Your Google Business Profile is the highest-leverage free asset in local marketing. For most "near me" searches, the map pack gets the clicks — and your profile decides whether you're in it. Here's the checklist we run for local SEO clients, in the order that matters.
1. Nail the fundamentals
- Primary category: the single most specific one that fits ("Roofing contractor," not "Contractor").
- Secondary categories: add every legitimate one — each unlocks ranking for its searches.
- Service area: list the actual cities you serve, not one giant radius.
- Hours: accurate, including holidays. "Closed" when you're open kills calls; wrong hours kill trust.
2. Fill out services — all of them
Every service you offer should be its own entry with a real description. Google matches searches against these. A plumber who lists "sump pump replacement" separately can rank for it; one who lists "plumbing" cannot.
3. Photos: real ones, regularly
Profiles with fresh, genuine photos — jobs, team, trucks, storefront — consistently earn more clicks and calls than profiles with a logo and a stock image. Add a few every month. Before-and-after shots are gold for trades.
4. Reviews: volume, recency, and responses
Reviews are a top ranking factor and the deciding factor for nervous customers. The system that wins: ask every happy customer, make it one tap (automated review requests handle this), and respond to every review within a few days — including the bad ones, calmly and professionally.
5. The settings most businesses miss
- Messaging: turn it on only if something (or someone) answers fast — an unanswered chat is worse than none.
- Q&A: seed it yourself with your real FAQs and answers before someone else answers wrong.
- Booking link: point it at a page where customers can actually book, not your homepage.
- UTM tracking: tag your website link so you can see GBP traffic in analytics.
6. Keep it alive
Google rewards active profiles: occasional posts, new photos, fresh reviews, updated services. Fifteen minutes a month — or an automation that handles the review flow for you — keeps the profile compounding.
Want us to grade your profile against this checklist? Book a free audit — we'll show you exactly what's costing you map-pack visibility.