When someone searches for a plumber, a cafe or a physio near them, Google often shows a map with a short list of businesses. Those listings come from Google Business Profiles. If you do not have one, you are much less likely to appear there. The good news is that it is free and you can set it up yourself in an afternoon.
This guide covers the steps, the rules, and the details that make a profile worth having. For a wider look at how to use it well, see our Google Business Profile guide.
First, check you are eligible
Google has rules about who can have a profile. The main one is that your business needs in-person contact with customers during stated hours. That can mean a shopfront or office, or it can mean you travel to customers, like a mobile mechanic or a cleaner.
Online-only businesses are not eligible. If you sell only over the internet and never meet customers in person, Google will not list you on Maps. Other things that are usually not allowed include fake addresses, virtual offices that nobody staffs, and listings for a business that does not exist.
Google updates its guidelines from time to time, so read the current rules on its help pages before you start. If you break them, your profile can be suspended, which is a bigger problem than never having one.
Step 1: search before you create
Your business might already be on Maps. Google sometimes creates listings from public information, and a previous owner of your address may have made one. Search your business name and your address. If you find a listing, you can claim it rather than make a duplicate. Duplicates confuse customers and can cause problems for both profiles.
Step 2: create the profile
Go to Google Business Profile and sign in with a Google account. Use an account you will keep. Ideally it is one the business controls, not a personal one that belongs to an employee who may leave.
Enter your business name exactly as customers know it, on your signage and invoices. Do not add keywords or suburb names to the name to try to rank better. That is against the guidelines and can get you in trouble.
Step 3: choose your categories
You pick one primary category and can add secondary ones. The primary category matters most. Choose the one that best describes your main service, not the broadest word you can find. A person who fixes leaking taps may choose a plumbing category, not a general home services one.
Look at what competitors who rank well have chosen as their primary category. It is a quick way to see the options. Add secondary categories only if they are true.
Step 4: add your address or service area
You have two choices, and some businesses use both.
- A physical location. If customers visit you, add your address so it shows on the map.
- A service area. If you travel to customers, list the suburbs or regions you cover. You can hide your address if people do not visit you, which suits home-based businesses.
Be realistic about your service area. Listing every suburb in the state will not help you show up in all of them, and it can look unconvincing. Pick the areas you actually work in.
Step 5: contact details and hours
Add a phone number that is answered and a link to your website. Set opening hours accurately, including public holidays when they differ. Wrong hours are one of the quickest ways to annoy a customer who turns up at a closed door.
Step 6: verify
Google needs to confirm that you are really the business you say you are. The method it offers depends on your business and can include a phone call, a text, an email, a video recording or a postcard with a code. You do not always get to choose, so follow what Google shows you.
Video verification usually asks you to show your premises, signage or equipment, and proof that you run the business. Have these ready before you start. If you work from vehicles, be ready to show the vehicle and the tools of the trade.
Until you verify, the profile is limited and may not show up properly. Do not try to bypass verification or pay someone who promises a shortcut.
Step 7: add a description, services and photos
Write a short, plain description of what you do, who you do it for and where. Skip the sales talk and the stuffed keywords. Then add your services, and prices if you are comfortable with that.
Photos help people decide. Use real ones: your premises, your team at work, finished jobs, your van. Avoid stock images. Add a few at the start and keep adding them over time. If you do not have good photos, taking a dozen on a phone in decent light is better than none.
Step 8: keep your details consistent
Your name, address and phone number, often called NAP, should be written the same way everywhere: on your website, your profile, your social accounts and any directories. Small differences, such as “Street” in one place and “St” in another, are not usually a disaster, but different phone numbers or old addresses can cause confusion for customers and for Google. If you have moved or changed numbers, update everything.
Our local SEO checklist covers consistency in more detail.
Step 9: ask for reviews
Reviews are a big part of how people choose. Ask happy customers to leave one, and make it easy by sending them the direct link to your review form. Reply to reviews, good and bad, politely. Never offer money or gifts in exchange for reviews, and do not write your own. Google can remove them and penalise the profile.
We cover this properly in how to get more Google reviews.
What to do after you are live
- Check the profile every month or so for incorrect edits or new questions.
- Post updates or offers if you have something worth saying.
- Add new photos when you complete good work.
- Update your hours before holidays.
- Make sure your website is clear, fast on a phone, and matches what the profile says.
Having a profile does not guarantee you will show up first, or at all, for a given search. Rankings depend on relevance, distance, and how well known your business looks to Google. A good profile gives you a fair chance. It does not buy you a position.
Common mistakes
- Stuffing keywords into the business name.
- Creating a second profile instead of claiming the first.
- Using a PO box or a fake address.
- Picking a category that is too broad or wrong.
- Never checking the profile again after setup.
Where we can help
Every website we build includes Google Business Profile and Search Console setup. If you want ongoing help, our Grow plan at $250 + GST a month includes local SEO, profile management and two posts a month, with a monthly report. We work fully remotely, by email and online forms. If you are an online-only business, we would tell you plainly that a Maps listing is not for you, though the website still might be. See our websites or the get started form.