How to Set Up a Google Business Profile: A Step-by-Step UK Guide
When someone searches for a business like yours — “plumber near me”, “barbers in Ashford”, “dog groomer open Saturday” — the results they see first aren’t websites. They’re Google Business Profiles: those map listings with photos, reviews, opening hours and a phone number.
A Google Business Profile is free, it’s the single most important listing your business can have, and setting one up properly takes under an hour. Here’s how to do it right.
Step 1: Create or claim your profile
Go to google.com/business and sign in with a Google account (create one if you don’t have one — it’s free, and it’s worth using an account you’ll keep for the business).
Search for your business name first. If Google already knows about your business — common if you’ve been trading a while — you’ll be able to claim the existing listing rather than creating a duplicate. If nothing comes up, choose to add your business.
Step 2: Choose your category carefully
Google asks for your business category, and this matters more than almost anything else on the profile — it decides which searches you can appear for. Be specific: “Emergency plumber” rather than just “Contractor”, “Dog groomer” rather than “Pet store”.
You can add secondary categories too. Add every one that genuinely applies, and no more — category-stuffing with things you don’t do can hurt rather than help.
Step 3: Set your service area or address
- If customers come to you (a salon, café, or shop): enter your address so you appear on the map.
- If you go to customers (a plumber, cleaner, or mobile groomer): you can hide your address and instead set a service area — the towns and postcodes you cover.
Be realistic with the service area. Listing half of England won’t make you rank there; Google favours businesses that are genuinely local to the searcher.
Step 4: Verify your business
Google needs to confirm you’re really at the location you claim. Depending on your business type, verification might be by video call, a video recording of your premises or vehicle, phone, email, or a postcard to your address. Follow whichever option Google offers — until you’re verified, your profile won’t show publicly, so don’t skip this step or leave it half-done.
Step 5: Fill in absolutely everything
Profiles with complete information appear more often and convert better. Work through every section:
- Opening hours — including special hours for bank holidays.
- Phone number — one you actually answer.
- Description — a natural couple of paragraphs about what you do, who you serve, and your area. Write it for customers, not for Google.
- Services and prices — list each service you offer. Even rough “from” prices help customers self-qualify before they ring you.
- Attributes — things like wheelchair access, free parking, or LGBTQ+ friendly.
Step 6: Add real photos
Listings with photos get noticeably more engagement, and customers trust real pictures far more than stock images. Add:
- Your logo and a cover photo
- Your premises, van, or work setup
- Before-and-after shots of your work (tradespeople: these are gold)
- You and your team — people buy from people
Add a few new photos every month or so. A profile that’s visibly alive reassures customers the business is too.
Step 7: Start collecting reviews
Reviews are the biggest factor in whether a searcher picks you over the listing next to yours. The simple system that works:
- Do a great job.
- Ask the customer — in person or by text — while they’re happiest, which is right after the job.
- Send them your review link (your profile gives you a short link you can share).
- Reply to every review, good or bad. Replies show prospective customers there’s a real, attentive human behind the business.
Never buy reviews or ask friends to leave fake ones — Google is aggressive about filtering these, and a batch of removed reviews (or a suspended profile) hurts far more than a slow, steady trickle of real ones.
The step most businesses miss: give Google somewhere to send people
Your profile has a website field, and it’s not decoration. A profile linked to a real website ranks better, looks more credible, and gives interested customers somewhere to go beyond a phone number. The profile gets you found; the website gets you chosen.
If you don’t have a website yet, that’s exactly the gap our free website offer fills: we build you a professional site from your Google Business Profile — your services, photos, hours and reviews — free, on a free .co.uk domain, with hosting at £20/month as the only cost. Once you’ve finished your profile, claim your free website and the two will reinforce each other.
Quick checklist
| Task | Done? |
|---|---|
| Profile created or claimed | ☐ |
| Specific primary category chosen | ☐ |
| Address or service area set | ☐ |
| Verification completed | ☐ |
| Hours, phone, description, services filled in | ☐ |
| At least 5 real photos added | ☐ |
| Review link saved and shared with happy customers | ☐ |
| Website linked | ☐ |
An hour of setup, a few minutes of upkeep a month — there is no better return on time for a local business.