1. Start with the geography your firm actually serves
Rockford is recorded as a municipality in Illinois, with a 2020–2024 ACS five-year population estimate of 147,521 and a margin of error of 271. The Census record associates the city with Ogle County and Winnebago County. Those facts describe the place; they do not establish legal demand, search volume, competition, call volume or language needs. Attribution therefore should not treat “Rockford” as a complete market definition. Your review should identify which addresses, service areas and matter types count as local business for your firm, then examine whether those distinctions appear in intake records and outcome reporting.
Recommended approach
Bring a written geographic definition to the consultation. Decide whether reporting should distinguish Rockford from Ogle County and Winnebago County, and whether a matter’s location, the visitor’s location or the landing page’s location controls your internal classification.
