How do I get my business to show up on Google Maps?

How to show up on Google Maps?

Getting your business to show up on Google Maps isn't as simple as creating a Google Business Profile and waiting for the calls to come in.

Google needs to understand what your business does, where you operate, and whether you're a relevant, consistent, and trustworthy option for the person searching.

There are a number of things you can do to make that easier for Google.

Start with your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile is obviously a good place to start. Make sure your profile is complete and accurate, including your:

• Business name
• Primary category
• Services
• Address or service area
• Hours
• Website
• Phone number
• Photos

Your categories are particularly important because they help Google understand what your business actually is. Choose the category that best represents your primary service rather than trying to select something simply because it sounds like a popular search.

And don't set it up once and forget about it. Keep your hours, services, photos, and other information up to date. ‍

Publishing regular updates is another simple way to keep your profile active and give Google fresh information about your business.

You can use updates to share things like new services, seasonal offerings, events, promotions, recent projects, or other things happening in your business. You don't need to post constantly — the goal isn't to create busywork. It's simply another opportunity to reinforce what your business does and show Google that the business is active.

Make sure your website tells the same story

Your Google Business Profile isn't the only thing Google uses to understand your business. Your website should make it equally obvious what you do and where you do it.

If you're a plumber serving the Calgary area for example, your website should clearly communicate that. Your services should be explained properly, and your locations or service areas shouldn't be left for Google to figure out.

This is where a lot of businesses make things unnecessarily vague.

You shouldn't have to read three pages of a website to figure out what a company actually does.

Reviews matter too

Reviews are an important part of your local presence, but more reviews doesn't necessarily mean better visibility.

Google wants to see genuine activity from real customers. Rather than trying to get a huge number of reviews all at once, it's generally much more natural to build a steady stream of reviews over time.

And don't overlook photos.

Reviews that include photos can provide additional context about your business, products, location, and customer experience.

Photos taken at your actual business location can also contain geographic metadata, which can give Google additional information about where that content was created.

The bigger takeaway here is consistency.

Google has become increasingly strict about how businesses obtain reviews, so trying to manipulate the process isn't a good strategy.

For example, you shouldn't:

• Offer discounts, free products, cash, or other perks in exchange for reviews.
• Filter out unhappy customers before sending them a review request, sometimes called review gating.
• Pressure people to leave a review while they're still at your business or through an in-store kiosk.
• Tell customers or staff to include specific keywords, business names, or other wording in their reviews.
• Write reviews for your own business, competitors, or other businesses you're connected to.

The goal isn't to manufacture the perfect review profile.

It's to make it easy for genuine customers to share their honest experiences.

A steady stream of authentic reviews including the occasional photo is much more valuable than trying to generate a pile of reviews in a single week.

Make sure your information is consistent elsewhere

Google doesn't only learn about your business from your website and Google Business Profile. It can find information about you across directories, industry websites, social profiles, local organizations, news publications, and other websites.

This is why consistency matters.

Your business name, address, phone number, website, services, and areas served should generally agree across the places where your business is listed.

If your website says one thing, an old directory says another, and your Google profile has outdated information, you're making Google's job harder.

And Google loves consistency

Note: Be careful updating your address. If Google feels your GBP details are suspisciuos, they can suspend your account.

Being local isn't enough

There's one other thing worth understanding about Google Maps.

Just because your business is located in a particular city doesn't mean you'll automatically show up for every search in that city.

Google also needs to determine whether your business is relevant to what someone is searching for.

Someone searching for "wedding photographer in Nelson" isn't looking for every business in Nelson. They're looking for businesses that are relevant to wedding photography.

That's why your services, website content, Google Business Profile categories, reviews, and other information should all clearly reinforce what you actually do.

So, how do you show up on Google Maps?

Start with a complete and accurate Google Business Profile.

Then make sure your website, reviews, photos, directories, and other online information consistently reinforce who you are, what you do, and where you operate.

Keep your information current. Build genuine reviews over time. Make it easy for customers to understand your services. And don't try to game the system with manufactured reviews or other shortcuts.

There's no button you can press that guarantees a top spot on Google Maps.

But the clearer and more consistent your business is across the web, the easier it is for Google to understand where you belong.

Want to improve your local visibility?‍

If your business isn't showing up where you'd expect it to, let's take a look at your local SEO and find out what's getting in the way.

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