Your Google Business Profile is often the first thing a potential customer sees when they search for your business or a business like yours. Before they visit your website, before they read your reviews, before they look at your photos — they see your Google listing.
A poorly maintained profile signals neglect. A fully optimized, actively managed profile signals a professional, trustworthy business worth contacting. The difference between those two impressions is whether customers call you or move on to a competitor.
These Google Business Profile tips will help you claim every advantage the platform offers for local search visibility and customer acquisition.
Why Google Business Profile Is Your Most Important Local Asset
Google Business Profile (previously known as Google My Business) controls your business's appearance in three critical places: Google Search, the local map pack, and Google Maps. For most local searches, the map pack — the three business listings with a map that appear before organic results — receives more clicks than any other element on the page.
Optimizing your profile is not optional if local customers matter to your business. It is the highest-leverage activity in local SEO, and unlike paid advertising, the results persist without ongoing spend.
For a deeper look at how profile optimization fits into a broader local strategy, see our Google Business Profile optimization guide.
Tip 1: Complete Every Section of Your Profile
An incomplete profile sends two negative signals: to potential customers (this business is not paying attention) and to Google (this profile is not trustworthy). Complete every available section.
Required fields:
- Business name (exactly as it appears on your signage and website — no keyword stuffing)
- Address and service area
- Phone number (consistent with your website and all directories)
- Website URL
- Business hours, including holiday exceptions
- Primary and secondary business categories
Optional but high-impact fields:
- Business description (750 characters; include your primary keyword naturally)
- Products and services with individual descriptions
- Attributes (women-owned, veteran-owned, accessibility features, payment methods)
- Opening date
Take the time to fill out everything. Profiles with more complete information consistently outperform sparse ones.
Tip 2: Choose Your Categories Carefully
Your primary business category is one of the strongest ranking signals in Google's local algorithm. Choose the category that most precisely describes your core business — not a broader, more generic option.
For example, a digital marketing agency should select "Internet Marketing Service" or "Marketing Agency" rather than the generic "Advertising Agency." The more specific category more accurately reflects what local searchers are looking for.
You can add secondary categories to capture additional search contexts, but your primary category carries the most weight. Review your competitors' categories to understand how the top-ranking businesses in your area have positioned themselves.
Need help getting your Google Business Profile fully optimized? Contact Amble Media Group — our local SEO team has helped dozens of Maryland businesses improve their local search rankings.
Tip 3: Add High-Quality Photos and Update Them Regularly
Profiles with photos receive significantly more direction requests and website clicks than profiles without them. Customers use your photos to evaluate your business before they ever contact you — the quality and authenticity of those images form their first impression of your operation.
What to include:
- Exterior photos: Help customers recognize your location when they arrive
- Interior photos: Show your space and create a sense of what it is like to visit
- Team photos: Put faces to your business and build personal connection
- Work or product photos: Showcase what you actually do or sell
- Cover photo: Your most compelling single image — choose carefully, as this appears prominently in search results
Update your photos at least quarterly. Google's algorithm treats recently updated profiles as more active and more relevant.
Tip 4: Publish Regular Posts
Google Business Profile includes a posting feature that allows you to share updates, offers, events, and news directly on your profile. Posts appear in your listing for approximately seven days and can include images, text, and a call-to-action button.
Regular posting signals activity to Google's algorithm and gives potential customers a reason to engage with your profile beyond your basic information. Use posts to:
- Promote current offers or seasonal services
- Announce new products or capabilities
- Share blog posts or educational content
- Highlight community involvement or events
- Showcase recent customer results (with permission)
Even one post per week is enough to keep your profile active and current. Build this into your marketing calendar so it becomes routine rather than reactive.
Tip 5: Actively Generate and Manage Reviews
Reviews are the most influential element of your Google Business Profile for both local rankings and customer conversion. A business with 50 reviews averaging 4.7 stars will outrank an equally optimized profile with 10 reviews averaging 4.2 stars in virtually every local market.
Build a systematic process for requesting reviews:
- Follow up with every satisfied customer via email or text with a direct link to your review request page
- Ask verbally at the end of every successful job or appointment
- Include a review request in your post-purchase or post-service communication
Respond to every review — positive and negative. Responding to positive reviews builds loyalty and reinforces the behavior. Responding to negative reviews with professionalism demonstrates to prospective customers that you take service quality seriously. For a complete guide to handling negative feedback, see our post on how to respond to negative reviews.
Tip 6: Use the Q&A Section Proactively
The Questions and Answers section of your Google Business Profile allows anyone to post questions and anyone to provide answers. If you do not monitor and respond to this section, your competitors, or random strangers, may be answering questions about your business.
Take control of this section by:
- Monitoring for new questions and responding promptly
- Proactively posting and answering the questions your customers ask most often
- Reviewing competitors' Q&A sections for questions you should also be addressing on your own profile
Answers that appear in the Q&A section can also appear in Google Search results for related queries, providing additional visibility beyond your profile itself.
Tip 7: Track Your Profile Performance
Google Business Profile provides an Insights section that shows how customers are finding and interacting with your profile. Review this data monthly to understand:
- How many searches your profile appeared in, and what type (direct name searches vs. category/keyword searches)
- How many profile views, website clicks, direction requests, and phone calls you received
- Which photos are driving the most views
- How your review velocity and average rating are trending
Use this data to identify what is working and where to improve. A spike in direction requests after adding new exterior photos tells you those photos are valuable. A decline in phone calls might suggest your hours are displaying incorrectly or a competitor has recently gained reviews.
Frequently Asked Questions
How important is Google Business Profile for local SEO?
It is the single most important local SEO asset for most small businesses. Your Google Business Profile directly controls how your business appears in Google Maps and the local map pack — the three listings that appear above organic results for local searches.
How often should I update my Google Business Profile?
At minimum, review and update your profile monthly. Post weekly updates, respond to new reviews within 24 to 48 hours, and update your photos and service descriptions quarterly to keep your profile active and fresh.
Does responding to reviews on Google Business Profile affect my rankings?
Yes. Review engagement — including responses from the business — is a positive signal in Google's local ranking algorithm. Businesses that actively respond to reviews consistently rank higher than those that do not.
Amble Media Group helps local businesses throughout Maryland maximize their Google Business Profile and broader local SEO performance. Our SEO and PPC services include full profile optimization, review strategy, and local ranking reports. Contact us today to discuss what your local search presence could look like with professional management.