Google Business Profile
Last updated
Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is the free listing that powers your business’s presence in Google Search and Google Maps. It is the single most important asset in local SEO, with more influence on local pack rankings than your website’s on-page optimisation or backlink profile.
What Google Business Profile controls
When someone searches for your business by name, your GBP listing is what appears in the knowledge panel on the right side of the desktop SERP. When someone searches for a category or service near them, your GBP listing competes for one of the three spots in the local pack.
The information on that listing (category, description, photos, reviews, posts) is managed through Google Business Profile. Google has no other equivalent input from you. If the listing is incomplete, inaccurate, or inactive, it performs accordingly.
How to set up your listing
If your business doesn’t already have a GBP listing:
- Go to business.google.com and sign in with a Google account
- Search for your business to confirm it doesn’t already exist (many are auto-generated by Google from web data)
- Enter your business name, category, and address or service area
- Verify your listing. Google typically sends a postcard with a verification code, though phone and email verification are available for some businesses
If a listing already exists but is unclaimed, claim it through the same process and verify ownership.
What to optimise
Business name
Use your exact trading name, nothing more. Adding keywords to your business name (for example, “Smith Plumbers Emergency Plumber London”) violates Google’s guidelines and risks suspension. Keyword stuffing in the business name is one of the most commonly exploited tactics in competitive local markets, and Google enforces against it actively.
Primary category
The primary category is the most significant optimisation lever in your GBP listing. Google uses it to determine which searches your listing is eligible to appear for. Choose the most specific category that accurately describes your core business. If you are a solicitor specialising in family law, “Family Law Attorney” will outperform “Lawyer”.
Secondary categories can be added for additional services but should remain accurate. Over-categorisation reduces relevance rather than increasing it.
Business description
Up to 750 characters. Write a clear, natural description of what your business does, who it serves, and what distinguishes it. Include relevant terms naturally. This is not a meta description, but it contributes to the keyword signals Google uses when matching your listing to queries.
Service areas and address
Businesses that serve customers at the customer’s location (tradespeople, delivery services, consultants) should set a service area rather than (or in addition to) a physical address. For businesses with a physical premises that customers visit, a verified address is required to appear in local pack results.
Photos
Listings with photos receive significantly higher click-through rates than those without. Upload:
- Logo (for brand recognition in the knowledge panel)
- Cover photo (the primary image displayed)
- Interior and exterior photos
- Team photos (contributes to trust signals)
- Product or work photos (relevant for tradespeople, restaurants, retail)
Keep photos current. Google may also auto-populate photos from Google Maps contributors. Monitor these and flag any that misrepresent the business.
Services and products
Use the Services section to list specific offerings with descriptions. For service businesses, this is an opportunity to appear for more specific queries beyond your primary category. A plumber who lists “boiler installation”, “leak repair”, and “bathroom fitting” as services gives Google more signals to match the listing against relevant local queries.
Reviews: the most significant ongoing activity
Reviews are one of Google’s confirmed local ranking factors. The signals Google measures include:
- Volume. More reviews, all else equal, improves rankings
- Recency. Fresh reviews signal an active, currently operating business
- Sentiment. Star rating directly influences both rankings and click-through rate
- Owner responses. Responding to reviews (positive and negative) is a signal of engagement that Google factors into prominence
Generating reviews should be an active, systematic process. Asking satisfied customers directly (in person, by email, or via a direct review link) is the most effective approach. Incentivising reviews violates Google’s guidelines, as does asking in bulk via third-party review services.
Responding to negative reviews professionally and promptly mitigates their impact on both prospective customers and ranking signals. A thoughtful response to a 1-star review often matters more to future customers than the review itself.
Google Posts
GBP Posts allow you to publish updates (offers, events, news, new services) directly to your listing. They appear in the knowledge panel for branded searches and can appear in local pack results.
Posts expire after seven days unless categorised as an event with a specific end date, so regular publication is necessary to maintain their presence. Two to four posts per month is a reasonable target for active businesses.
Common GBP mistakes
| Mistake | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Keyword-stuffed business name | Guidelines violation, risks suspension |
| Wrong or overly broad primary category | Reduces relevance matching |
| Incomplete address or service area | Limits pack eligibility |
| No response to reviews | Negative engagement signal |
| Outdated hours | Misleads users; damages trust signals |
| Duplicate listings | Dilutes signals; confuses Google’s entity understanding |
Monitoring and maintenance
GBP listings require ongoing attention. They are not set-and-forget assets. Google allows third parties (and sometimes auto-populates changes from user suggestions) to edit your listing. Review your listing for accuracy at least monthly, and set up notifications in the GBP dashboard to be alerted when suggestions or changes are submitted.
Use the GBP Insights section to track how users find and interact with your listing: search queries, views, direction requests, and calls. This data does not appear in Google Search Console and provides unique visibility into local search performance.