Guide · Google Business Profile and Google Maps
Google Business Profile: who is eligible, and how to run one.
A Google Business Profile is your business's card on Google Maps and in search. For a local business, it is often the first thing a customer sees. This guide: who can have one, what matters in it, and what not to do.
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What it is
What is a Google Business Profile?
A Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is a free listing Google shows for your business: name, address or service area, phone, hours, photos, reviews and a link to your site.
It appears on Google Maps and in local searches. From there a customer can call, get directions or go to your site without scrolling to the regular results.
Eligibility
Not every business can have a profile.
Under Google's guidelines, a profile is for a business that meets customers in person:
- A business with a place customers visit during its hours: a clinic, shop or office.
- A business that goes to its customers: a plumber, pest control, home services. These show a service area instead of an address.
- An online-only business is not eligible.
- A PO box or virtual office does not count as a place of business.
What matters
Six things to check on your profile today.
Your real name
As on your sign and documents. Keywords in the name are a violation and can get a profile suspended.
The primary category
It shapes which searches you appear in. Pick the most specific one that describes the business.
Hours and details
Wrong hours are a classic reason for a one-star review. Holidays too.
Real photos
Of the place, the work and the people doing it. Stock photos tell a customer nothing.
Reviews and replies
Ask every customer, and reply to every review, negative ones too, politely and without personal details.
The website link
It should open a page that loads fast on a phone, with call and WhatsApp in one tap.
Ranking
How does Google decide who shows first?
According to Google, local results are ordered mainly by relevance (how well the profile matches the search), distance (how close the business is to the searcher or the place searched) and prominence (how well known the business is, for example from reviews and mentions).
Nobody can buy first place in the organic results, and anyone who promises it isn't telling the truth. What you can do: a complete, accurate profile, regular activity, and real reviews from real customers.
What's not allowed
What can get your profile suspended.
- Reviews you wrote, bought or gave a reward for.
- Asking only happy customers for reviews and filtering the rest.
- Keywords or a city name in the business name, if they're not part of the real name.
- Several profiles for the same business at the same place.
- An address where you don't meet customers, just to appear in another area.
Based on Google's Business Profile guidelines as we read them. Google updates them from time to time.
Yourself or with help
Run it yourself, or have someone run it?
Yourself
Free, but it takes regular time: hours and services, posts, photos and a reply to every review.
An agency
Full management of one profile costs ₪399–₪825 a month on the market, from what we checked. Ask what's included and who approves each change.
With us: Growth
₪349 a month: details and services kept current, up to 4 posts a month, review monitoring with a suggested reply, 3 competitors tracked, and a monthly report. Nothing is published without your approval.
Free site check
Before you decide, see what a customer sees.
Send us your business details and get a short written report within 2 business days. A person does the check, not an automated scanner.
What we check
- Speed: how long the site takes to open
- Mobile: how the site looks and works on a phone
- Enquiry path: taps to a call, a WhatsApp or a form
- Google profile: details, hours, photos and reviews
- No profile yet: whether the business is eligible for one
- Accessibility and privacy: statement, policy and cookies
FAQ
What people ask about Google profiles.
How much does a Google Business Profile cost?
The profile is free. What costs money is the time to manage it, or someone to manage it for you: ₪399–₪825 a month on the market for one profile, ₪349 a month with us.
Why doesn't my business show on Google Maps?
Common reasons: the profile isn't verified or was suspended, the category doesn't match the search, or the search was made far from the business or its service area. Our free check looks at this too.
Can someone manage my profile without my password?
Yes, and that is how it should be. The owner adds a manager in the profile's settings and can remove them at any time. You stay the owner.
Want to know where your profile stands?
A free check: we review your site and Google profile and send a short written report within 2 business days. Or message us on WhatsApp.