Local SEO Specialist — Citation Building & Technical Audit (Tobacco Industry)

We are looking for a LOCAL SEO specialist to handle the technical side of our SEO — specifically citation building and cleanup, backlink acquisition, and a technical site audit. This is NOT a content writing role. We do not need social media management or Google Ads (not permitted for tobacco businesses). SCOPE OF WORK 1. LOCAL CITATION AUDIT & CLEANUP — Audit all existing citations for NAP (Name, Address, Phone) consistency — Identify and correct outdated listings from previous ownership (wrong hours, wrong phone, old description) — Submit accurate listings to all relevant local, cigar industry, and veteran-owned business directories 2. BACKLINK BUILDING — Identify legitimate link-building opportunities in cigar, hospitality, Pennsylvania local, and veteran business niches — Outreach and acquisition — no spammy or low-quality links — Focus on local and industry-relevant sources 3. TECHNICAL SEO AUDIT — Core Web Vitals review — Mobile performance — Broken links, redirect issues, duplicate content — Image alt tags — Report findings with prioritized recommendations --- WHAT WE ALREADY HAVE — Schema.org structured data (LocalBusiness/CigarBar) deployed — Meta descriptions, OG tags, canonical URLs on all pages — sitemap.xml and robots.txt live — Google Search Console connected — Dedicated local landing page targeting "cigar lounge Williamsport PA" — Listings submitted to cigarlounges.co and Visit Lycoming County Do not duplicate this work. Build on it. --- IDEAL CANDIDATE — Demonstrable experience with local SEO for brick-and-mortar businesses — Familiar with restricted/tobacco industry advertising limitations — Uses white-hat methods only — Provides clear reporting on citations built, backlinks acquired, and technical issues resolved — Has worked with Google Search Console data --- DELIVERABLES — Citation audit report with corrections made — List of new citations submitted with status — Backlink acquisition report — Technical audit report with prioritized fixes --- BUDGET & TIMELINE Open to fixed-price or hourly proposals. Please include your suggested timeline and approach in your application. Preference for someone who has done this for local retail or hospitality businesses in smaller markets. --- TO APPLY Please include: 1. One example of local SEO work for a similar business 2. Your approach to citation cleanup for a business that changed ownership 3. How you build backlinks in a restricted industry where paid advertising is not an option