Google Business Profile Checklist: Set Up, Verify and Keep It Accurate

When someone searches for your business or for the kind of work you do, a Google Business Profile is often what appears in the map results and on the right side of search results. It can show your hours, phone number, photos, reviews and directions before a customer ever visits your website.

Setting one up is free, and most of the work is simply entering accurate information and keeping it current. This checklist walks through the process step by step. Google changes its features and screens from time to time, so we describe them in general terms; if something looks different when you sign in, Google's own help pages will have the current details.

Before you start

• Write down your official details. Decide exactly how your business name, address, phone number and website should appear, and use that version everywhere. Our NAP consistency guide explains how to set up a master record.
• Use a business-owned Google account. Sign in with an account the business controls, not a personal account belonging to one employee or an outside vendor. You can add other people as managers later.
• Check that you qualify. Google Business Profiles are generally for businesses that meet customers in person, either at a location or by traveling to them. Read Google's current guidelines if you work entirely online or from a shared or virtual office.

Step 1: Create or claim your profile

Go to business.google.com and sign in. Before creating anything new, search for your business name to see whether a profile already exists. Profiles are sometimes created from public information or by a previous owner, employee or agency.

• If a profile exists and nobody manages it, you can usually claim it.
• If someone else already manages it, Google offers a way to request access. Follow that process rather than creating a second profile.
• If nothing exists, create a new profile and follow the prompts.

Duplicate profiles for the same location confuse customers and can split your reviews, so take a few minutes to check first.

Step 2: Verify your business

Verification is how Google confirms you are connected to the business. Depending on your business type and location, Google may offer options such as a phone call, text, email, a short video showing your location, or a code sent by mail. You usually do not get to choose from every method; Google shows the ones available for your profile.

A few tips:

• Make sure the address and phone you entered match your real business before you request verification.
• If you are asked to record a video, show your signage, your workspace or vehicle, and something that proves you manage the business, such as tools or equipment.
• Avoid making lots of edits while verification is pending.
• Verification can take anywhere from minutes to a few weeks. If it stalls, check Google's help pages or contact their support.

Step 3: Choose your primary category carefully

Your primary category tells Google what your business mainly is, and it is one of the most important choices on the profile. Choose the most specific category that describes your core business. A bakery should choose a bakery category rather than a broad food category.

Add a small number of secondary categories only for services you genuinely offer and want more of. Extra categories that are only loosely related can attract the wrong customers.

Step 4: Set your location or service area

If customers come to you, show your street address. If you travel to customers and do not serve them at your address, such as a plumber working from home, you can hide the address and list the areas you serve instead. Keep service areas realistic and limited to places you actually travel.

Step 5: Enter hours, including holiday hours

Wrong hours are one of the fastest ways to lose a customer's trust. Enter your regular hours, then add special hours for holidays, seasonal closures and one-off events like inventory days. Set a reminder a week or two before each major holiday to update them.

If you offer emergency service or appointments outside regular hours, say so in your description and services so customers know when to call.

Step 6: Add real photos

Photos help customers decide and help them recognize you when they arrive. Upload clear pictures of your storefront or vehicle, the inside of your location, your team, and examples of your work. Use real photos rather than stock images, and add a few new ones every season so the profile looks current.

Step 7: Add services, products and a description

Depending on your category, you may be able to list services, products or both. Use plain names customers would recognize, and add short descriptions where the profile allows.

Your business description should say what you do, where, and for whom, in plain language. Do not stuff it with keywords or city names, and do not include links or promotional claims you cannot back up.

Step 8: Keep the profile active

Posts

Google has offered a way to publish short updates, offers and events on your profile. If it is available to you, a short post about a seasonal service, new hours or an upcoming event shows customers the business is active. Keep posts factual and timely.

Questions and answers

Where Google offers a questions feature, check it regularly and answer clearly. If customers keep asking the same things, add that information to your description or services too.

Reviews and your replies

Reviews matter to customers reading your profile. Ask happy customers for honest reviews, never pay for them or offer incentives, and reply to reviews, both good and bad, politely and promptly. Our guide on getting more customer reviews covers the honest approach in detail.

Step 9: Watch for changes you did not make

Customers and Google itself can suggest edits to public profiles, and sometimes those edits go live. Sign in regularly, review any updates, and correct anything that is wrong. Also check who has manager access, and remove people who no longer work with you.

Keep it consistent with your other listings

Your Google profile should match your website and your other directory listings exactly: the same business name, address, phone number, hours and website. When you change something, update it on Google and everywhere else the same week.

What a profile can and cannot do

A complete, accurate profile makes it easier for customers to find and contact you. It does not guarantee a particular position in search results. Google considers many factors, including how relevant your business is to a search and how close it is to the person searching, and some of those are outside your control. Be wary of anyone who promises top placement.

Google Business Profile checklist

1. Official name, address and phone written down.
2. Signed in with a business-owned Google account.
3. Searched for an existing profile before creating one.
4. Profile claimed or created, then verified.
5. Most specific primary category chosen.
6. Relevant secondary categories added.
7. Address shown or service area set.
8. Regular hours and holiday hours entered.
9. Real photos uploaded.
10. Services or products listed.
11. Plain-language description written.
12. Questions answered, where available.
13. Recent reviews replied to.
14. Manager access reviewed.
15. Details match your website and other listings.

Next step: your other listings

Your Google profile is one important listing, but customers look in other places too. If your business is not yet in Directory For USA, you can add it for free using the same details, so customers see consistent information wherever they find you.