Boost Your Google Business Profile: Top Game-Changing Tips

Having trouble getting your Google Business Profile to pop up on Google Maps? Hold on tight because today, we’re about to share 50 game-changing tips that will send your ranking soaring and convert tons more visitors into customers. These insights come from years of working with small business owners, uncovering what works and the latest hacks. Whether you’re a seasoned pro at optimizing your profile or just stepping into the game, you’re guaranteed to find at least 10 tips to make you go “Aha!” If you’re ready, let’s dive in.

1. Choose the Right Primary Business Category

Selecting the correct primary business category for your Google Business Profile is crucial for appearing in relevant search results. Picking the wrong category means you’ll miss out on business opportunities. With over 4,000 categories available, finding the perfect one can be challenging. Be as specific as possible. For example, if you specialize in divorce cases, choose “divorce lawyer” rather than just “lawyer.” To find the best category, search for your main service on Google Maps and note the primary category used by the top five businesses. This likely indicates the best category for you.

2. Adjust Your Primary Category Seasonally

If your services change with the seasons, update your primary category accordingly. For instance, a business offering window cleaning and snow removal should switch its primary category between “snow removal” in winter and “window cleaning” in summer. This ensures your business appears in the right searches at the right time, attracting more customers.

3. Add Secondary Categories

You can add up to nine secondary categories to your Google Business Profile. These aren’t as impactful as your primary category but help your listing appear in related searches. If unsure which ones to add, use the Chrome extension “GMB Everywhere.” It reveals the secondary categories your competitors use, providing insights on which might benefit your business.

4. Add Keywords to Your Business Name

Including keywords in your business name can significantly boost your listing’s rank for those keywords. For example, businesses with “acupuncture” and “Miami” in their names rank higher for searches like “acupuncture Miami.” However, Google prohibits adding random keywords to your business name. To include them legally, consider filing for a “doing business as” (DBA) that includes your desired keywords, then update your Google Business Profile.

5. Ensure Your Business is in Your Target City

Your business’s physical location is critical for ranking in local searches. Google bases rankings on actual locations, so if your business isn’t in the city you want to target, you likely won’t appear in those search results. Verify your business’s location by searching for it on Google and comparing the address provided with the location Google displays. If they don’t match, consider moving your business within the desired city’s borders.

6. Proximity to the City Centre

Google often ranks businesses closer to the city centre higher in local searches. To see how close you are to the city centre, search for your target city on Google Maps, click on directions, and enter the city name again. A red pin will show the city centre. While relocating to improve rankings might be impractical, this information is useful if you plan to open a second location.

7. Collect Google Reviews

Google reviews are vital for building trust and improving your business’s search ranking. Positive reviews make potential customers more likely to choose your business. Google often highlights review snippets in search results, making your listing stand out. Encourage satisfied customers to leave feedback on your profile to boost your rankings quickly.

8. Aim for at least 10 Reviews

According to experts, collecting 10 Google reviews can significantly improve your local search rankings. Reaching this milestone often results in a noticeable boost. However, don’t stop at 10—gather more reviews to maintain and improve your position.

9. Regularly Update Reviews

Continuously receiving new reviews is important for maintaining high rankings. Research shows that the frequency of new reviews affects your standing. Use tools like the “Pleer” Chrome extension to monitor competitors’ review activity and strive to keep your listing among the top reviewed businesses.

10. Encourage Photos in Reviews

Encourage customers to add photos to their reviews. Reviews with photos typically rank higher and remain prominent in the main review section of your listing. These visual elements provide a quick glimpse of your business, making it more appealing to potential customers.

11. Respond to Reviews

Responding to reviews, whether positive or negative, is crucial. It shows you value customer feedback and signals to Google that your profile is actively managed, which can enhance visibility. Keep responses professional and use tools like the GMB review response generator to streamline the process.

12. Use a Custom Review Link

Provide a direct link to your Google Business Profile to make it easy for customers to leave reviews. This simplifies the process and increases the likelihood of receiving reviews. Set up this link through your profile management interface and include it in follow-up emails to customers.

13. Send Review Requests via Mobile

Sending review requests via text can be highly effective for businesses that frequently visit customers. From Google Maps, ensure you’re logged into the account connected to your business profile, and use the “Get More Reviews” tab to send requests directly from your mobile device.

Implementing these tips can significantly enhance your Google Business Profile, improve your local search ranking, and attract more customers. Stay tuned for more advanced strategies and hacks to take your business visibility to the next level.

Tip 14: Get More Google Reviews Using a QR Code Another smart and easy way to get your customers to leave a Google review is by creating your QR code. Nowadays, QR codes are everywhere, used for looking at restaurant menus, connecting to Wi-Fi, and more. You can make a QR code that links directly to your Google Business review page, making it super simple for customers to give feedback. Imagine putting a QR code on all your receipts; anyone who scans it will be taken straight to the review section of your Google Business listing. Making this QR code is free and quick. Just Google “QR code generator” and click on one of the first links you see. When you get to the website, select the URL option, then log into your Google Business dashboard. Next, copy your Google review link and paste it where it says “enter your website.” Download your QR code and put it on business cards, brochures, or your cash register.

Tip 15: Get Reviews from Other Platforms While Google reviews are important, asking some of your customers to review your business on well-known social media platforms and websites related to your industry is good. Google likes these reviews from other sites and will show them in the “reviews from the web” section of your listing. This will make your business profile on Google bigger, giving you more visibility and helping potential customers trust you more.

Tip 16: Bury Negative Reviews Showing on Your Panel Negative reviews are hard to avoid because it’s tough to please everyone. While you can handle a negative review with a professional response, it’s more of a problem when Google shows one of these reviews in the top three on your Google business profile. Unfortunately, you don’t get to choose which reviews Google highlights in this section. To make this negative review disappear from your panel, double down your efforts to get positive customer reviews that include photos. Sooner rather than later, one of those will squeeze the negative review out.

Tip 17: Add Products to Your Listing Take advantage of the eye-catching product section in your Google business profile, which can display up to three of your products permanently. Visitors to your profile can scroll through this section and click on any item to get more details, including prices and a link to your website. Even if you don’t sell physical products, you can still use this space to promote your services. For instance, an electrician client of mine uses it to showcase their different services. To see if you can access this feature, log into your profile. If you find the product section there, use it to its full potential.

Tip 18: Link to the Right Landing Page The web page you link to from your Google business profile, also known as your landing page, is very important for how well your listing ranks in search results. Usually, you should link to your homepage because it’s often the strongest part of your website, but sometimes, choosing a different page might be better for strategic reasons. For example, if you have a Google business profile for a different location, it makes sense to link each profile to a specific page on your website that matches that location rather than always linking to the homepage. Also, if your business is seasonal and you change your primary category accordingly, linking to a page on your site that matches the right service category will positively impact how your listing ranks.

Tip 19: Optimize the Content of Your Landing Page The content of the page linked from your Google business profile plays a big role in how well your listing ranks in search results. It’s important to use the keywords you want to be found in your page’s meta title and headings. These keywords usually include your main service and the location you’re targeting. A good rule of thumb is ensuring that about 80% of your page’s content focuses on these keywords. This strategy greatly increases the chances that your listing will appear when people search for those terms.

Tip 20: Improve Your Landing Page Authority with External Links First, let me explain page authority. A web page with high authority is considered a reliable source of information by search engines and is more likely to appear at the top of search results. One key factor contributing to authority is the quality and number of other websites linking to it. If your Google business profile links to a high authority page, it will inherit some of its strength and rank higher on Google Maps in local SEO. Links from other local websites are especially important. The more local links you have pointing to the page your Google business profile links to, the higher your rankings will be. So, get as many local links as possible pointing to your landing page to boost your visibility.

Tip 21: Improve Your Landing Page Authority with Internal Links Internal links are links on one of your web pages that connect to another page on your site. They help visitors easily navigate your site and are also used by search engines to determine which pages are important. The more internal links pointing to a page, the more important it appears. Unlike external links, you have full control over your internal links. If you manage your website, you can easily improve the authority of your Google business profile landing page by increasing the number of internal links that point to it and by choosing relevant anchor texts. This will help your Google business profile rank higher for your target keywords.

Tip 22: Get Your Business Listed in Major Directories Getting your business listed in online directories like Yelp, Better Business Bureau, Yellow Pages, and Nextdoor is important. Here is why: first, it makes your business more visible online. It’s not just about showing up on Google; these directories help people find you in more places. Second, being in well-known directories helps build trust with potential customers. Many of these sites let customers leave reviews, which can also appear on your Google business profile and make your business look more credible. Also, you can add your website details to these directories. This helps improve your website’s authority and can boost your Google rankings. Google often checks these directories to confirm your business’s information. If your business is listed, it shows Google it is legitimate, which can help your rankings. There are many directories, but you don’t need to waste time submitting to all of them. Bright Local has made a list of the most important ones. I’ve included a link to it in the description below.

Tip 23: Get Your Business Listed in Industry-Specific Directories Like major directories, industry-specific directories are highly valuable because they are relevant to your business. The benefits are very similar. Listing your business in these directories can attract more customers and improve your Google business rankings. You can find a list of the best industry-specific directories on Bright Local using the link I mentioned earlier.

Tip 24: Consistency of Your Business Information in All Directories Whenever you add your business information to a directory, it’s important to keep it the same everywhere. Make sure your name, address, opening hours, and other details match all directories and are identical to your Google business profile. If the information differs, it can confuse Google, and they might update your Google business profile automatically with the wrong details.

Tip 25: Business Information on Your Website Just like with directories, your basic business information, such as your name, address, phone number, and opening hours you display on your website, should be consistent across all platforms. Take it a step further by integrating this information on your Google business profile landing page using schema markup. Schema markup is code added to your web pages that helps search engines understand your content better. There is a specific type of schema markup for local businesses. You don’t need to learn how to write the code yourself. Go to ChatGPT and use the following prompt: “Write the schema markup for a local business whose main activity is [add your main service], called [include your name], located at [enter the exact address as listed on your Google business profile] with the following phone number [add your phone number] that is open during the following dates and hours [list your opening times].” ChatGPT will generate the code for you. Paste this code into the head section of your landing page. This ensures that Google receives a clear and accurate signal about your business, leaving no room for error.

Tip 26: Add Services to Your Listing If you run a service-based business, you can list your services on your Google business profile. This is a great feature because it lets potential and existing customers see your offer and helps them decide if they should pick your business over others. But more importantly, listing your services helps your business show up better in local searches for those services since Google uses these details to rank businesses. You can add services in two ways: predefined or custom. Predefined services are suggested by Google based on your category; you can click on these suggestions to add them. You can add your custom ones if Google doesn’t suggest any of your services. The more services you add, the more customers can find your business.

Tip 27: Add a Compelling Profile Photo Your Google business profile cover photo is super important because it’s usually the first thing potential customers see when they search for your business on Google. Getting it right matters because you only get one chance to make a good first impression. If you have a physical store, use a photo of your storefront. This makes it easier for people to recognize and find your place when they visit. If you provide a service like plumbing or electrical work, pick a photo where you’re actively providing a service. This helps people recognize you when you arrive, making them feel confident that they chose the right person for the job. Also, consider hiring a professional photographer if you’re in a business where looks are important, like the food industry. They can take high-quality photos that show your business in the best light and from the best angle.

Tip 28: Add Photos to Your Listing Regularly You’ve probably heard the saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” When it comes to your Google business profile, it might be worth even more. Adding photos to your listing lets potential customers get a feel for your business and significantly boosts engagement. According to Google, businesses that add photos to their profiles receive 42% more requests for directions on Google Maps and 35% more clicks to their websites than businesses without photos. So, make sure to regularly update your profile with new photos to showcase what your business is all about.

Tip 29: Don’t Use Stock Photos Many businesses use free stock photos in their listings because they think these photos look more professional. But even though stock photos might look nice, they don’t show what your business is like, and customers can often tell they’re not genuine. If you want your profile to have professional-looking photos, consider hiring a photographer. If hiring someone is too expensive, you can take the photos yourself. Take these photos at your business and show your facilities and products. It will improve conversion. If you’ve put any stock photos on your profile, you should take them down.

Tip 30: Geotagging Photos You might have heard some self-proclaimed SEO gurus claim that adding geotagged photos to your Google business listings can help you rank better on Google Maps. If you’re unsure what I’m talking about, geotagging means putting location details like longitude and latitude into your photos. It helps Google know exactly where your business is and makes it appear more in local searches. If you’re thinking about doing this or already are, stop wasting your time. Google removes any geotagging from photos for privacy reasons, so it makes no difference to Google whether you geotag your photos or not.

Tip 31: Select the Most Relevant Photos for Your Profile With AI, Google can understand the content of photos, so the more relevant photos you post on your profile, the more relevant your listing becomes. To check if your photo is effective, go to Google and search for “Google Vision AI.” Click on the top result and scroll down until you see a box that says, “Try the API.” Upload one of your photos; the tool will analyse it and tell you what it sees. While some photos might look like yours, Google might interpret them differently. Use photos that closely represent what you do or sell for maximum results.

Tip 32: Add Videos Photos are great, but videos are even better. Here is why: with videos, you can showcase your service, give virtual tours, and help customers understand and trust your business better than photos. Videos give a real feel of your business, helping to build a personal connection with your audience, provide a more authentic view of your business, and mostly draw more attention than text or photos, making people stay longer on your profile. This increased level of engagement will often result in better rankings.

Tip 33: Create a Solid FAQ Section Many business owners overlook this feature. It allows customers to ask questions about your business right on your Google business profile, which you should respond to as fast as possible if you don’t want to miss out on any leads. But as business owners, you can post questions yourself and answer them. So, instead of waiting for customers to come to you with questions, think about the most common ones you hear. You can add these questions to your profile yourself and provide the answers. This can help make your listing more interactive, teach potential customers more about what your business offers, and get more leads. A final tip is to give three thumbs up to the most important question; it will pop up right on your business panel.

Tip 34: Add Business Identity Attributes You can add special tags called business identity attributes to your Google listing. These include tags like Asian-owned, Black-owned, LGBTQ+-owned, and others. These attributes are useful because they appear not only on your business profile but also in Google search results and on Google Maps, making it easier for customers to identify and connect with your business. However, these tags can also help you rank on Google search results when people are looking for businesses with specific ownership characteristics. So, if they apply to your business, you should add them. To add these tags, edit your profile, navigate to the “More” section, and select the appropriate attributes for your business.

Tip 35: Add Links to Your Social Media Profiles Connect your social media accounts to your Google business profile to make it easier for customers to find out more about your business and interact with your content beyond just your Google business profile. This also helps show that your business is active and credible on social media. To add social media links to your listing, log into your profile, click on the edit option, then choose “Contact Details,” click on “Social Profiles,” and add the ones you want.

Tip 36: Eliminate Spammers Unfortunately, some dishonest business owners create fake listings to climb higher in Google Maps search results unfairly, pushing genuine businesses down. If you’ve encountered such business owners, report them to Google using the “redressal form.” If Google finds out the business is fake, they should remove it, which might help your business move up in the rankings instead of them.

Tip 37: Protect Your Opening Hours It’s important to have accurate opening hours for your business listed for two reasons. First, if the hours are wrong and customers show up when you’re closed, they’ll be annoyed and may give you a negative review. Second, the hours you list affect how high your business ranks in Google Maps searches. When your business is listed as closed, it might not appear as high in the search results. Although setting your opening hours is easy, sometimes Google changes them without telling you. This happens if Google finds different hours listed elsewhere on the web and uses those instead. To prevent this, regularly check that your opening hours on your Google listing are correct; once a month should be done. Also, ensure that the opening hours on your website, social media, and any business directories are consistent with what’s on your Google listing to avoid automatic updates by Google.

Tip 38: Add Holiday Hours You can add holiday hours to your listing along with your regular hours. This is important for two reasons: first, customer satisfaction. Accurate and up-to-date hours help customers plan their visits and avoid frustration from outdated information—second, online reputation. When customers see the correct hours and their expectations are met, they are more likely to leave positive reviews, which will indirectly help with rankings. To add holiday hours, click on the edit option of your Google business profile management interface, go to the “Hours” tab, and select the “Special Hours” option.

Tip 39: Show Years in Business Did you know you can show how long your business has been around on your Google business profile? This is a simple way to make potential customers trust you more. People often feel better about spending their money with a business that’s been around for a while. Adding this only takes about a minute. Log into your business profile, click on the edit profile icon, find the “Opening Date” field, put in the date your business started, and click save. Based on that date, Google will figure out how many years you’ve been in business and show it on your listing. Interestingly, you can put any start date as Google doesn’t check if it’s true, but let’s keep that a secret.

Tip 40: Add Google Posts to Your Listing Regularly Google Posts is a feature that lets you publish updates right on your Google business profile. You can add text, photos, and videos; these updates appear on your local business panel. Even though Google Posts don’t boost your search rankings, they’re great for advertising your brand, products, sales, events, and special offers, which can lead to more customer interest. There’s no set rule for how often you should post, but updating once a week keeps your profile fresh and interesting to people who see it.

Tip 41: Don’t Edit Too Many Fields at Once Certain elements of your Google business profile are more critical than others. Editing several of these elements can make Google ask for re-verification of your listing. To avoid this, don’t change the following information at the same time: your business name, your address, your phone number, your categories, and the website link your listing points to. If you need to update more than one of these, change them individually and wait a few days between each change.

Tip 42: Use a Valid Business Address If you’re considering using a PO Box, UPS mail store, or virtual office to claim a Google business listing, you might want to rethink your strategy. Google’s guidelines are clear: PO boxes or mailboxes at remote locations aren’t allowed. If you plan to use this tactic to get multiple business listings on Google Maps, it’s a bad idea. Even if you get away with it, Google will eventually suspend these listings. Don’t be surprised when Google catches on and suspends them, no matter how long they’ve been active. No matter how much effort you’ve put into them, Google won’t reinstate them. Follow the guidelines and play it safe.

Tip 43: Save Your Google Business Profile Information. Anyone can edit the information on your Google listing. All they need to do is pull up your profile, click on “suggest an edit,” and modify the existing information. While Google must validate the suggestions, some changes get published, and Google won’t even tell you about it. This could have disastrous consequences on your listing and its rankings. Use tools like the WhiteSpark Local Platform or BrightLocal’s Auto Sync to prevent this. These tools notify you if anyone changes your listing, allowing you to reject the changes and keep your information.

Tip 44: Turn on the Click-to-Message Option. Turning on the click-to-message option on your listing lets customers chat with you instantly. This way, you can answer their questions quickly and turn them into paying customers. Here is how to do it: log into your Google business profile on the dashboard, click on the message’s icon in the menu, and click “Turn on Chat.” This will activate the chat feature and add a chat button to your profile. Now, you’re ready to chat with customers and take advantage of new opportunities.

Tip 45: Set Up Automated Responses for Your Messages Turning on the click-to-message option is a great idea if you can respond to messages quickly. However, you might not always have the time as a business owner, and customers can get frustrated waiting for an answer. You can fix this by setting up automated responses so customers get the information they need immediately, and you won’t miss out on leads. Here is how to do it: log into your Google business profile, on the dashboard, click on the message’s icon in the menu, in the popup window, click on the three dots at the top, and select “Chat Settings.” Click on “Add FAQs,” add your FAQs, or let Google generate them based on your business profile information. This way, customers get quick responses, and you can keep potential leads engaged.

Tip 46: Complete Your Profile Fill in as much information as possible on your profile. A completed profile boosts your credibility and makes it easier for potential customers to find you online. According to Google, if your profile isn’t complete, it may be harder for customers to find and engage with your business. Since engagement will result in higher rankings, ensure your listing is as complete as possible.

Tip 47: Claim a Second Listing as a Practitioner If Google sees you as a practitioner, you can have two Google business profiles. According to Google, a practitioner is an individual like a lawyer, dentist, or real estate agent rather than a business. Practitioners can have two listings: one for the business and one for themselves. This is a good strategy because it can give you twice as many chances to rank on Google Maps. To make this work, make sure each listing has a different primary category, phone number, and links to a different webpage on your site. This way, they can rank for different keywords. For example, a dentist could use “dentist” as a primary category for one listing and “cosmetic dentist” for another.

Tip 48: Create Dedicated Pages for Each Service on Your Website Whatever service you sell, make sure you create dedicated pages for every one of them on your website. This will help you be more relevant in your search. Service pages give detailed info about what you offer, making it easier for Google to understand your business. Using specific keywords on these pages can improve your website’s SEO and boost your Google business profile rankings for the keywords related to those services. Google will also use that content and include it in the Map Pack results, which will increase the click-through rate and customer conversion.

Tip 49: Find Keyword Opportunities One very useful tactic that many business owners don’t use enough is checking the search breakdown in the performance tab of their Google business profile. This shows the keywords your profile ranks for and how often it appears in searches, including some you might not know about. Use these keywords to improve your website content, create new pages, improve existing content for internal link building, and add new Q&As, Google Posts, or products to your listing. Doing this will make your listing more relevant, helping you rank higher in search results and attract more traffic and leads. To check the search breakdown for your listing, log into your profile, click on the “Performance” option, scroll down till you get to the “Search Breakdown,” and click on “More.”

Tip 50: Track Your Business Rankings on Google Maps Using a Geo-Grid Tracking Tool. Understanding how well your listing ranks across your target location and for what keywords is essential if you want to check whether or not whatever optimization work you’re doing is paying off. A geo-grid tracking tool will show you how well you work, listing ranks against competitors from every corner of your city, giving you crucial insights about your strengths and weaknesses and making it easier to focus on the right areas. Many tools on the market can do this for you. I use two of them: Local Falcon and BrightLocal. I’ve put the links to them in the description below.

Good luck!

( Attribution Luc Durand)