Set up your Google Business Profile the right way

Claim your profile before someone else does

Google probably already has a listing for your business, built from public records and map data, whether you asked for one or not. Job one is taking control of it. Go to google.com/business, sign in with the Google account you want to run the business from, and click Manage now.

Type your business name in the search box. If it shows up in the dropdown, select it, click Claim this business, then Manage now. If nothing comes up, pick Add your business to Google and answer the prompts: name, business type, and a category (you can change the category later).

One warning before you type anything. The business name must match your real-world name, exactly what is on your trucks and invoices. Stuffing in a city or a service ('Dave's Plumbing Waukesha Drain Cleaning' when the company is Dave's Plumbing) violates Google's guidelines and is one of the most common reasons profiles get suspended. Not worth it.

Set your location the right way

Google will ask whether customers can visit your location. Answer honestly, because the two setups work differently.

If you work at customers' homes and nobody walks into a shop, say no and add service areas instead. You can list up to 20 towns or counties: Delafield, Oconomowoc, Hartland, Pewaukee, Waukesha, and so on. Keep the list to places you actually drive to. Google's guidance says a service area shouldn't stretch past about two hours of driving time, and a tight honest list beats a bloated one.

If you do have a shop or office people visit, enter the street address. You get a map pin, and your posted hours carry more weight.

Get verified, probably by video

You can't edit much or show up in results until Google confirms you own the business. For service businesses that almost always means video verification now. Postcards and phone calls still happen once in a while, but plan on the video.

Google walks you through recording one continuous take on your phone that proves three things: where you are (street signs or nearby landmarks), that the business is real (your lettered van, your equipment, your tools), and that you run it (opening the shop with your key, your Wisconsin license, or paperwork showing the business name).

Walk outside, show the street, show the truck, show the license. Two minutes of footage is plenty. Google says review takes up to five business days, and you'll get an email either way. If it gets rejected, the email says why and you can record a new one.

Fill out the fields that decide your ranking

Once verified, you manage everything by searching your exact business name on Google while signed in. A panel with buttons like Edit profile, Read reviews, and Ask for reviews shows up above the results. That panel is the dashboard now.

Start with categories: Edit profile > About > Business category. The primary category is the biggest single lever you control for ranking, so pick the most specific one that fits. 'Furnace repair service' beats 'Contractor' if furnaces pay your bills. Then add up to nine more categories covering the rest of what you do.

Next, the description: Edit profile > About > Business description. You get 750 characters. Put what you do and where you do it in the first sentence, because Google cuts the display off early. Something like: 'Second-generation plumbing company serving Delafield, Oconomowoc, and the rest of Waukesha County since 2009. We handle water heaters, sump pumps, drain cleaning, and bathroom remodels. Licensed and insured in Wisconsin. Upfront pricing before any work starts.'

Then hours and contact info. Edit profile > Hours for your real working hours (not 24/7 unless someone truly answers at 2am), and Edit profile > Contact for your phone number and website. Use the same phone number and the same spelling of your name and address everywhere they appear online. Mismatches make Google trust the listing less.

Add services and photos

Click Edit services (or Edit profile > Services). Add every service you actually offer as its own line item, and give each one a short description. You get 300 characters per service. This is what lets you show up when someone searches the specific job, not just your trade.

Then photos. Upload 10-15 real ones: your truck, your crew, finished jobs, before-and-afters. Phone photos are fine as long as they're sharp and shot in decent light. Google wants at least 720 by 720 pixels, JPG or PNG. Skip stock photos. Homeowners can smell them, and they make a real business look fake.

Set a logo and a cover photo too (Edit profile > Photos). The cover displays wide, roughly 16 by 9, so a clean shot of the truck or the crew works better than a cropped logo.

Grab your review link and use it today

In that same panel, click Ask for reviews. Google hands you a short link (it starts with g.page/r/) that takes customers straight to the five-star form. Text it to yourself so it's always one copy-paste away.

Send it the same day you finish a job, while the customer is still glad you showed up. Something like: 'Thanks for having us out today. If you have a minute, a Google review helps other folks in Delafield find us: [your link]'

Reply to every review, the good ones and the rough ones. Two sentences is enough. Future customers read your replies as closely as the reviews themselves, and an unanswered one-star sits there looking like you don't care.

Keep it from going stale

A profile that never changes slides down the results. Put 15 minutes on the calendar every couple of weeks: add a post (the Add update button, up to 1,500 characters, and a photo of a recent job with three sentences about it is plenty), upload a few new job photos, and check the Q&A section for questions strangers have asked.

Update hours before holidays too (Edit profile > Hours > Special hours). Nothing burns a lead like driving to a shop Google said was open, or calling a number nobody answers on Labor Day.