Complete guide

Google Business Profile:
the optimisation guide.

Your profile is often the first, and sometimes the only, contact between you and a customer looking for you. Here, field by field, is what makes it stand out on Google and on Maps.

Audit my profile for free See the guides
3 ranking criteria stated by Google
1/week the posting pace that keeps a profile active
95% of profiles are not used to their full potential

A complete profile beats a pretty one

Most business profiles are created once, half filled in, then forgotten. That is exactly what leaves room for anyone who takes the subject seriously.

Google ranks local businesses on three criteria it states itself: relevance (does your profile match the search?), distance (are you near the user?) and prominence (are you a known reference?). You have no grip on distance. You have a great deal on the other two.

The profile fields

The fields that count,
in order of weight

Not every field on a profile is equal. These are the ones that genuinely decide your visibility.

1 The decisive field

Categories: the choice that caps everything else

The primary category defines the universe of queries Google considers you eligible for. A poor choice limits the entire profile, whatever effort you put elsewhere.

  • One primary, carefully weighed : « Restaurant » and « Bistro » do not open the same searches. Read the available labels before deciding.
  • Genuine secondaries : they widen your coverage, but only if you truly offer the activity.
  • No opportunism : a category added wrongly brings you disappointed customers, and therefore bad reviews.

How to optimise your profile step by step

Categories and services
Primary category
Restaurant Bistro Brasserie
Secondary categories
Wine bar Caterer Function room
Estimated effect
A relevant secondary category widens your eligibility without diluting the primary one. It is the fastest lever on a profile.
2 Signal of activity

Posts, photos, hours: the profile has to feel alive

A frozen profile reads as an inactive one, to Google as much as to your visitors. It is not volume that counts, it is regularity.

  • One post a week : the benefit is cumulative: twenty posts in January do not replace a pace you keep.
  • Recent photos : a few sharp images beat a redundant gallery that is never refreshed.
  • Accurate hours : special hours included: a customer who travels for nothing leaves a negative review.

Creating Google posts

Google posts
Suggested post
New seasonal menu! Our dishes change with the market: vegetables from local growers, fish of the day and homemade desserts.
Scheduling
Mon 8 Sep Mon 15 Sep Mon 22 Sep
Regenerate Schedule

The other fields
not to leave empty

Less decisive than categories, but they feed the Maps filters and the visitor's decision.

Services and attributes

A user filtering on « terrace » or « wheelchair access » only sees profiles where the attribute is filled in. Every service described is one more search you can exist on.

Maps filters

The description

Its direct ranking effect is small, but it gets read. Write it to convince: what you do, where, and for whom. Stuffing keywords adds nothing here.

Conversion

Reviews

They belong to a neighbouring pillar but count here too: a profile with no recent review looks inactive, however good the rest is.

Prominence

Consistency outside Google

Name, address and phone identical everywhere your business is mentioned. Inconsistency blurs the prominence signal.

NAP citations

Service area, booking link, questions and answers, products: every field you complete is one more chance to appear or to convince.

Where to start

In this order: the foundation first, then regularity, then measurement.

1

Claim and verify

Nothing has any effect on an unverified profile. It is also what gives you control over information others might suggest.

2

Handle categories and services

The foundation of relevance. An hour of work that conditions everything you do afterwards.

3

Set the pace

Posts, photos, review replies: what repeats every week is what builds prominence.

See where your profile stands

Connect your Google profile and get your optimisation score, broken down field by field, with the priority actions.

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Guides on this topic

Tools and resources

How to properly optimize your Google Business Profile

Not every field is equal. Here are the ones that count, and the order to tackle them in.

Read the guide Tools and resources

Create Google posts

One post changes nothing. A steady cadence does. Here is how to hold it.

Read the guide Tools and resources

How to appear effectively on Google Maps

Relevance, distance, prominence: Google states its criteria. Here is how to act on the two that depend on you.

Read the guide

Frequently asked questions

What is the most important field on a Google profile?

The primary category, without hesitation. It determines the universe of queries Google can surface you on. A poor choice caps the whole profile, whatever effort goes elsewhere.

How often should a Google profile be updated?

Structural information, categories, services, hours, should be checked at every real change and at least twice a year. Posts and photos benefit from being fed regularly: that is what keeps the activity signal alive.

How many secondary categories should you add?

Only those describing an activity you genuinely offer. Opportunistic categories blur the signal and can surface you on searches where you will disappoint, which then weighs on your reviews.

Do Google posts actually do anything?

They have no dramatic direct effect on ranking, but they occupy space on your profile, give a reason to contact you and keep activity visible. The benefit is cumulative: one isolated post changes nothing, a regular pace does.

How many photos does a business profile need?

Fewer than people think, but better chosen: a few sharp, recent photos of the interior, exterior, products or team beat a gallery of fifty redundant images. Regularity of additions matters more than total volume.

Does the profile description influence ranking?

Its direct effect is small, but visitors read it and it occupies space. Write it to convince rather than to pack in keywords, which adds nothing here.

Should hours be filled in even when always open?

Yes. Accurate, up-to-date hours, including special hours, prevent negative reviews from wasted journeys and feed search filters.

How do you appear on Google Maps when you are new?

First a verified, complete profile, then prominence signals: reviews, consistent NAP citations across directories, and a site confirming your details.