SEO & AEO
Google Business Profile setup, step by step
A Google Business Profile (GBP) is your free listing on Google Maps and in local search results. Setting it up properly is one 20-minute task with an outsized payoff: it's often the first thing a potential customer sees, before your website loads at all.
1. Claim or verify your listing
Search your business name on Google Maps first — a listing may already exist, created automatically or by a past customer. Claim it if so; if not, create a new one at business.google.com. Verification is usually by postcard, phone, or email, depending on the business type.
2. Get the category right
Your primary category is one of the strongest ranking signals GBP uses. Pick the most specific accurate category ("Pediatric dentist," not just "Dentist") and add relevant secondary categories. Wrong or overly broad categories are one of the most common reasons a listing underperforms.
3. Fill in every field
Hours (including holiday hours), service area, a full business description, and your services list. Incomplete profiles rank behind complete ones, and a customer landing on a half-empty profile trusts it less.
4. Add real photos
Storefront, team, work in progress, finished results — whatever's relevant. Listings with strong photos consistently get chosen over listings without them, and Google surfaces photo count as a visible signal.
5. Keep it alive
A profile that hasn't posted or updated in a year reads as abandoned, even if the business is thriving. Regular posts (offers, updates, projects) and prompt responses to reviews keep it looking active — which matters to both Google and the person reading it.
FAQ
Related questions
What's a Google Business Profile and do I need one?
It's your free Google Maps / "near me" listing. For local businesses it's one of the most valuable things you can have — we can set it up and optionally manage it so it stays active and answers reviews.