Local SEO Academy Review 2026: Sam Sarsten's 3-Phase Local SEO Growth Plan? + Alternatives

In this article:

I review Local SEO Academy and Sam's 3-Phase Local SEO growth plan.
I include online reviews so you don't have to look for them yourself.
You’ll get a list of what’s included in Local SEO Academy, like the Google Business Profile Masterclass and weekly Q&A sessions.
I tell you about how Sam Sarsten went from EMT to web designer.
I compare the SEO agency model to more ownership-focused local SEO lead generation alternative.

In my 11+ years of experience in local SEO, the local SEO agency model that Local SEO Academy teaches is like American Red Cross disaster response. The work never stops at the first call as it turns into intake, coordination, updates, fixes, reporting, and pressure from every side. That mirrors the local SEO agency grind of constant client acquisition, management, and fulfillment. Building a brand is a tedious process that you have to go through if you want clients to see you as credible. It’s just like how the Smithsonian took years of research and consistency to earn the public’s trust. Sam's agency success is built upon a decade of servicing local businesses.

Public Review Sentiment

Sentiment is based on public reviews, discussions, and independent analysis available at the time of publication. Percentages reflect identified positive, negative, and neutral sentiment by platform.

Reddit (5 reviews)

Mostly Positive

Positive: “$27/mo gets the rapid-ranking course, vibe SEO training, multimedia article templates, a Local SEO Academy...”

YouTube (10 reviews)

Highly Positive

Positive: “I went from knowing almost nothing about local SEO to feeling completely confident in offering it as a service.”

Independent Review Sites (15 reviews)

Positive Reviews

Positive: “Before joining, I felt overwhelmed by all the noise in the SEO industry. But Local SEO Academy gave me clarity!”

What Are the Pros and Cons of Local SEO Academy?

Pros	Cons
Local SEO Academy offers 2 tiers based on your needs and budget.	Local SEO Academy's community is a paid add-on.
Its strategy of targeting local niches reduces competition.	Its SEO agency model involves tedious brand building.
Sam Sarsten has over a decade of experience in local SEO.	It lacks in-depth training on how to find and get clients.

Price: Local SEO Academy costs $89 a month or $890 a year for the courses. It costs $149 a month or $1,490 a year for the community tier.

Refund Policy: Local SEO Academy does not display any refund policy.

Origin: Sam Sarsten founded Local SEO Academy in 2024.

What Is Local SEO Academy's 3-Phase Local SEO Growth Plan?

Local SEO Academy's 3-Phase Local SEO growth plan is a system for delivering local SEO as a service. Here's how it works:

Target local businesses in a specific area. This includes contractors, holistic clinics, mortgage brokers, dentists, roofers, plumbers, or local service companies.
Create your client's SEO game plan within a month. It should be based on your audit of their current website and Google Business Profile.
tools like Semrush Free or Google Keyword Planner to find keywords that people already search for. Add those terms into page titles, H1s, and website content.
Find and fix problems that hurt rankings. Sam says to check speed with Google PageSpeed Insights or GTmetrix, improve titles and meta descriptions, fix broken links, and simplify site navigation.
Build service and location pages within the 2nd and 4th months. For example, pages like “roof repair in Austin” or “metal roofing in Dallas.”
Optimize the Google Business Profile. Sell GBP optimization as a repeatable monthly service.
Build authority slowly with citations, backlinks, and other authority signals. Sam says this should be spaced out because building links too quickly can look spammy.
Spacing out also turns SEO into a recurring service and gives you time to work on multiple clients.

The 3-phase local SEO growth plan is a personalized roadmap based on your client's needs. It’s also meant to lengthen the process so you can charge monthly. As an SEO agency owner myself, I think this model will not be sufficient for many clients. SEO clients often expect to see results within a few months. Lengthening the process could lead to clients leaving and bad reviews.

How Did Johnny McWilliams Go From $600 a Month to $2,200 a Month With Local SEO Academy?

Johnny McWilliams

Johnny McWilliams went from $600 a month to $2,200 a month with Local SEO Academy after applying Sam’s lesson in positioning SEO offers. Johnny did web design for a client and offered to do SEO too. The client asked how SEO differed from ads, and Johnny asked Sam how best to explain its value. He quoted $1,600 a month for local SEO for 2 sites, and the client agreed. Johnny says that Local SEO Academy helped him understand SEO terminology and the technicalities of the tools. He also highlighted Sam’s advice as a game-changer.

What Do You Get With Local SEO Academy?

Google Business Profile Masterclass: It covers GBP optimization, posting, updating, and maintenance. It also includes a repeatable monthly GBP workflow that you can sell as a service.
The Local SEO Masterclass: It covers ranking factors, technical SEO, on-page SEO, and local content strategy.
Delivering Local SEO to Clients: A 3-Phase Client-Delivery System with action plans for audits, keywords, content, and backlinks.
Local SEO Sales Course: It covers pricing models, messaging frameworks, and sales processes for selling local SEO retainers.

The community tier also comes with:

A local SEO SOPs library.
Weekly live sessions with Q&A.
Weekly bootcamps.
Monthly expert trainings on topics such as SEO, social media, pricing, niching, short-form video, PPC, and AI SEO.
Templates and scripts, including client emails, proposals, audits, and reports.
DM access to Sam and his team.
Access to the community channel for additional support and networking.
AI Search Crash Course that covers AI-driven search visibility, local ranking protection frameworks, and AI search SEO.

Who Is Sam Sarsten?

Sam Sarsten

Sam Sarsten is a digital marketer and founder of Local SEO Academy and Thencan Designs. He specializes in local SEO and web design. Born and raised in Oregon, Sam does SEO for businesses in Bend, Redmond, Prineville, Sunriver, Sisters, and more.

Sam has a Biology degree from Oregon State University. He worked as an EMT, office manager, and web designer before going into SEO. He founded his design agency, Thencan Designs, in 2023. He later expanded his services into SEO and hired contractors. That drew his interest, and he started learning SEO himself. He started teaching local SEO in 2024.

Final Verdict: Does Local SEO Academy Teach the Best Way to Make Money With Local SEO?

Local SEO Academy does not teach the best way to make money with local SEO. The local SEO agency model involves consistent client acquisition, retention, and fulfillment. Your income is tied to how many clients you can sign up and retain. If a client leaves, they take your work and the income with them. You also have to maintain a good brand reputation. Bad reviews will make it less likely that new clients will work with you. This is why I prefer the local SEO lead generation model where I own the sites so I don’t have to rely on constant client acquisition and fulfillment.

How Does Local SEO Academy Compare to Bigfoot Blueprint?

Local SEO Academy is best for beginners who want to sell local SEO services through Google Business Profile optimization and service pages. Bigfoot Blueprint is better for marketers who want a directory-asset business. Local SEO Academy centers on recurring client SEO services, while Bigfoot Blueprint centers on building SEO-optimized directory assets.

How Does Local SEO Academy Compare to Rank N Bank?

Local SEO Academy is better for those who want full SEO agency training. Rank N Bank is better for those who already understand SEO and want to build rank-and-rent sites quickly using AI and templates. Local SEO Academy focuses on client SEO services, while Rank N Bank focuses on owning lead generation assets and renting them to local businesses.

How Does Local SEO Academy Compare to Local Rank Academy?

Local SEO Academy is better for those who want to focus mainly on delivering local SEO services for clients. Local Rank Academy is better for those who want to start with a local SEO agency, sell Google Maps ranking services, and later move into rank-and-rent websites using LocalRank software. Both teach local SEO, but Local SEO Academy is more service-delivery focused, while Local Rank Academy combines an agency model with asset-building.

How Does Earning With Local SEO Agency Compare to Local SEO Lead Generation?

Earning with local SEO agency is less consistent than local SEO lead generation. A local SEO agency’s income is tied to client retention and fulfillment. Earning with local SEO lead generation is more stable since you own the assets. If your client leaves, they lose their lead flow, and you can just sell it to their competitors.

In my experience, comparing local SEO agency to local SEO lead generation is like Fiverr versus Indeed. You only earn on Fiverr if you can find clients and fulfill their requests. Similarly, a local SEO agency only earns if you close a client and deliver results. Indeed attracts people looking for specific jobs or hires. Similarly, a local SEO lead generation site passively attracts customers looking for a solution. You then connect them to local businesses and get a commission.

How Does Local SEO Lead Generation Create Consistent Cash Flow?

Local SEO lead generation creates consistent cash flow by passively generating high buy-intent leads that you sell to local businesses. You own the site, so you don’t have to worry about clients leaving. Local SEO lead generation also works better for high-ticket niches. You can charge a percentage of a job as commission instead of charging flat monthly fees.

local seo lead generation

A client of mine is Whittier Superior Roofing, 14139 Imperial Hwy. Whittier, CA 90604, (562) 245-5656, https://www.whittierroofer.com/. I had 6 large commercial leads close for $72,300 in 1 month. I took home $3,615 for my 5% commission. Check out the local SEO lead generation model if you want the best way to make money with local SEO in 2026.