Nextdoor for Local Businesses: Business Pages and Ads

The free business page

Nextdoor says any business, service provider or non-profit within its Business Page Policy can create a free business page. On the page, neighbors can leave a recommendation, message the business, and find its phone number, address, website and hours. The page also shows up in Nextdoor business search and is where ads are run from.

A business page does not see neighborhood newsfeeds. Nextdoor says businesses only see comments they are tagged in and recommendations for their business, and cannot start a message thread or send a connection request to a neighbor. Treat the page as a listing with a reply channel, not as a social feed you can browse.

The page is generally available to anyone on the web and can appear in Google results. Nextdoor search shows your business to neighbors who live within 50 miles of your business address. Nextdoor's own tips for search visibility are to claim the page, get at least one recommendation, add a description and photos, and post. It also says some pages will not be searchable, so do not plan around a Nextdoor page ranking in Google. Treat it as one more listing next to your Google Business Profile and Apple and Bing listings.

Claim or create your page

Nextdoor creates business pages automatically for local businesses listed in each neighborhood, so neighbors may already be mentioning yours. Search Nextdoor for your business first. If a page exists, claim it with the link near the top of the page. If there is no claim option, it may already be claimed.

• Logged in: select your profile icon, then Add business page, and enter your details. Nextdoor checks for an unclaimed match and offers it to you, or creates a new page.
• Logged out: you can claim or create a page with a new account. Nextdoor does not recommend linking the business to your personal neighbor account if you plan to share the business login with employees.
• Several locations: Nextdoor says each business or location should have its own page, and one account can manage up to 10 of them.

Use the same name, address and phone number as on your other listings and your website. Consistent details help customers and make verification easier.

Verify the business

Nextdoor requires verification for businesses. Verified pages show a Verified checkmark and can create business posts. Without verification, Nextdoor says your options to message customers or buy advertising may be limited depending on your region and product setup. You start verification from Settings on the page, after claiming or creating it.

Nextdoor asks for a current, complete and readable PDF, JPEG or PNG document that clearly shows your business name. Accepted types include a government-issued business license or permit, a business tax or VAT registration certificate, and a business credit report; US businesses can also use an IRS EIN confirmation letter, official IRS tax notices or Articles of Organization. Nextdoor's tips:

• The business name on the document must match the page name exactly, including punctuation. Edit the page name if needed.
• Your personal name on the profile (and on a social login, if you use one) should match the name on the document.
• A home-based or mobile business should use the same address as the document; you can hide the address from neighbors on the page.
• Tell Nextdoor about duplicate pages so they can be merged during verification.

Casual services such as dog walking or babysitting without official documents have a separate route, which Nextdoor links from the same article.

Recommendations and Faves

Recommendations are Nextdoor's version of reviews. Nextdoor says the more recommendations you get across different neighborhoods, the more neighbors will be able to see your business page, and more recommendations in one neighborhood raise your rank in its Recommendations section. Only Nextdoor neighbors can recommend a business. You can reply to recommendations, and the reply shows in the feed. The simplest way to get more is to use the Share option on your page and send the link to happy customers, as part of the same routine you use for reviews on your website.

A Fave is not a recommendation. It works like a follow: neighbors who Fave your page see your business posts in their newsfeed. You can see who Faved you, and a chart of Faves over time, in the page Dashboard.

Business posts and messaging limits

Business posts are free for claimed and verified pages. You can post updates, events and polls. Nextdoor says posts do not use a fixed radius: distribution depends on how the post performs, and neighbors who have Faved you are eligible to see them. Event posts are also shown to neighbors within 10 miles of the event while they browse events. Posting is unlimited, but excessive posting counts as spam under the Community Guidelines.

The business posting guidelines say only local businesses can post into the newsfeed; national brands and e-commerce companies cannot, while local franchises of national companies may. Some business types, including political businesses and those selling CBD products, may have a page but cannot post or run ads.

Business pages have stricter messaging rules than personal accounts. A page can message a neighbor only when the neighbor messaged first, is a lead matched through Opportunity Alerts, or has Faved the page (up to 3 new conversations a day and 10 a week). Posts where neighbors ask for a service can only be answered by Opportunity Alerts subscribers who were matched to that lead.

Posts, ads and Opportunity Alerts compared

Nextdoor compares its three business tools like this:

Tool	Cost	Reach	Measurement
Business posts	Free, needs verification	Neighbors near the business and those who Faved it; depends on engagement	Shown on the Dashboard, no dedicated metrics
Business page ads	Paid campaigns	The audience you choose: neighborhoods, cities, ZIP codes or a wider service area	Ads dashboard with impressions and clicks
Opportunity Alerts	Paid subscription	Neighbors who post asking for a service in your category	A list of opportunities, no dedicated metrics yet

Opportunity Alerts are for home service businesses, and not every business is eligible. They are a separate subscription: running ads does not enrol you, and a subscription cannot be moved to another business page.

Nextdoor ads: two ways in

Nextdoor offers ads from the business page (a simple interface for small businesses) and Nextdoor Ads Manager, which adds tools such as lead generation and pixel tracking. Large regional and national brands have a separate brand advertising route. Nextdoor's posts article says ads can reach neighbors up to 30 miles from your business.

To open Ads Manager, log in with an existing Nextdoor account or sign up, then enter your business name, website and category. Nextdoor notes that ads created from the business page are not accessible in Ads Manager, so pick one place to run campaigns and keep reporting there.

Objectives and targeting

In Ads Manager, a campaign has one objective and one or more ad groups; the ad group holds the audience, budget and dates. Publishing needs at least one payment method on the account. The four objectives are:

• Brand awareness: impressions; photo, video and carousel ads.
• Website visits: impressions or clicks; photo, video and carousel ads.
• Lead generation: a lead form inside Nextdoor, with an optional photo.
• Website conversions: impressions, clicks or conversions. Conversion (CPA) bidding needs the Nextdoor Pixel on your site.

Targeting is set per ad group. Location can include or exclude countries (US, UK or CA), states, cities, DMAs or postal codes, with bulk upload for long postal code lists. You can add device, household income, home ownership, gender and age filters, interests from neighbor profiles, and custom audiences from address or email lists (Nextdoor says about 48 hours to load). Nextdoor warns that neighbors without a given attribute drop out when you filter on it, so watch the reach forecast. Quick Create and Special Ad Categories show fewer options.

For a service business, start with the postal codes you actually serve, the same list you use on your service area pages, and add filters only if reach stays healthy.

Ad formats and specs

Nextdoor's creative specifications list these main sizes:

• Newsfeed image: 1200 x 628 px (1.91:1) or 1200 x 1200 px (1:1), JPEG or PNG up to 150 MB; headline 70 characters; body copy 1700 characters, truncated after 90; CTA up to 45 characters; 100 x 100 px logo cropped to a circle.
• For Sale & Free and right-hand rail images: 1:1 square; the right-hand rail is desktop only.
• Video: Newsfeed only, MOV or MP4 up to 500 MB, 2 to 300 seconds, 16:9 or 1:1. Vertical video is 9:16 and runs on iOS, Android and mobile web only.
• Carousel: 2 to 10 cards at 1200 x 1200 px, each with its own CTA and URL.
• Lead gen: a form with 2 to 11 fields and a required privacy policy link.

Since body copy is cut after 90 characters, put the offer and the area you serve in the first line. Send clicks to a page made for the ad, following our landing page basics, and tag the URL with UTM parameters so the visits show up in your analytics.

Budgets, bids and billing

Each ad group gets a Daily Goal or a Lifetime Budget (a lifetime budget needs start and end times). Bids can be a fixed CPM, Autobid, or a Max Bid; conversion bidding has its own single bid that Nextdoor tries, without a guarantee, not to exceed. Nextdoor advises giving the model about 7 days to learn before judging results, and waiting another 7 days after each set of changes.

Ads Manager is pay as you go. Spend builds a Billing Balance, and your card is charged when it reaches the Billing Threshold, or on the 1st of the month if a balance is outstanding. New accounts start at a $10 threshold that rises to $25, $50 and $100 with successful charges, then to the higher of $100 or 7x the Daily Goal. Nextdoor says you are not charged for spend over your daily or lifetime goal.

Ad review and policies

Every new ad, and every edit to its copy, image or click-through link, goes to review. Nextdoor says this is usually complete within 24 hours but can take up to two business days; a rejected ad becomes ineligible and you get an email with the reason.

The Nextdoor ad policy requires ads to follow the Community Guidelines, show the advertiser's name or brand clearly, and use a complete, original landing page that works on common devices, not one under construction or a PDF or JPEG. In the US, non-English ads need an English translation. Prohibited categories include tobacco and e-cigarettes, weapons, payday loans and bail bonds, MLM schemes and counterfeit goods. Alcohol, financial products and over-the-counter medicines are allowed with conditions, and no political ads are allowed through self-serve. Ads about credit, housing or employment have extra rules on targeting and wording. Recurring charges must be disclosed, and data collection must follow privacy law, which ties in with your site's privacy basics.

FAQ

Can I advertise my business on Nextdoor?

Yes. You can run ads from your business page or from Nextdoor Ads Manager, which adds lead generation and pixel tracking. Nextdoor says verification may be needed to buy ads in some regions, and some business types, such as political businesses and CBD sellers, cannot run ads.

Is a Nextdoor business page free?

Yes. Nextdoor describes the business page as free. Ads and Opportunity Alerts are the paid products.

Why can't I post as my business?

Business posts need a claimed and verified page. Nextdoor also limits newsfeed posting to local businesses: national brands and e-commerce companies cannot post, while local franchises can.

Can I message neighbors from my business page?

Only in some cases: when the neighbor messaged you first, was matched to you as an Opportunity Alerts lead, or has Faved your page (up to 3 new conversations a day and 10 a week).

How long does Nextdoor ad review take?

Nextdoor says review is usually complete within 24 hours but can take up to two business days. Editing the copy, image or link sends the ad back to review.

Are Opportunity Alerts included with Nextdoor ads?

No. Opportunity Alerts is a separate paid subscription for eligible home service businesses. Running ads does not enrol you, and the subscription cannot be moved to another business page.

Need a landing page or website that turns local clicks into calls? See our website development service and all our services, or email [email protected].