When someone searches for a service near them, Google usually shows a map and a short list of local businesses before any regular website results. What appears in that list comes from Google Business Profiles. For many local businesses, the profile gets more views than the website does, and it is often where a customer decides to call, ask for directions or keep scrolling.
The good news is that a strong profile is free and fully within your control. Here is how we set them up for clients and what we keep up with every month.
How Google decides who shows up
Google explains that local results are based on three things: relevance, distance and prominence. Relevance is how well your profile matches what someone searched for. Distance is how far you are from the person searching. Prominence is how well known your business is, which includes reviews, links and mentions across the web.
You cannot change where a customer is standing, but you can make your profile as relevant and as trusted as possible.
Step 1: Claim and verify your profile
Search for your business name on Google. If a profile already exists, choose the option to claim it. If not, create one at google.com/business. Google will ask you to verify that you own the business, usually by video, phone or email. Until you are verified, many edits will not show publicly.
Add a second trusted person as an owner or manager so you are never locked out if an email address changes or an employee leaves.
Step 2: Get the basics exactly right
- Business name: use your real-world name only. Adding extra keywords or city names to your name breaks Google's guidelines for representing your business and can get your profile suspended.
- Address or service area: show your address if customers visit you. If you travel to customers, set a service area instead and hide the address.
- Phone number and website: use a local number that is answered during business hours, and link to the most relevant page on your site.
- Hours: keep regular hours current and add holiday hours ahead of time. Nothing frustrates a customer faster than arriving to a locked door.
Your name, address and phone number should match your website, social profiles and directory listings word for word. Consistency helps Google trust that the information is correct.
Step 3: Choose your categories carefully
Your primary category has a big influence on which searches you appear for. Pick the one that best describes your main service, then add a few secondary categories that cover other things you do. Be specific. "Landscaper" will serve a landscaping company better than a broad category like "Contractor".
Step 4: Fill in services, products and attributes
List each service you offer with a short description written the way customers would describe it. If you sell products, add your main lines with photos. Attributes such as accessibility features, parking, online appointments or women-owned help people decide, so fill in every one that applies.
Step 5: Write a description for people, not robots
You have room for a short description of your business. Explain what you do, who you do it for and the area you serve, in plain sentences. Mention what makes you different, such as years in business, certifications or the kind of customers you specialize in. Avoid stuffing it with keywords and leave out links and promotions.
Step 6: Add real photos and keep adding them
Google lists photos and videos as one of its tips for improving local ranking, and customers use them to judge you before they visit. Aim for a good mix:
- Your storefront or signage, so people recognize you when they arrive
- Your team at work
- Finished projects, products or dishes
- The inside of your space
Use your own photos instead of stock images. Adding a few new ones each month also signals that the business is active.
Step 7: Post updates
Business Profile posts let you share offers, events, new products and news right on your listing. They take a few minutes to create and give customers a reason to choose you over the profile beside yours. A post every week or two is plenty for most businesses.
Step 8: Ask for reviews and reply to every one
Reviews influence both your ranking and the customer's decision. Google specifically recommends replying to reviews to show customers you value their feedback. Thank people for positive reviews by name when you can, and answer negative ones calmly with an offer to make things right. We cover this in more detail in our guide to getting more Google reviews the right way.
A simple monthly checklist
- Confirm hours, phone number and website link are still correct
- Add holiday hours for the coming month
- Upload three to five new photos
- Publish two to four posts
- Reply to every new review
- Review the profile's performance report for calls, direction requests and website clicks
Your profile and your website work together
A complete profile gets you seen. A clear, fast website turns that interest into a call or booking. If your profile is sending people to a site that is slow or hard to use on a phone, you are losing customers at the last step. Our article on website speed and Core Web Vitals explains what to look for.
If you would like us to review your profile and tell you what we would fix first, book a free discovery call.
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