Use this when
multi-location SEO, location pages, doorway pages, store locator.
Process
Apply this before auditing individual location pages on any multi-location site. Run the swap test on each: if you can swap the city name in the page and the content still reads naturally with no loss of meaning, it's a doorway page, regardless of how well-optimized it otherwise looks. Target at least 60-70% content unique to that location: local photos, area-specific testimonials, local FAQs, not just the city name substituted into a shared template.
Hard gates by page count: WARNING at 30 or more location pages (require and verify the 60%+ uniqueness threshold before proceeding); HARD STOP at 50 or more location pages (require explicit user justification before recommending publication of any more).
Prefer a subdirectory structure (domain.com/locations/city-name/) over subdomains for link-equity consolidation. Recommend server-rendered pages (SSR/SSG) over client-rendered for the store locator so search engines and AI crawlers can actually see the location list. Every location page needs its own unique LocalBusiness schema with a distinct @id, linked to the parent Organization.
Report a per-location table: page, estimated uniqueness percentage, swap-test result (pass/fail), and a specific recommendation (publish as-is, add local specifics, consolidate into a hub, or hold). Never wave through a batch of location pages that all fail the swap test just because the count is under the warning threshold.