LocalSync HQ — a dashboard to scan and sync business listings across platforms for multi-location franchises

COMPLETE

MVP in 6 weeks

7 features

3 milestones

1 role

Project Overview

Problem Statement

Multi-location franchises have hundreds of directory listings that drift out of sync (phone, hours, status), causing lost calls, SEO ranking drops, and bad reviews. Teams update one platform and forget the rest; there’s no single view to detect inconsistencies or push corrections everywhere.

Ideal Customer Profile

Multi-location franchise operators (starting with a 10–15 location dental group) and franchise development consultants who manage multiple brands and need listing health across portfolios.

App Audience

Public-facing SaaS with self-serve sign-up

Project Type

Greenfield (new build)

Integrations

MVP integrations: Google Business Profile API, Yelp, Apple Maps (as available). Non-API directories deferred post-MVP (browser automation later).

Tech Stack Preferences

Next.js (preferred)

Deployment Preferences

Open to suggestions

Design Status

No designs — engineer can handle MVP UI

Features

Pilot-mode account (single customer) and basic access

MVP runs in pilot mode for a single franchise/customer to move faster (no full multi-tenant self-serve). Includes basic authentication and a simple admin-managed access model.

Implement authentication
Add login/logout and session management for pilot users.
Implement basic authorization roles
Support at least Admin vs Viewer (or similar) for the pilot account.
Admin-managed user invites (optional)
If needed, allow an admin to invite additional users; otherwise seed users manually for MVP.
Audit logging (lightweight)
Record who initiated a sync/correction and when (sufficient for MVP troubleshooting).

Google Business Profile as source-of-truth + location ingestion

Use Google Business Profile (GBP) as the authoritative source-of-truth for location data in the MVP. Ingest locations from GBP and store normalized fields for comparison against other platforms.

OAuth / connection to Google Business Profile
Implement Google OAuth and connect to GBP account; handle token storage/refresh securely.
Fetch locations from GBP
Pull list of locations for the pilot customer (e.g., 10–15) and persist them in the app database.
Define normalized location schema
Normalize core fields: name, address, phone, website, hours, categories (as feasible), status (open/closed).
Manual resync
Allow a user to trigger a resync from GBP to refresh authoritative data.
Data model for platform-specific listing records
Store per-platform snapshots (GBP/Yelp/Apple) to compare against normalized source-of-truth.

Listing scan + drift detection (GBP vs Yelp vs Apple Maps)

Scan listings for each location across Google (source of truth), Yelp, and Apple Maps. Normalize and compare key fields (name, address, phone, website, hours, categories/services, open/closed status) and flag inconsistencies in a single dashboard view.

Connect to Yelp API (as available) and fetch listing data
Implement OAuth/API key integration and fetch business listing fields per location (mapping strategy for matching GBP locations to Yelp listings).
Connect to Apple Maps (as available) and fetch listing data
Implement Apple Maps integration or data access method for listing fields; define matching strategy to GBP locations.
Location matching & reconciliation
Build matching logic between GBP locations and corresponding Yelp/Apple listings (by place ID, name+address+phone fuzzy matching, manual override when ambiguous).
Normalization + comparison engine
Normalize fields from each platform into a common format and compute diffs vs GBP (source-of-truth).
Inconsistency dashboard UI
Show per-location and cross-location views: field-level diffs, platform affected, last scanned time, and severity indicator.
Scan scheduling
Support manual scan now; optional daily scheduled scans via background jobs/cron.

Drift log + inconsistency taxonomy (no health score in MVP)

Track and store every detected inconsistency event and correction attempt for analysis (drift types, correction method, timestamps, time-to-revert) without computing a formal health score in the MVP.

Define inconsistency taxonomy
Categorize mismatch types (phone, hours, status, etc.) and store platform + field + old/new values.
Persist scan results over time
Store scan snapshots/diffs per run to enable drift timelines and later scoring/benchmarking.
Persist correction outcomes
Record correction method (API vs manual), attempt status, error messages, and completion time.
Basic reporting export (optional)
Allow exporting inconsistencies/corrections to CSV for analysis during the pilot.

Bulk corrections: make all platforms match Google (with per-field overrides)

From an inconsistency view, allow one-click corrections to propagate Google (source-of-truth) data to Yelp and Apple Maps for a location (bulk), with the option to override/select specific fields to push.

Correction plan builder
Given detected diffs, generate a proposed set of updates to apply to Yelp/Apple to match GBP (field-by-field).
Per-field override UI
Allow toggling which fields to update per platform before applying the correction (e.g., update phone + hours but not categories).
Execute updates via platform APIs (as available)
Implement write/update calls for Yelp and Apple Maps where supported; handle validation/errors and partial success.
Job queue for corrections
Run corrections asynchronously; show status (queued/running/succeeded/failed) and retry behavior.
Post-correction rescan
After applying updates, rescan affected listings to confirm changes and update health score/diffs.

New location onboarding (create in Google, propagate to Yelp/Apple)

Support onboarding a brand-new location: create/publish it in Google Business Profile (source of truth) and then propagate the listing details to Yelp and Apple Maps (as available).

Create new location in Google Business Profile
UI + API flow to create a new GBP location with required fields and verification considerations.
Queue propagation to other platforms
After GBP creation, enqueue creation/update jobs for Yelp/Apple as supported; handle cases where platform requires manual claim/verification.
Onboarding checklist UI
Show setup status per platform (created/claimed/pending verification/manual action required) so the user knows what’s blocking go-live.
Fallback handling when platform creation isn't supported
When an API cannot create a listing, record required manual steps and keep it in a 'needs action' state.

Stripe subscription billing ($75/location/month)

Implement self-serve SaaS billing via Stripe: subscription pricing based on number of locations (e.g., $75 per location per month). Manage plans, checkout, customer portal, and access gating based on subscription status.

Define pricing model in Stripe
Model $75/location/month (quantity-based) with a monthly recurring plan; decide trial/coupon support for MVP.
Stripe Checkout + subscription creation
Implement checkout flow and create subscriptions; store customer/subscription IDs.
Customer portal
Allow customers to update payment method, view invoices, and cancel via Stripe portal.
Access gating
Restrict scanning/corrections when subscription is inactive/past due; show billing state in UI.
Webhook handling
Handle Stripe webhooks for subscription lifecycle events (created/updated/canceled, invoice paid/failed).

Milestones

Milestone 1

Milestone 1 — Foundation + GBP ingestion

Set up the MVP foundation: pilot-mode auth/access and connect to Google Business Profile as source-of-truth; ingest locations and normalize core fields.

Assigned Features

Pilot-mode account (single customer) and basic access
Google Business Profile as source-of-truth + location ingestion

Milestone 2

Milestone 2 — Scan + drift detection dashboard

Integrate Yelp + Apple Maps reads (as available), match locations, normalize fields, and present drift/inconsistency dashboard. Persist drift logs/taxonomy.

Assigned Features

Listing scan + drift detection (GBP vs Yelp vs Apple Maps)
Drift log + inconsistency taxonomy (no health score in MVP)

Milestone 3

Milestone 3 — Corrections + new location onboarding + billing

Enable bulk corrections (make all platforms match Google with per-field overrides), support new location creation in GBP and propagation workflow, and implement Stripe subscription billing and access gating.

Assigned Features

Bulk corrections: make all platforms match Google (with per-field overrides)
New location onboarding (create in Google, propagate to Yelp/Apple)
Stripe subscription billing ($75/location/month)

Skills Needed

Full-Stack Developer

Build the MVP SaaS app end-to-end: Next.js web app, integrations with Google Business Profile/Yelp/Apple Maps, drift detection and correction workflows, background jobs, and Stripe billing.

Next.jsReactTypeScriptNode.jsPostgreSQLORM (Prisma or similar)Google Business Profile APIYelp APIApple Maps integrationStripe APIOAuth 2.0Background jobs/queues (e.g., BullMQ)Vercel or AWS deploymentData normalization/matching (fuzzy matching)

Open Questions

What is the MVP budget range (or constraints) for the initial 6-week build?

Budget is currently unknown; needed later to size scope, choose build-vs-buy components (e.g., automation tooling), and define milestone payments.

Which integration should be the MVP 'source of truth' for location data (Google Business Profile vs something else), and which fields are authoritative?

User chose 'integration source' for source of truth. Need to confirm authoritative system (likely Google Business Profile) and scope of fields (NAP, hours, categories, website, attributes, etc.) to define sync rules and conflict resolution.

Should the 6-week MVP include browser automation for non-API directories (Playwright/Puppeteer), or defer automation until post-MVP? If included, which 1–2 directories first?

User flagged as a discussion topic. Automation layer is fragile/maintenance-heavy and impacts MVP scope/timeline.