Set it up properly
- Claim and verify your profile at business.google.com. Verification is often a short video showing your business, tools or signage.
- Use your real business name — adding keywords or town names to it is against Google's rules and can get the profile suspended.
- Choose the most specific primary category you can, then add a few secondary ones.
- Work from home or visit customers? Set a service area and hide your address.
Keep your details consistent
Your name, phone number and website should match exactly on your profile, your website and any directories. Inconsistent details make Google less confident about showing you.
Reviews win customers
- Ask every happy customer — send them your review link straight after the job, while they're pleased.
- Reply to every review, good and bad. A calm, helpful reply to a bad review often impresses people more than the five-star ones.
- Never buy reviews or offer rewards for them — it's against the rules and Google removes them.
Quick win Add real photos — your work, your van, you. Profiles with photos get noticeably more clicks than ones without.
Keep it alive
Update your opening hours (including bank holidays), answer questions people post, and add an occasional post about a recent job or offer. A profile that's looked after signals a business that's looked after.
