Your free Google profile is often the first thing a local customer sees. Complete, accurate and active profiles get the calls.
What your profile does
Your Google Business Profile is the listing that appears on Google Maps and in local search results: your name, stars, hours, phone, photos and a button to call or get directions. For many local businesses it brings more customers than the website does, and it is free.
| Google says local results depend on | In plain words | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Relevance | Does your profile match what was searched? | Right categories, services, description |
| Distance | How far are you from the searcher or the place named? | Accurate address or service areas |
| Prominence | How well known and trusted are you? | Reviews, photos, mentions, a good website |
Set it up properly
Claim and verify your profile, then fill in each part as below. Accuracy matters more than anything.
| Part | Do | Don't |
|---|---|---|
| Business name | Exactly as on your signboard and documents | Add keywords: “Best AC Repair Ahmedabad Cheap” |
| Main category | The one that best describes your core service | Pick a broad category to show up more |
| Extra categories | Only those you genuinely offer | Add every loosely related category |
| Address or service area | Your real address; or areas you serve if you visit customers | Fake addresses or virtual offices |
| Hours | Real hours, including special and holiday hours | “Open 24 hours” unless you are |
| Phone and website | A number that's answered; the most relevant page | A number nobody picks up |
| Services and description | Customer words, services, areas, what makes you different | Keyword lists |
Photos, posts and questions
Active profiles look trustworthy. A few minutes a week keeps yours fresh.
| Add | Ideas | How often |
|---|---|---|
| Photos of real work | Before and after, the team, vans, the shop or clinic, happy customers (with permission) | A few every week |
| Posts | Seasonal tips, offers, new services, events | Weekly |
| Products or services | Your main services, with a short description and price or range | When they change |
| Questions and answers | Add common questions and answer them yourself | Monthly |
| Updates to hours | Festivals, holidays, special hours | Before each holiday |
ThandaPro's profile, before and after
Hitesh spent one Saturday on the profile, then gave a staff member 20 minutes a week to keep it active.
Branches and service areas
How you set up the profile depends on how customers reach you.
| Your business | How to set it up |
|---|---|
| Customers visit you (shop, clinic, restaurant) | Show your address; one profile per real location |
| You visit customers (repairs, cleaning, tutors) | Hide the address if customers don't visit; list the areas you serve |
| Both | Show the address and the service areas |
| Several branches | One profile for each branch with its own staff and hours, not one per area you serve |
| Working from home | A service-area profile with the address hidden |
Questions from the worksheet: Your profile checklist
Check each part of your profile. Note what needs fixing, who will do it and by when.
Columns in the worksheet: Part · OK? · What to fix · Who · By
What to remember
- Your free profile often brings more local customers than your website; complete it fully.
- Be accurate: real name, real categories, real address or service areas, real hours.
- Keep it active with photos, posts and answers, and check it every month.
- Google Business Profile
- Your free business listing on Google Search and Maps.
- Service area
- The places a business serves when it visits customers.
- Verification
- Google's check that a business is real and where it says it is.
This article is adapted from the book. Examples marked “Example” use invented names and numbers; company stories are based on public sources listed in the book. For general learning; use your own judgement for your situation.
