How does a Google Business Profile help local customers find you?

What the profile is

When someone searches "bakery near me" or the name of your shop, Google often shows a box with a business's name, hours, phone number, directions, photos and reviews. That box comes from a Google Business Profile, which is free to create and manage. Most of the work is the first setup, then a few minutes of upkeep each month.

How Google decides who shows up

Google's own help page says local results are based mainly on three things [1]:

• Relevance: how well a profile matches what someone is searching for.
• Distance: how far each business is from the person searching. If the person does not share a location, Google uses what it knows about where they are.
• Prominence: how well-known a business is. Google says this is based partly on how many websites link to the business and how many reviews it has, and that more reviews and positive ratings can help local ranking.

Google also says there is no way to request or pay for a better local ranking [1].

You cannot change distance. You can help relevance by filling in the profile completely and accurately, and prominence by earning genuine reviews (lesson 13).

Following the rules for the basics

Google publishes guidelines for how a profile should represent a business [2]. A few that trip people up:

Name. Your name should reflect your real-world business name, as customers see it on your signage, website and paperwork [2]. Do not add extra words such as service keywords, locations, taglines or phone numbers. "Maple Street Bakery" is fine. "Maple Street Bakery Best Cupcakes Downtown" is not.

Address. Use a real, precise address [2]. Google says P.O. boxes or mailboxes at remote locations are not acceptable, and one profile per location is the rule.

Service-area businesses. If you travel to customers, such as a plumber or a landscaper, and you do not serve customers at your address, Google says you should hide your address and set a service area instead [2].

Categories. Pick as few categories as possible, as specific as possible, describing what the business is, not everything it offers [2].

Hours. List regular customer-facing hours, and use special hours for holidays [2].

Google warns that breaking the naming rules could result in the suspension of your profile [2].

Keeping it complete and current

Google's tips for local ranking list several things you can do [1]:

• Verify your business. This confirms you are authorized to manage the profile.
• Enter complete information. Address, phone, website, hours, category and attributes such as parking or Wi-Fi. Google notes that if your information is not accurate, your profile might not show up for relevant searches.
• Keep hours accurate, including special hours for holidays.
• Add photos and videos that show what customers can expect.
• Respond to reviews.

The profile's performance section also shows what customers do: calls, website clicks, direction requests and the search terms used to find you [3]. Lesson 9 covers reading numbers like these.

Common mistakes

Stuffing the name with keywords. It breaks Google's guidelines, which warn it could lead to suspension.

Outdated hours. A customer who drives over and finds the doors locked may not try again. Update hours before every holiday.

Using a home address you do not want public. If you serve customers at their location, set a service area and hide the address.

Choosing ten categories. Fewer, more specific categories describe you better.

Setting it up once and forgetting it. New photos, accurate hours and replies to reviews keep the profile useful to the people reading it.

Worked example

A plumbing company works out of the owner's garage and travels to every job. Its profile currently shows the home address, lists the name as "Reyes Plumbing 24 Hour Emergency Plumber Fresno," and has three photos from 2021.

The owner fixes it in one evening:

1. Changes the name back to "Reyes Plumbing," matching the van and invoices.
2. Hides the home address and sets a service area covering the towns the company actually drives to.
3. Chooses "Plumber" as the primary category instead of a long list.
4. Sets the hours field to match reality, choosing "Open 24 hours" only because someone truly answers around the clock, and mentions emergency service in the description rather than the name.
5. Uploads ten recent photos of the vans, the crew at work and finished jobs.
6. Replies to every review from the last year.

Each month after that, he spends ten minutes checking hours, adding a photo or two and replying to new reviews. He watches calls and direction requests in the performance section to see how the profile is being used.

Checklist

• The profile is verified.
• The name matches the real-world business name, with no extra keywords.
• The address is real, or hidden with a service area set.
• Categories are few and specific.
• Hours, including holiday hours, are current.
• Photos are recent and real.
• Every review has a reply.

Try it

Search for your business on Google Maps from your phone, as a customer would. Write down every detail that is wrong, missing or out of date. Then log in to your Business Profile and fix each item. Set a monthly reminder to repeat this check.

Tips

• Update holiday hours at least a week before each holiday.
• Add new photos regularly so the profile reflects your business today.
• Use the same name, address and phone number everywhere you are listed.
• Remember that Google says local ranking cannot be bought.

Sources

1. "Tips to improve your local ranking on Google," Google Business Profile Help, https://support.google.com/business/answer/7091
2. "Guidelines for representing your business on Google," Google Business Profile Help, https://support.google.com/business/answer/3038177
3. "Understand your Business Profile performance & insights," Google Business Profile Help, https://support.google.com/business/answer/9918094