Guide · Google Business Profile · Local SEO
The Google Business Profile checklist
Most local customers look at your profile before your website. Work through this list in order and your listing will be complete, accurate and safe from the mistakes that cause suspensions.
By Nick Gonzalez, founder, U.S. Air Force veteranPublished Last reviewed How we research and correct this
The short answer
What to know first
Claim and verify your profile, choose the one category that best describes your main service, list every real service in your customers' words, add original photos and ask every customer for an honest review. Keep your name, address, phone and hours identical to your website.
Google says local results depend mainly on relevance, distance and prominence. You cannot change distance, but you can improve the other two, and you can avoid the errors that remove a profile altogether.
Step 1 · Set up
Claim it and get the basics right
- Use your real business name, exactly as it appears on your sign, invoices and website. No keywords or towns added.
- Choose one primary category that matches your main service, then add secondary categories only for things you genuinely do.
- Enter an accurate address, or set a service area if customers do not visit you. Never use a virtual office or a friend's address.
- Add a phone number that is answered, and make sure a missed call gets a quick reply.
- Set your hours, including holidays, so customers are not sent to a closed door.
- Link to the exact page on your site that matches the profile, not a generic home page.
Step 2 · Describe what you do
Services, description and photos
List every real service and write a short, plain description for each. Use the words a customer would type, such as "furnace repair" rather than "HVAC solutions".
Write a description that says what you do, who you do it for and where, in a few sentences. Skip superlatives like "best" and anything you cannot prove.
- Add original photos: your premises, your team and your work. Photos of real people and places do better than stock images, and Google can remove misleading ones.
- Add a logo and a cover photo so the profile looks like your brand.
- Show prices or how pricing works wherever you can. Clear information gets more enquiries than silence.
Step 3 · Reviews
Ask everyone, reply to everyone
Reviews are a major part of prominence, and they are where most profiles go wrong. Google prohibits selectively asking only your happiest customers, and offering rewards for reviews. Ask every customer for honest feedback, whatever their experience.
Make it one tap: send the direct review link by text right after the job, while the experience is fresh. Then reply to each review in your own voice, including the critical ones, calmly and without arguing.
Step 4 · Keep it alive
Posts, questions and consistency
- Post when you have real news: an event, an offer, a finished project, a change in hours.
- Answer messages and questions quickly. Responsiveness is something customers notice.
- Check once a month that your hours, phone, links and services are still true.
- Keep your name, address and phone the same on your website, social profiles and local directories such as the Chamber of Commerce.
What to avoid
The mistakes that get profiles suspended
- Keywords or locations stuffed into the business name.
- A fake address, a virtual office or several profiles for one location.
- Fake reviews, paid reviews or reviews from staff and family.
- Making many edits while a change is pending. Wait for the review to finish.
- Claiming a service area far from where you actually work.
Questions
Quick answers
- Is a Google Business Profile free?
- Yes. Creating and managing a profile costs nothing. You pay only if you hire someone to set it up or look after it.
- How long does verification take?
- It varies. Google may ask for a video, a postcard or another check, and edits are often reviewed before they appear. Plan on days, and do not make repeated edits while a change is pending.
- Can I put keywords in my business name?
- No. Your name should be your real, public business name. Adding services or towns to the name breaks Google's rules and can get the profile suspended.
- Should I hide my address if I work from home?
- If customers do not visit you, you can run a service-area business and hide the address. Google has rules about which businesses qualify and how far a service area should reach, so list the areas you genuinely serve.
- How often should I post?
- When you have something real to say: an offer, an event, a finished job, a change in hours. A few useful posts beat a daily stream of filler. Posts are not a ranking trick.
- Will this make me rank first?
- No one can promise that. Google says local results depend mainly on relevance, distance and prominence. A complete, accurate profile improves your chances; it does not guarantee a position.
Guidance reflects Google's published rules and general local search practice. We never promise a ranking, a review count or a revenue figure.
- Want us to do it? See local SEO and Google Business Profile.
- How assistants find you: getting found by ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI.
- What it costs: website and SEO prices in Chatham-Kent.
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