Organic SEO and local SEO operate on overlapping but distinct algorithms within Google. Organic SEO targets the traditional 10-blue-link results that appear below special features like the Local Pack, AI Overview, and featured snippets. Local SEO targets the Local Pack — the three-business map result that appears above organic results for queries Google interprets as having local intent. Organic SEO ranking factors are dominated by: content quality and depth, backlink profile (quantity, quality, relevance, anchor text), technical SEO (crawlability, indexability, Core Web Vitals, structured data), on-page optimization (title tags, headers, internal linking), and E-E-A-T signals (named authors, credentials, original research, brand mentions). Local SEO ranking factors are dominated by: Google Business Profile completeness and accuracy, primary and secondary category selection, NAP consistency across directories, review quantity and recency, proximity of the searcher to the business address, and locally-relevant backlinks and brand mentions. Site-wide SEO factors influence local rankings too, but their weight is lower than for purely organic queries. For Canadian businesses with both online and physical presence — most service businesses, retailers, restaurants, professional services — both tracks matter. The Local Pack typically captures higher-intent commercial queries ('dentist near me'), while organic results capture broader informational queries ('teeth whitening cost') that ultimately drive Local Pack-eligible bottom-funnel searches. The optimization sequence we recommend for Canadian SMBs: secure local SEO basics first (claimed and optimized GBP, NAP consistency, baseline review velocity), then invest in organic SEO depth (content production, backlink acquisition, technical baseline). Local SEO produces faster initial results — typically 2–4 months to meaningful Local Pack movement — while organic SEO compounds over 6–18 months.