Your Google Business Profile: what to fill in first

The first things to fill in on your Google Business Profile are the basics, exactly as they are in real life: the name on your sign, your primary category, your address or the area you serve, your hours and your phone number. Only after you've verified the profile do you move on to the description, photos and review replies. The order matters because Google uses those basics to decide which searches you show up for.

What changed recently

If you've heard of "Google My Business," it's the same thing under a new name. In November 2021 Google renamed it Google Business Profile and now recommends that small businesses manage their profile directly from Search and Google Maps. The standalone mobile app is being retired in 2022. Businesses with lots of locations still get a web dashboard, now called Business Profile Manager.

In practice: search for your business name on Google while signed in to the account you created the profile with, and edit from there.

Step 1: the basics, as they really are

Google's profile guidelines are fairly strict, and they're worth reading once:

• Name is the one on your storefront, your website and your paperwork. No added keywords ("Great Pizza, fast delivery downtown"), no tagline, no phone number in the name. Google says plainly that unnecessary information in the business name isn't permitted.
• Primary category describes what the business is, not everything it sells. Google's rule: choose the fewest categories it takes to describe your core business. A beauty salon is a "beauty salon," not five categories for each service.
• Address has to be a real one where you meet customers. P.O. boxes aren't accepted. If you go to your customers and don't receive anyone at your office (plumbers, cleaning companies, installation crews), hide the address and set a service area instead.
• Hours are the hours customers can actually reach you. If you work by appointment only, Google says it's sometimes better not to list fixed hours.
• Phone and website should belong to that specific location, ideally a local number rather than a central helpline.

Step 2: verification

Until it's verified, the profile isn't really yours. Google says verification lets it recognize you as the business's authorized representative and makes you more likely to show up in results. Do it right after you've entered the basics, so you don't have to redo them.

How Google picks who to show

Local results are based mainly on three things, as Google describes them:

The good news: relevance is almost entirely in your hands, through the profile. An empty profile or one with the wrong category loses out on searches where you'd have been a good answer.

Step 3: description, photos, attributes

The description can be up to 750 characters. Say what you do, who it's for and what sets you apart. Google's rules ask for it to be accurate and useful, with no promotions, no prices and no links.

Photos show what you offer: the storefront, so people can spot you from the street, the inside, your products or your work, your team on the job. Google lists photos and videos among its tips for improving your profile.

Attributes (parking, Wi-Fi, wheelchair access, card payments) look minor, but they answer exactly the questions people would otherwise call to ask.

Step 4: reviews and holiday hours

Reply to reviews, the good ones and the bad ones. Google recommends it directly, as a sign that you value feedback, and says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking. A short, calm reply to a negative review tells a lot to whoever reads it next.

And set special hours before holidays. It's the easiest way to avoid sending a customer to a locked door.

If you'd like us to handle your profile along with the rest of your online presence, our marketing services page shows what we do.