If you run a local business, from a tradie to a café to a clinic, Google Business Profile is usually the single most valuable free listing you can set up. It is what puts your business on Google Maps, in the local pack of search results, and on the panel that shows up when someone searches your business name directly. It is also completely free, which makes it one of the first things worth getting right.
Here is how to set it up properly, step by step.
Before you start
Have your business details ready: your exact legal or trading name, your address (or service area if you do not have a shopfront), your phone number, your website address, and your opening hours. Consistency matters here. Use the same name, address and phone number everywhere online, since mismatched details across directories can confuse both customers and Google.
Setting up your profile
- Go to Google Business Profile and sign in with the Google account you want to manage the listing with, ideally one tied to your business rather than a personal account you might lose access to later.
- Search for your business name to check it does not already exist as an unclaimed listing. If it does, claim it rather than creating a duplicate, since duplicates can hurt your visibility rather than help it.
- Enter your business name exactly as it appears on your signage and paperwork. Do not add keywords like “best” or your suburb into the name field, since that goes against Google’s guidelines and can get a listing suspended.
- Choose your primary category carefully, since it is one of the strongest signals for what searches you show up for. Pick the most specific, accurate category available, then add a small number of relevant secondary categories.
- Add your location. If customers visit you, add your street address. If you travel to customers, such as most tradies, set a service area instead and hide your address so you are not showing a home address publicly.
- Add your phone number and website. If you do not have a website yet, this is worth fixing, since a profile without a working website link converts fewer of the people who find you.
- Set your real opening hours, and keep them updated for public holidays. Nothing loses trust faster than a customer turning up to a business that Google says is open.
- Verify the listing. Google usually verifies by postcard to your business address, though phone, email or video verification is sometimes offered depending on your business type. This step can take anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks, so start it early.
Common reasons verification gets stuck
Verification issues are usually caused by something small: the business name or address entered does not exactly match what is on your official paperwork, the postcard was sent to an address where nobody checks the mail regularly, or a listing already exists for the same business under a slightly different name. If a postcard has not arrived after a couple of weeks, request another before starting again from scratch, since starting over can sometimes create a duplicate listing you then have to untangle.
Photos that actually help
Add a logo, a cover photo, and real photos of your premises, your team and your work. Genuine photos of the actual business consistently do more for a profile than any stock image, because they are what customers are trying to picture before they book or visit. If you do trade or service work, before-and- after photos of real jobs are worth the effort of taking them.
Reviews, done properly
Reviews are one of the strongest trust signals on your profile, and the only sustainable way to build them is to ask real customers after a real job or purchase. A short link or QR code makes this easy to send. Never buy reviews or offer incentives for them, since this breaches Google’s policies and can get reviews removed or the whole profile suspended. When you do get a review, reply to it, good or bad. A calm, professional reply to a negative review often matters more to future customers than the review itself.
Posts and updates
Google Business Profile lets you publish short posts, similar to a social media update: a promotion, a new service, an upcoming event, or simply a recent job. These posts expire after a week but posting semi-regularly signals to Google that the profile is actively managed, which tends to help visibility. It is also a free way to put a specific offer in front of people who are already looking at your listing.
Mistakes that can get a listing suspended
Google is strict about a few things worth knowing before you set up your profile. Do not use a P.O. box or a virtual office as your address if you do not genuinely operate from there. Do not create a separate listing for every suburb you service, since Google treats this as spam rather than legitimate coverage, and it can get every listing involved suspended. If you service a wide area, one listing with a properly configured service area does the job correctly.
Keeping it accurate
Once it is live, treat your profile as something to maintain, not a form you fill in once. Update hours around holidays, respond to reviews as they come in, and keep your services list current as your business changes. A profile that is clearly kept up to date tends to perform better than one that was set up once and never touched again.
If your business moves or changes hands
If you move premises, change your phone number, or a business changes owners, update the listing straight away rather than leaving it to catch up later. Old details left live on a profile actively work against you, since customers who show up to a wrong address or call a disconnected number rarely try again. It is a small job that is easy to forget once the initial setup is done.
Where this fits into SEO
A well set up Google Business Profile is one of the foundations of local SEO, alongside your website itself. We set this up as standard on every site we build, and it is one of the ongoing jobs covered under our SEO plans, alongside keeping it fresh as your business grows.
If you would rather have this handled properly from the start, whether for a tradie business, a clinic or a shop, see our industry pages for what a strong local presence looks like for your kind of business, or get started and we will set it up as part of your build.