How to set up your Google My Business (GMB) Page

Setting up your Google My Business profile is a critical part of local SEO, reviews and building trust online.

 We can set up your Google MyBusiness Page for £60 
 or it is included in your monthly or annual review management package. 

In addition to our reputation management software, we can help you to monitor and improve GMB performance.   However, before we can get to that, you’ll need to set up your basic Google My Business profile.  The bells and whistles to make your listing stand out will come later.

Google My Business is a core element to being found and trusted online, that’s why we urge every one of our clients to follow these steps if they don’t already have a GMB page.

It is crucial that your listing data is accurate and kept up to date. Research suggests that 88% of consumers who do a local search on their smartphone visit or call a store within a day.  You do NOT want to miss out on this

Anyway, on to the good stuff. here’s how to get your company on Google:

1. Set up a new Google Account

Or access your Google My Business login, if you have one.

2. Head to google.com/business 

then click ‘Manage Now’.

3. Enter your business name

To avoid accidental duplication of your business, Google will try to autocomplete your business name when you start typing. If you have the same name as another business already listed, you’ll see it suggested.

You’ll be able to add a new GMB listing to an existing business if you’ve just opened a new location.

4. Enter the address of the business location

(Only if this is where your business engages in face-to-face interactions with customers).

If you’re a Service Area Business that delivers goods and services to your customers, you’ll need to tick the box at the bottom of this form. SABs have two options here:

  • If you can receive customers at your business address, enter your address here, tick the box and click ‘Next’.
  • If you don’t have any premises where customers can visit you, leave the address field blank, tick the box and then tick the ‘Hide my address (it’s not a store)’ box that appears below.

All businesses that deliver goods and services directly to their customers will have the option to specify a Service Area in the next step.

5. Specify service areas (Service Area Businesses only).

Before you can choose your business category, you’ll need to specify the areas you serve, so that Google can accurately surface your business for searches in those areas, even without a physical address. Enter one or more regions, cities, or ZIP codes that your business serves.

Please note: At the time of writing, Google My Business is phasing out the ‘Distance around your business location’ option and has stated that these will be replaced, so we’d recommend forgoing this option and specifying regions, cities, or ZIP codes instead.

6. Choose your business category.

This is a very important field that will not only strongly influence the kinds of search terms you appear in Google for, but also appear within your Google My Business profile. It’s also something worth testing when you come to update your Google business listing.

While you are able to adjust this later (which will require re-verification – more on this later), we’d recommend researching competitors and looking through a full list to find the most accurate category for your business.

Please note; Some Google My Business features are category-specific. For example, hotel listings show class ratings and list any amenities offered. Food and drink businesses can also add URLs to their listing for online orders, reservations, and their menu, and they can even add menu items directly into GMB. Services and health and beauty businesses may be able to add a booking button to their listing.

These are just a few examples of the sophistication that Google is developing for GMB, so it’s worth staying up-to-date on new additions to Google My Business.

7. Add a contact phone number and website URL.

Neither is compulsory but are strongly recommended if you want to take advantage of GMB functionalities like call tracking. If you ever need to change this when updating your Google business listing, be sure to make those changes to all other business listings, too.

If you don’t already have a website, Google will even give you the option to create a new ‘Google Website’ based on the information you’ve provided. However, as we’ve shown before, there are plenty of reasons local businesses need their own unique websites.

8. Complete your Google My Business Verification.

Google obviously needs to be able to prove that your business is where you say it is, and for entirely new GMB profiles, you have three options:

  • Postcard verification. This is the most-used verification process, and is available to all businesses. With this process, a verification postcard will be sent to the address you entered earlier (it should reach you within five days). Once received, you can enter the code in your GMB account to verify the business. If your code doesn’t show up, you can click the ‘Request another code’ banner at the top of the screen in GMB.
  • Phone verification. Some businesses have the option to verify their listing over the phone. You’ll know you’re eligible if you see the ‘Verify by phone’ option at the beginning of the verification process. Using this process, you’ll receive an automated message with a verification code, that you’ll then need to enter into GMB.
  • Email verification. Like phone verification, this is only available to some businesses, and you’ll know you qualify for it if you see the ‘Verify by email’ option. This simple process sees you receive a verification code in the inbox of the Google Account associated with the GMB listing and entering it at the verification stage. Be sure you have access to this inbox before proceeding with this option.

The last two options are instant verification, which is only available if you’ve already verified your business’s website with Google Search Console, and bulk verification, for businesses managing ten or more locations. You can read more about both of these options here.

So now that you’ve set up your Google My Business, what’s Next?

Once you have an officially verified listing, it’s time to optimize your Google My Business!

Now you can:

  • Add photos and videos to your listing
  • Write and optimize a compelling business description
  • Use Google My Business Q&As to understand your audience
  • Create Google My Business Posts to showcase offers and promotions
  • Add service menus and product collections
  • Encourage your most loyal customers to ‘Follow’ you on Google Maps
  • Start requesting and managing Google Reviews

Use the Google My Business app to:

  • Update your business hours, location, contact information, and description
  • Post statuses and pictures
  • View search insights

Delve into and make use of Google My Business Insights, to learn things like:

  • How many people visit your website?
  • How many people searched for driving directions?
  • How many people called you?
  • How many people viewed photos of your business?