Google Business Profile
How to Optimize a Google Business Profile
A practical pass through categories, services, photos, hours, and Q&A.
8 min readUpdated 2026-08-14
Start with categories
Your primary category shapes which searches you're eligible for more than almost anything else on the profile. Pick the one that describes what you primarily do, then add secondary categories only for services you genuinely offer.
Fill in services and descriptions
List services using the words customers use, not internal names. Each service entry is a chance to be relevant to a specific search.
Want to know how your business looks locally?
Get your free Locora auditPhotos carry more weight than people expect
Real, recent photos of your space, team, and work help someone decide. Stock imagery does the opposite.
Keep information boringly accurate
Hours, holiday hours, phone number, and address consistency across the web. Inaccuracy is the most common and most fixable local problem.