Google Business Profile Optimization: A Weekly Playbook

This is the action layer. If you want to understand why these tasks matter, read How Google Ranks the Local Pack. If you want the definition of Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business / Google Places), see the glossary entry.

Everything below assumes you have ownership of the profile at business.google.com. If you don't, claim it first — that takes ~10 minutes and Google mails a postcard for address verification (or instant verification for some categories).

One-time setup (≈90 minutes)

Run these once when you take over a profile or when you've never properly set it up. Order matters — accuracy first, then visibility.

Core info (15 min)

• Business name — exactly as on signage, invoices, and legal docs. No keyword stuffing (e.g. "Summit Plumbing & Heating," not "Summit Plumbing & Heating | Emergency Plumber Boston").
• Address — staffed location only. If you don't see customers at your address, hide it and use service-area mode.
• Phone — local number where possible. If you use call tracking, confirm it doesn't break NAP consistency on directory listings elsewhere.
• Hours — current and accurate. Add holiday hours proactively.
• Website URL — your canonical domain (don't link a redirect-only domain).

Primary category (5 min — highest leverage)

Pick the narrowest accurate category. Examples:

• "Plumber" — not "Home Services"
• "HVAC Contractor" — not "Heating Contractor" if you do both
• "Roofing Contractor" — not "Roofing Service"

This is the single highest-impact field on the profile. Get it right.

Secondary categories (10 min)

Add up to 9 secondary categories — but only for services you actually deliver. A short, accurate list beats a long padded one. Review quarterly.

Services (20 min)

• Add every service you offer as a discrete entry
• Use the subtypes Google suggests where they fit ("water heater installation," "drain cleaning")
• Each service gets a 1–2 sentence factual description (not sales copy)

Service areas, if applicable (5 min)

If you're a service-area business: list only cities you actually serve. Overstating the footprint hurts ranking, not helps.

Business description (10 min)

Write 4–6 sentences answering: what you do, where, who you serve, why you're credible (licenses, years, guarantees). Plain English. No keyword padding.

Attributes (10 min)

Fill every applicable attribute Google offers: "online estimates," "veteran-led," "wheelchair accessible," booking options, etc. Most profiles skip this — it's free relevance and conversion signal.

Photo upload (15 min)

Bring 15–30 real, recent photos: team, work in progress, equipment, vehicles, before/after, location (if relevant). Bright and clear beats polished and stock.

Weekly cadence (≈30 min/week)

Once setup is done, the profile lives off this loop. Block 30 minutes a week.

Respond to new reviews (10 min)

Reply to every new review — positive and negative — within a few days.

• Positive: Thank the customer, reference the service naturally ("Glad we got the water heater swapped out quickly"). 2–3 sentences.
• Negative: Acknowledge briefly, offer to take it offline ("We'd like to make this right — please call [number]"). Don't argue publicly.

Ask for reviews (10 min)

Every week, identify 3–5 happy customers from the past week and ask. SMS + a direct link to your review URL converts ~5× better than email. The format that works: "If you've got 30 seconds, a quick Google review really helps us out — [link]."

The goal is steady velocity, not bursts. Two reviews a week for a year beats 50 reviews in one month then nothing.

Post once (5 min)

A single post per week: a recent project, a seasonal offer, a quick tip, or a service callout. Doesn't move rankings directly but keeps the profile fresh and gives prospects a reason to engage.

Add one photo (5 min)

A real photo from the past week — a completed install, the truck on a job, a team shot. Tag with a relevant service if Google lets you.

Monthly cadence (≈45 min/month)

NAP audit (15 min)

Check that your name, address, and phone match across:

• Website (header + footer + contact page)
• Yelp
• Angi, BBB, industry associations
• Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn
• Bing Places, Apple Maps

Even small mismatches (Suite vs. Ste, old phone numbers, formatting differences) erode entity confidence. Fix any drift within the month.

Q&A check (10 min)

• Read any new questions on your profile. Answer them factually.
• If Q&A is empty, seed 5–10 yourself: "Do you offer emergency service?" "What areas do you serve?" "Are you licensed and insured?"

Photo refresh (10 min)

Add 2–4 new photos. Replace any genuinely outdated ones.

Insights review (10 min)

Open Google Business Profile Insights. Check the trend (not the day) for:

• Calls
• Direction requests
• Website clicks
• Search terms / discovery queries

If a trend is breaking the wrong direction, that's the signal to investigate — usually a category drift, lost reviews, or a competitor doing something new.

Quarterly cadence (≈2 hours/quarter)

Competitor scan (45 min)

Search your top 3–5 service queries from a customer's likely location (use a private browser window with location set to your service area). Note:

• Who shows up in the local pack — and what their primary category is
• How many reviews each has (and their recent velocity)
• What their service descriptions emphasize
• Any new attributes or post formats they're using

Adjust your own profile to match what's working — without copying. If three competitors all list "emergency service" as a service and you don't, that's a gap.

Category and service refresh (30 min)

• Are the categories still the right narrow fit? Has Google added new ones in your space?
• Have you started offering services that aren't listed?
• Have you stopped offering any that still are?

Citation refresh (30 min)

Pick the 5 most-used directories in your industry and verify your listing is current. Industry-specific directories (e.g. plumber-specific, HVAC-specific) often matter more than generic ones.

Attribute audit (15 min)

Google adds attribute options regularly. Check whether any new ones now apply.

Troubleshooting: why aren't I showing up?

The most common ranking problems, in order of frequency:

When to escalate to an audit

This playbook covers the recurring work. If you've done it consistently for 2–3 months and the trend is still flat, the issue is structural (wrong category framework, NAP inconsistencies across many citations, weak website depth, or a competitor with much stronger prominence). At that point a full audit pays for itself — see the GBP & Maps audit for a profile scan and prioritized fix list.