How to Set Up a Google Business Profile and Get Listed (2026)

Google Business Profile, formerly known as Google My Business, is a free tool for managing your presence across Google’s platforms, including Maps and Search. 

Creating a Google Business Profile (GBP) positions your store to appear in local search results. GBPs also include reviews, which 98% of surveyed consumers said they consult before visiting a local business.

Here, learn how to set up a Google Business profile, with tips for using it to drive foot traffic to your store. 

What is Google Business Profile?

Google Business Profile is a free tool for managing your presence on Google Search and Google Maps, and publishing business information such as:

• Contact: Hours, phone, and address/service area
• Media: Photos, videos, and posts
• Trust signals: Reviews, replies, and business attributes
• Links: Website, booking, and messaging

A Business Profile makes you eligible to appear in the Search Results Panel, the Google Maps app, and the Local Pack, which are the map listings for searches like “jewelry store near me.” Customers can call or book an appointment directly from your listing, without visiting your website.

To qualify for a Google Business Profile, you must interact with customers in person during your stated hours. Online-only businesses are not eligible—in this case, skip this type of local marketing and focus on ads and SEO instead.

Benefits of Google Business Profile

A Google Business Profile helps people who use these types of searches to find businesses like yours: 

• "near me”
• "[product] in [city]"
• "open now"
• "best [category]"
• "[brand] [city]"
• "[category] with pickup"

If you run an omnichannel brand, meaning you sell direct-to-consumer online and in a retail store, GBP is a key local marketing tool because:

• Profiles appear in local searches. Customers can find your store location and hours directly from Google or Maps.
• It creates opportunities to build trust. Up-to-date opening hours, photos, and reviews give customers information they can use to decide whether to visit.
• It includes calls-to-action (CTA). Customers can call you, book an appointment, or send a WhatsApp message directly from Google. They don’t even have to click on your website.

Amy Falcione, a small-business SEO consultant, builds and optimizes Google Business Profiles to help her clients reach new customers. “Customers are dependent on Google today and use search functions multiple times per day,” she says. 

“A Google Business Profile gives a quick snapshot into the business, such as your hours, products, or services, that can influence whether a customer visits your store or buys online,” Amy adds. She has seen increases in lead volume and calls after optimizing a Google Business Profile, citing one client that experienced an 800% increase in leads.

How to set up Google Business Profile

1. Prepare your contact information
2. Sign in with a Google account
3. Search for your business on Google
4. Go to the Google Business Profile setup
5. Enter your business name
6. Choose your business category and type
7. Add location and contact details
8. Verify your account
9. Manage your profile on Search or Maps

1. Prepare your contact

If you run a Shopify store or ecommerce website, keeping it consistent with your Google Business Profile makes your business appear reliable to search engines and prevents avoidable traffic losses. Before setting up your Google Business profile, check that these elements on your Contact Us page and elsewhere are accurate and up-to-date:

• Your name, address, and phone number (NAP) 
• Store hours and location
• Store locator data

2. Sign in with a Google account

Use an email address that the business will own in the long term, such as a company-branded Google account. Doing this ensures you don’t lose access if a specific employee leaves.

3. Search for your business on Google

Search for your business name and city before creating a new listing. If a profile already exists, follow the prompts to claim it and prevent duplicate listings, which can confuse customers and hurt your search rankings.

4. Go to the Google Business Profile setup

Go to business.google.com/add to begin adding your business details.

5. Enter your business name 

Use the same name you use for retail signage and branding. Avoid keyword stuffing, e.g., adding unnecessary information, like “best bakery in New York City,” as it violates Google’s guidelines and could lead to suspension.

6. Choose your business category and type

Pick a primary category that describes what your business is, not just what it sells. At this stage, you will also define your business type:

• Storefront. Customers visit you.
• Service area. You visit customers.
• Hybrid. You have a storefront, and you deliver.

7. Add location and contact details 

Enter your address, phone number, website, and hours, ensuring they match the information on your ecommerce store, if you have one. For service-area businesses, enter your area by city or postal code.

8. Verify your account

You may be given one or more options—phone, text, email, video recording, or a live video call—to verify your account. Follow Google’s instructions.

9. Manage your profile on Search or Maps

Once verified, manage your profile directly from Google Search or the Google Maps app. Search for your business name on Google or use the Google Maps app to edit your hours, respond to reviews, and add photos.

How to optimize your Google Business Profile

1. Fill it out
2. Choose attributes
3. Add video and images
4. Add products and services
5. Choose primary and secondary categories
6. Encourage customer reviews
7. Answer questions
8. Add messaging and booking buttons
9. Use Google Ads

1. Fill it out

To complete your profile, include:

• Services offered. Let people know what type of business you run and what you offer. If you offer in-store pickup, include that information so customers know it’s available. 
• Business description. Describe what your store sells and who it serves.
• Opening date. Let customers know when you first opened (or will open). 
• Business hours. If you didn’t add business hours when setting up your profile, set them now to keep customers up to date. You can also adjust your hours for holidays or other events. 

2. Choose attributes 

Google says that adding attributes to your business page helps it stand out. The platform offers a preset list of attributes, including accessibility features (e.g., wheelchair-accessible), amenities and conditions (e.g., Wi-Fi, cash-only, outdoor seating), and business identity tags (e.g., LGBTQ+-owned, small business). 

“Make sure you add all the appropriate attributes to the profile,” says Joy Hawkins, owner of local SEO agency Sterling Sky. “Google has come out with unique attributes to describe a place, including a women-owned and Black-owned attribute. Attributes actually impact how a business shows up on Google when people are searching for these types of businesses.” 

3. Add video and images

Upload images to yourGoogle Business Profile on a regular schedule so your store images are accurate and reflect your current layout. In the photos section of your business profile, the tab “By owner” shows all the media you’ve uploaded over time. 

4. Add products and services

Use inventory integrations (or manually add products) to show searchers what you have in store before they visit or call. 

You can also use Google’s “Edit services” function to list, describe, and price your services.

Tip: Sync your store’s products with Google, create free listings, and manage online and in-store pickup orders from Shopify with the Google & YouTube app.

5. Choose primary and secondary categories 

Pick categories that will help customers find you on Google. 

• Pick one primary category. Choose the category that describes your business best, like “Pizza restaurant” or “Plumber.” 
• Add extra categories if they make sense. Google instructs business owners to add as few categories as possible, advising you to “Select categories that complete the statement: ‘This business IS a’ rather than ‘this business HAS a.’”

6. Encourage customer reviews

Google encourages asking your customers to leave reviews. Data from a 2026 Bright Local survey of just over 1,000 US consumers support this tactic: 47% say they won’t use businesses with fewer than 20 reviews, and 31% say they only use businesses rated 4.5 stars or above.

In an article for Google Business Profile Help, Sterling Sky SEO strategist Elizabeth Rule writes that responding to customer reviews is “a business owner’s secret weapon for building trust with potential customers.” Elizabeth also notes that while you can’t control what they write, you can manage how you respond.

To respond to a review, log into your Business Profile, tap Reviews, then tap Reply on the review you’d like to comment on. 

7. Answer questions

Treat the Q&A section of your profile as a public FAQ. Since anyone can ask a question, monitor this area and answer quickly. Address common questions such as where to park, how to book an appointment, or which area(s) you serve. 

8. Add messaging and booking buttons

Google considers your business type to determine whether you can add booking buttons to your profile, but any business with a verified GBP can add messaging via text or WhatsApp. 

These CTA buttons create a direct path from your Google Business Profile to conversion. 

9. Use Google Ads

Google says that publishing Google Ads can connect you to high-intent customers, people who are actively searching for the goods or services you offer. You can measure their effectiveness, and if you wish, scale them. There are several types of Google Ads:

• Search, or text ads that display in Google Search results 
• Local search ads that show up on Google Maps
• Shopping ads displayed as product listings on Google
• Display ads, which are images that appear on other websites