Guide · Google Business Profile and local search
Your Google profile, from empty to enquiries
When someone searches for your trade nearby, Google often shows a map and a few business profiles before any website. Those profiles come from Google Business Profile, formerly Google My Business. It costs nothing to use. Kept up to date, your profile becomes a way in; left alone, it works against you.
In plain words
Someone nearby searches for your trade and finds your competitor instead.
- People nearby find you on the Google map.
- Your profile reassures them before the first call.
- Your good reviews work for you, day and night.
Step 1
Create or claim, then verify
Your business may already have a profile, created by Google or by a customer. Search before you create a new one.
Type your business name and town into Google Maps. If a profile exists, ask to manage it (“Own this business?”). If not, create one at google.com/business with a Google account you actually control, not one belonging to a former agency.
Google then asks you to verify that the business exists and that you are responsible for it. Depending on the case, that means a video, a phone call, an email or a postcard. Until the profile is verified, your edits may not show.
Add other people as managers rather than sharing your password. You keep ownership and can remove access at any time.
Step 2
Name, category, address
Three fields that matter more than the rest, and that Google polices closely.
Name
Your real business name, as it appears on your sign and documents. Google does not allow added keywords, towns or taglines. Profiles with stuffed names can be suspended.
Category
Google advises choosing as few as possible and describing what the business is, not everything it does. The primary category carries a lot of weight, so pick the most precise one.
Address or service area
If customers come to you, show your real address. If you go to them, set a service area and hide the address. Google does not allow fake addresses, PO boxes or virtual offices: never create a profile at an address where you don’t work.
Step 3
Photos, hours, services: a profile that’s alive
A complete profile builds trust before the first message.
Photos. Your own photos: the front so people can find you, the inside, the team if they agree, finished work. Skip stock images; people spot them at once.
Hours. Kept current, including public holidays and one-off closures. A customer who finds the door shut rarely comes back, and sometimes says so in a review.
Services and description. Describe what you do in your customers’ words, not as a keyword list. Add your main services and a link to the most useful page on your site.
Posts and questions. Posts are for an event, something new or practical information. Keep an eye on questions asked on your profile too: answer them, or someone else will.
Step 4
Reviews: ask, reply, never buy
Reviews often decide between two similar profiles. Google sets clear rules on how you collect them.
Ask
After a job well done, send the direct link to your profile by WhatsApp or email. Ask every customer, not only the happy ones: Google does not allow selective requests.
Reply
To every review, good or bad, calmly and without personal details. A measured reply to criticism often reassures more than a perfect score.
Never buy reviews
Google bans fake reviews, paid reviews and reviews given in exchange for a discount or gift. Reviews can be removed and the profile restricted. It isn’t worth the risk.
Step 5
Measure what the profile actually brings in
Google Business Profile shows its own figures: searches, views, calls, direction requests, website clicks. It is a useful start, not the full picture.
Add UTM parameters to the website link on your profile (for example a “google” source and a “profile” medium). In GA4 you can then separate visits from the profile from regular search results, and see which of them turn into enquiries.
Local search doesn’t stop at the profile. Your website, your local pages and a consistent name, address and phone number across the web matter too. That is what our SEO work covers.
Questions
What people ask us.
Is Google My Business the same as Google Business Profile?
Yes. Google My Business was renamed Google Business Profile. The profile, how it works and how you access it are the same; only the name changed.
Do I have to pay for a Google Business Profile?
No. Creating and managing a profile costs nothing. Be wary of cold calls claiming otherwise in Google’s name.
Can I have a profile without premises?
Yes, if you travel to customers: set a service area and hide your address. Google still needs a real address for verification. Virtual offices and PO boxes are not allowed.
How long before I show up on Google Maps?
It depends on verification and on competition in your trade and area. A verified, complete profile can appear fairly quickly; moving into the top spots takes time and steady work.
How do I get more Google reviews?
Ask, every time and every customer, with a direct link to your profile. Nothing in return: Google bans reviews that are paid for or given in exchange for a benefit.
What should I do about an unfair negative review?
Reply calmly, state the facts, leave out personal details. If the review breaks Google’s rules (not a real customer, abusive language), you can flag it from your profile. Google alone decides whether to remove it.
Your profile could do more. Shall we look together?
A WhatsApp message or a thirty-minute call. We look at your profile and your website with you, and tell you what we can do and what we can’t.
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