Google Business Profile for local businesses, from setup to everyday management

What is a Google Business Profile?

A Google Business Profile is the business listing Google shows on Search and Maps. It holds your name, address or service area, hours, category, photos, videos and reviews. Google says businesses with complete and accurate information are more likely to show up in local search results. Google also says customers are 2.7 times more likely to consider a business reputable when its profile is complete (cited by BrightLocal).

Google reads the profile to decide which businesses match a search, and customers read it to decide who to call.

Is Google Business Profile the same as Google My Business?

Yes. Google My Business is the old name for Google Business Profile. Google's Ads Help says "Google Business Profile was formerly known as Google My Business," and describes it as a tool to create and manage business listings across Google Search and Google Maps. People still search for the old name, so you will see both.

Which businesses can have a Google Business Profile?

Two kinds of business can have a Google Business Profile, a business with a place customers visit, and a business that travels to its customers.

• A storefront business, such as auto repair shops, restaurants and towing companies.
• A service-area business, such as plumbers, HVAC companies and roofers.

Each business gets one profile, because Google says duplicates can affect how information appears on Maps and Search.

Does a Google Business Profile cost money?

No. Creating a Business Profile and listing your business on Google is free, according to Google's Business Profile page. Verification is a separate step that Google requires before the profile shows.

Google Ads is a separate paid product, and Google says "There's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking on Google."

How do you set up a Google Business Profile?

Setting up a Google Business Profile takes six steps.

1. Search for an existing profile first. Type your business name and city into Google Maps, because Google allows one profile per business.
2. Enter your real-world business name. Leave out taglines, store codes and phone numbers.
3. Choose the category that describes what your business is. Use as few categories as possible.
4. Add a precise address, or a service area if you travel to customers. Google does not accept P.O. boxes or remote mailboxes.
5. Set regular customer-facing hours.
6. Verify the business, so Google knows you are authorized to represent it.

You start the sign-up at business.google.com/add, where you choose to add your business, enter your details and pick a verification option.

How do you claim a Business Profile that already exists?

Claim the existing profile instead of creating a second one, because Google allows one profile per business. Search your business name and city in Google Maps, select Claim this business, then select Manage now, when the profile is unverified. Request ownership from the current owner instead when the profile is already verified.

What if someone else already manages it? Go to business.google.com/add, pick the business, choose Request Access and submit the form. The current owner has 3 days to respond. With no reply after 3 days you may be able to claim through the link in the confirmation email, but Google says that option is not always available.

Should a service-area business hide its address?

Yes, a service-area business should hide its address if it serves customers at their locations, and set a service area instead. Google asks for one profile for the central location with a designated service area.

A roofer in Creswell who works across Lane County lists the towns it covers as the service area. Any address you do show has to be a real one, never a P.O. box. Once the details are in, Google asks you to verify that you run the business.

How does Google Business Profile verification work?

Verification is how you prove to Google that you are authorized to represent the business. Google lists it first among its tips for better local results, and Google decides which options you see from your business type, public information, region and hours.

Google lists four verification methods.

• A phone call or text
• An email
• A live video call, available only during business hours
• A postcard

Postcard codes mostly arrive within 14 days, and verification codes expire after 30 days. Google reviews verification information within 5 business days, rarely longer. Some profiles verify instantly, for example through a linked Search Console site.

How do you manage a Google Business Profile?

Managing a Google Business Profile means keeping every detail accurate and adding new photos, posts and review replies. Only 35% of small businesses actively maintain their Business Profile (BrightLocal Small Business Marketing Report, 2026), so a profile that stays current is the exception. This everyday work is the heart of our Local SEO and Google Business Profile management for Lane County businesses.

Which name, category and description should the profile use?

Use your real-world business name, the category that says what your business is, and a plain description of what you do. The table shows what Google allows and what to avoid for each of the three.

Pick what the business is, not what it has. If no category fits, choose a more general one. Google says unnecessary information in the name, such as taglines, hours or phone numbers, could result in a suspension.

How do you keep hours and service areas up to date?

Change the hours on the profile the day they change, and list every area you serve. 85% of consumers rate contact information and opening hours as an important factor (BrightLocal Consumer Search Behavior, 2025).

Use special hours for holidays and events, and for temporary changes or closures of up to 6 days in a row. Use Temporarily closed for 7 or more days, or when you do not know the end date. One set of special hours cannot exceed 24 hours, and special hours show only when your business hours are set to Open with main hours.

What do photos, videos and posts add to a profile?

Photos and videos show customers the work and the place before they call, and Google lists adding them among its tips for local ranking. Good photos show the team at work, finished jobs and the outside of your premises.

Posts share updates, offers and events on Search and Maps. Google has three post types, Update, Offer and Event. Posts older than 6 months are archived unless a date range is set. Google checks every post against its posts policy, and each one shows as Live, Pending or Not approved.

How do you add a manager to a Google Business Profile?

Add a manager from the profile's settings, signed in as an owner, in four steps.

1. Sign in as an owner of the profile.
2. Open the Business Profile settings.
3. Select People and access.
4. Select Add.

A Google Business Profile manager has mostly the same access as an owner but cannot invite or remove users or delete the profile. An owner has full control. Only owners add users, and new owners and managers wait 7 days before some actions, such as deleting the profile or transferring primary ownership.

How should you reply to reviews on your profile?

Reply to every review, good or bad. Google says replying to reviews shows you value feedback, and 89% of consumers expect the owner to respond (BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey, 2026). Our guide to Google reviews for business covers how to get more reviews and how to answer the hard ones. Reviews also feed how Google ranks the profile, which leads to Google Maps.

How does a Google Business Profile affect your place on Google Maps?

Google ranks local results on three factors, relevance, distance and prominence, and your profile changes relevance and prominence but not distance. The table shows what Google means by each factor and what your profile controls.

Google says "There's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking on Google." In a 2025 study of three US cities, local-intent searches showed a local pack 93% of the time (Whitespark, 540 queries).

Do AI answers use your profile too? Google does not say its AI features draw on Business Profile data, and it asks every owner to keep the profile accurate. In 2026 only 68% of business contact details on ChatGPT and Perplexity matched what Google Business Profile shows (SOCi Local Visibility Index, cited by BrightLocal). Keeping those details the same everywhere is part of AI search visibility for local businesses, so AI answers can find and name you.

What gets a Google Business Profile suspended?

Google may suspend or disable a Business Profile that does not follow its guidelines. Google names one cause directly, unnecessary information in the business name, such as taglines, hours or phone numbers.

Google's guidelines hold four rules every profile has to follow.

• A real-world business name with no taglines, store codes or phone numbers
• A precise address or service area, never a P.O. box or remote mailbox
• A description with no links, promotional pricing or sales offers
• One profile per business, with no duplicates

To appeal a suspension, use Google's appeals tool, sign in with the linked Google Account, add evidence if you have it and submit. Evidence can be a business registration, license, tax certificate or a utility bill with a matching name and address. You can appeal once, and Google says not to create a new profile for the same business.

When is it worth getting help with your Business Profile?

Getting help is worth it when the profile has gone months without an update, or when hours, reviews and photos keep slipping behind. We run Google Business Profile work as part of local SEO, and you get a monthly report on calls, leads and map position.

We do local SEO, website content and Google Business Profile work for James Heating & Air, a family-owned HVAC company in Eugene since 1983.

Book a free consultation.

Google's own Business Profile Help Center at support.google.com/business answers account questions too.