Your Google Business Profile is the highest-leverage asset in local SEO — it influences roughly a third of Map Pack ranking weight and is often the first thing a customer sees. Work through this checklist.
Profile basics
- Claim and verify the profile
- Exact primary category + all relevant secondary categories
- Complete NAP matching your website exactly
- Accurate hours incl. holidays
- Local phone number (not a call-center line)
Content
- Real photos uploaded weekly (not stock)
- Products/services fully listed with descriptions
- Google Posts weekly (offers, events, updates)
- Q&A seeded with real questions and answers
- Menu / booking / order links where relevant
Reviews
- Review-request system your staff will actually use
- Respond to every review within 48 hours
- Aim for steady velocity, not one-time bursts
Ranking signals beyond GBP
- Consistent citations across directories
- Local backlinks (press, sponsorships, suppliers)
- Location pages on your website for each area
- Embedded map + LocalBusiness schema
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Talk to us →Keep it maintained
GBP isn’t set-and-forget — weekly posts and photos are ranking signals. See our local SEO statistics, Google Maps ranking guide, and our free GBP post scheduler.
Related: restaurant review management.