When someone in Luanda searches for “dentist near me” or “restaurant in Talatona”, Google first shows a map with three or four businesses. Being on that map is often the difference between getting the call and being forgotten. The good news: appearing on Google Maps is free and within reach of any business. In this guide we explain how, step by step.
What is Google Business Profile?
Google Business Profile, formerly called Google My Business, is your company's free listing on Google. It's this listing that appears on Google Maps and in the panel with the business name when someone searches for it.
It holds your name, address, opening hours, phone number, website, photos and customer reviews. For many people, it's the first impression they get of your business, even before they visit your website or your shop.
Step 1: create or claim the profile
Sign in with a Google account at google.com/business and search for your business name. Your business may already exist on Google, created by a customer or by Google itself. In that case, claim the profile instead of creating a new one.
If it doesn't exist, create it carefully:
- Name: exactly as it appears on your shopfront, your sign or your documents. Don't add words like “the best” or the name of the city.
- Category: the one that best describes what you do. We cover it in step 3.
- Address or service area: the address where you receive customers, or the area where you work if you go to your customers' homes.
Step 2: verify the business
Before showing your profile and your changes, Google asks you to confirm that the business is yours. The available methods depend on the type of business and the region, and Google tells you which ones apply: for example, a call or text message to your phone, an email or a short video.
In the verification video, show the sign or the shopfront, the inside of the premises and something that proves you run the business, such as the keys or your work equipment. Follow Google's instructions to the letter: a rejected verification delays everything.
Step 3: complete the profile
A complete profile builds trust and gives Google more reasons to show it. Fill in everything that applies to your business:
- Primary category: choose the most specific one. “Dental clinic” says more than “Clinic”. You can add secondary categories for other services.
- Opening hours: including public holidays and the days you close early. A customer who finds the door closed at the listed time won't come back.
- Phone and website: the number you actually answer and your website address.
- Description: what you do, for whom and where, in a few sentences and without exaggerating.
- Photos: the shopfront, the interior, the team, the products or the dishes. Real, recent photos are worth more than stock images.
- Products, services or menu: what you sell, so customers can decide before they call.
Step 4: ask for and reply to reviews
Reviews weigh on customers' decisions and on your profile's position. Ask satisfied customers for a review, for example with a message after the service or a card on the counter with the link.
Reply to all of them, including the negative ones. A calm reply that acknowledges the problem and offers a solution shows anyone reading that the business cares. Never buy reviews or write them on behalf of customers: besides being misleading, it goes against Google's rules and can get your profile suspended.
Step 5: the same details everywhere
Google compares the information in your profile with what it finds elsewhere: your website, your Facebook page, directories and guides. When the name, address and phone number are the same everywhere, Google trusts the data more. When there are three different phone numbers, it trusts it less.
Make a list of the places where your business appears and correct anything that is out of date.
What moves a business up on Google Maps
Google itself explains that local results depend mainly on three factors: relevance (does the profile match what the person is looking for?), distance (how close is it to the person searching?) and prominence (how well known and well rated is the business?). You can read the explanation in the Google Business Profile help.
You can't control distance, but you can control the other two: a complete, accurate profile increases relevance; reviews, photos and a good website increase prominence.
Your website helps your profile
Your profile and your website work together. The profile brings people to you; the website answers the questions the profile has no room for and confirms to Google that your details are correct.
A good website for a business that wants to appear on Google Maps has the same address and phone number as the profile, one page per service and structured data that tells Google what type of business it is. That's what we do in website design and in our SEO and local SEO service.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Keywords in the business name, such as “Restaurant X Best Seafood Luanda”. It goes against Google's rules and can lead to suspension.
- A wrong or overly general category, which shows the business in the wrong searches.
- Out-of-date opening hours, especially on public holidays and during the festive season.
- Unanswered reviews, which give the impression that nobody is listening.
- Duplicate profiles for the same location, created by mistake over the years.
Need help?
If you'd rather not spend time on this, we take care of your company's Google Business Profile and local SEO, from the first profile to replying to reviews. Talk to us or book a no-obligation chat.
