Who can have a profile
A business qualifies when it makes in-person contact with customers during its stated hours. That covers shops and offices that customers visit and service-area businesses that travel to customers, like plumbers and cleaners. Service-area businesses hide their street address and list the areas they serve instead. Online-only businesses do not qualify.
You add or claim the profile, then verify it. Google decides how to verify each business, often by video or a phone call.
What to fill in, and why
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Business name | Must match your real name, with no added keywords |
| Primary category | The strongest relevance signal in your profile |
| Services | Tells Google which searches you serve |
| Hours, including holidays | Wrong hours cost visits and trust |
| Photos and videos | Show real work, your team and your location |
| Website link | Send it to the matching service or office page |
Google's guidelines forbid adding keywords or city names to your business name. Google can suspend profiles that break the rules, and competitors report them.
Reviews and replies
Google links review count and ratings to local ranking, and it says replies show customers you value feedback. Ask every customer, reply to every review and never pay for one.
Keep it active
- Update hours before every holiday.
- Add new job photos each month.
- Answer customer questions in the profile.
- Check that your phone and address never change.
Good example. A dental office picks dentist as its primary category and adds each treatment as a service. It posts real team photos and replies to every review within a day.
Bad example. The same office leaves the default photo, lists hours from two years ago and lets questions go unanswered.
The profile feeds the map pack. Our Google Business Profile service manages it for you.