Google Business Profile: a comprehensive checklist for your business premises

What is a Google Business Profile and why you shouldn’t underestimate it#

A Google Business Profile is a business profile displayed on Google Search and Google Maps. For a restaurant, café, salon, hotel or local service provider, it often represents the first point of contact with a customer, even before they visit the website.

Google describes three main groups of factors for local search results: relevance, distance and business reputation. You cannot change the user’s distance. However, you can influence the accuracy and completeness of your profile, your website content and your business’s reputation. Google also explicitly states that a better local ranking cannot be bought or requested. See the official guide How to improve your local ranking on Google.

Checklist before publishing your profile#

1. Ownership and verification#

• Log in with a business account to which the company will have long-term access.
• Take over or create a business profile and complete the required verification.
• Add at least one other trusted administrator so that the profile does not rely on a single person.
• Check that there is no duplicate profile for the same business.

2. Business name#

Use the actual name that customers see at your premises, on your website and on your documents. Do not add the town, services or promotional phrases to the name just for search purposes. For example, ‘Luna Café’ is fine, whilst ‘Luna Café – best coffee in Prague city centre’ is not a natural business name.

3. Primary and secondary categories#

Select the most accurate primary category based on your main activity. A restaurant with a café area usually has ‘Restaurant’ as its primary category, whilst a standalone café has ‘Café’. Only add other relevant categories if they genuinely describe the services you provide.

Google recommends choosing a specific category that corresponds to your main activity and allows you to add further categories. Changing a category may sometimes trigger a new verification process. The current procedure is set out in the help section Managing business categories.

4. Address or service area#

• A physical business premises should have an exact address and a correctly positioned pin on the map.
• A business that travels to customers and does not receive them at a specific address should set its service area correctly.
• The telephone number, address and company name must be consistent with the website and other trusted directories.

5. Opening hours#

Enter your standard opening hours, breaks and any specific service hours. Before public holidays, set special opening hours, even if they are the same as during a normal week. Customers will then see that the information has been verified.

You can find the official procedure for both standard and special opening hours in the help section Editing opening hours.

6. Contact details and links#

• Use a telephone number that customers can actually get through on.
• Link to the specific website for your business, not the group’s general homepage, if there is a more specific page.
• Add a menu, booking form, order form or price list where the profile supports these features.
• Test all links on a mobile phone.

7. Business description#

In a few sentences, answer three questions: what you offer, who you cater for, and what makes your business distinctive. Write naturally, not as a list of search terms.

Example: “A family-run café in Brno specialising in speciality coffee, homemade desserts and a breakfast menu. We offer a peaceful atmosphere, Wi-Fi and wheelchair access.”

8. Services, products and attributes#

Only fill in what is currently available. For restaurants, check the menu, bookings and ordering options. For salons or services, include specific treatments, approximate prices and a link to the booking page. Attributes such as wheelchair-accessible entry, outdoor seating or Wi-Fi must reflect reality.

9. Photographs#

Upload up-to-date photographs of the exterior, entrance, interior, team and main products or services. The exterior helps visitors recognise the venue. Do not use misleading stock photos, and regularly check photos uploaded by visitors.

Regular maintenance checklist#

Every week#

• Check for new reviews and reply to those where a response from the business is appropriate.
• Check for new enquiries, suggestions for changes and notifications on the profile.
• Check that the links to bookings, the menu and the website are working.

Every month#

• Update the photos if the interior, team or offering has changed.
• Review your services, menu, prices and attributes.
• Check your profile’s key statistics and look for long-term trends, not random fluctuations over a single day.

Before public holidays and special events#

• Set special opening hours.
• Check the availability of bookings and orders.
• Ensure the information on your profile, website and social media is consistent.

How to link your profile to your website and venue#

A business profile on its own isn’t enough. Your website should have a clear contact page, address, opening hours and content that matches what you actually offer. At your premises, you can make it easier for customers to access the menu, make a booking or leave a review using an NFC stand, but do check the destination link regularly.

If you’re just starting out with local search, read on to the article Local SEO for restaurants and cafés.