs the channels that bring a local business customers online. At Digital Handshake Media that means Google Maps SEO and the Google Business Profile, a website built to convert, Google Ads management, social media and visibility in AI search. We start with the Map Pack because it compounds and you keep it. Local SEO plans run $1,000 to $3,500 USD a month, and a Search-Ready Website costs $1,500 to $3,000 USD. We do not do branding, logos or video production.
What we run, and when each one fits
| Channel | What we do | When it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Google Maps SEO | Map Pack ranking work, geo-grid scans, citations and a tight service area | Almost every local service business. It is the base the rest builds on |
| Google Business Profile | Setup, categories, services, photos, posts and defence of the listing | Every business. A weak profile caps every other channel |
| Google Ads | Search campaigns built around urgent, high-intent queries | Emergency trades and any business that needs calls this month while organic builds |
| Local Services Ads | Setup and management of the Google Guaranteed pay-per-lead listings | Trades where Google offers the programme in your area |
| Website | A site built to convert a local search into a call or booking | When the current site is slow, thin or does not match the services you sell |
| Social media | Content and management that supports reviews and local trust | Businesses where reputation and referrals matter, as a support to search |
| AI search | Making the business easy for ChatGPT, Gemini and AI Overviews to cite accurately | Once the profile and site are sound. It builds on the same basics |
Why we start with the Map Pack
A local customer searching on a phone sees the map first. The three listings in it get most of the calls. If you are not there, ads and a good website still help, but you are renting your visibility from the first search of the day to the last.
Ranking in the Map Pack is also the one channel where the work stays. Reviews, a clean profile and a consistent presence do not disappear when you stop paying for clicks. That is why we measure it on a geo-grid: a map of where you appear across your service area, repeated on the same points so you can see what moved.
What a Vancouver agency should show you
- A dated baseline. A scan of where you appear today, before any work, on a grid across your service area.
- A re-scan on the same points. Comparable maps over time, not a different report each month.
- Calls, not just clicks. What the work did in phone calls and bookings, with your own data behind it.
- What you keep. Ownership of the profile, the site and the content if you leave.
- No guaranteed rankings. Google itself warns against agencies that promise a position. We commit to the work and the reporting, not a number.
Where a Vancouver engagement usually starts
With a free Map Pack audit of your current visibility, then a strategy call to decide the order of work. For most clients that is the profile and reviews first, then the website, then paid search if you need calls sooner. The 12-week roadmap is the same one we run in every market.
If you are comparing options, our pages on in-house, agency or freelancer and local SEO versus directories lay out the trade-offs without the sales pitch.
Questions we get
Frequently asked questions
What does a digital marketing agency do for a local business?
It handles the channels that turn local searches into calls. For a service business that means the Google Map Pack and Google Business Profile, a website built to convert, paid search where it pays back, and the reviews that tie them together. A good agency measures each one so you can see what the money did.
How much does a digital marketing agency cost in Vancouver?
Our local SEO plans run $1,000 to $3,500 USD a month. A Search-Ready Website costs $1,500 to $3,000 USD. Paid search management is quoted after a look at your account and your ad budget sits on top of it. Prices well below $1,000 a month usually mean thin work. The pricing page has the full breakdown.
Should I start with SEO or Google Ads?
For most local service businesses we start with the Map Pack, because it compounds and you keep it. Ads buy volume immediately and stop the day the budget stops. Many clients run both: ads for urgent demand while the profile and reviews build. Our comparison of local SEO and Google Ads shows the trade-off.
Do you handle branding, logo design or video?
No. We work on the channels that bring in local customers: Maps and local search, the website, paid search, social media and AI search visibility. If you need a logo or a video shoot, we will tell you and point you to someone who does that for a living.
Who does the work, and do I keep it?
Your account is run by the same small team from the assessment call onward. The Google Business Profile, the website and the content are yours, and the scans and reports stay with you if you leave. Ask any agency what you keep when the contract ends.
Is a Vancouver agency better than one elsewhere?
It depends on the work. Vancouver is a dense, competitive market, so knowing how the Map Pack behaves across Vancouver and its neighbours helps. We are based in Vancouver, BC and also work with businesses across Canada and the United States, because the method is the same everywhere.
How do I know the agency is working?
You see a dated baseline and a re-scan on the same geo-grid, call and booking data, and the reviews coming in. If an agency only shows you a rank for one keyword or a traffic chart, ask what it means in calls.
What kind of business is a good fit?
Established local service businesses with real crews and real jobs: plumbing, HVAC, roofing, electrical, restoration, landscaping and similar trades, plus clinics and professional practices where a call is worth hundreds or thousands of dollars. If you do not have jobs to show, the work has little to measure.
Read next
Where to go from here
These pages go deeper on each channel and on how we price the work.
Next step
Want a straight read on your Vancouver market?
The assessment call checks whether your industry is still open in your area, then gives you an honest view of what your grid can realistically do.
Or call 778-200-8644 · One client per industry, per area. No guaranteed rankings.