A short check before you spend more on SEO
A customer finds your business on Google. They like the reviews, tap the phone button and get the wrong number. You never hear about the job. From your side, it looks like Google brought you nothing.
That is a simple example, but it shows why a Google Business Profile audit should start with the customer’s next step. Rankings matter. So does what happens after someone finds you.
This checklist is for local service businesses: trades, studios, shops and small teams that work with people nearby. You do not need to buy software to follow it. Open your profile, keep your website handy and make a short list of things to fix.
Our view: fix anything that blocks a real enquiry before spending time on new photos or extra posts. A working phone number is worth more than a busy profile with a broken link.
1. Check who owns the Google Business Profile
Sign in with the Google account you use for the business. Can you edit the profile? Can you see who else has access? If an old agency controls it and you cannot get in, put that at the top of your list.
Your business should hold its own account access. Give people the role they need to do their work, and review old access when someone leaves. Keep recovery details current. Avoid passing one shared password around the team.
Look at the public profile too. Search your business name and town, then check the Maps result. If you find an old listing with the same name, do not create yet another one. Work out which listing belongs to your business and use Google’s support routes to deal with the old record.
2. Match the profile to the real business
Check the name, phone number, website link and opening hours against what a customer sees elsewhere. Use your real trading name. Extra services or town names do not belong in the name field just because you want to rank for them. Google sets this out in its business representation rules.
- Does the phone button reach the right person?
- Does the website button open a working page on a phone?
- Are bank holiday hours right?
- Does your website show the same contact details?
- Can a customer tell whether they should visit, call or book?
Try the journey yourself. Read the page as someone who has never met you. If you offer emergency work, explain when that service is staffed. Do not list round-the-clock hours when the phone is only answered during the day.
3. Choose categories that describe what you do
Your primary category should describe the main business. Extra categories should reflect other work you really offer. They are not a list of every keyword you would like to appear for.
A plumbing firm and a marketing agency do not need the same category plan. Copying another business’s choices without checking your own work can make the profile less clear. Look at the options Google gives you, choose the closest match and keep a note of why you picked it.
Then read the services section. Are the jobs customers ask for easy to spot? Use plain names. A customer is more likely to recognise “boiler servicing” than a phrase created to sound impressive. Add useful details about what is included, where you work and how someone gets a price. Google explains how profile services are managed.
4. Set a service area you can actually cover
A business based in Warsash may work in nearby places such as Park Gate or Locks Heath. That does not mean every job across Hampshire is a good fit. Think about travel time, job size and what your team can handle.
If you visit customers but do not serve them at your business address, hide the address on your profile. Do not use a pretend office to look closer to another town. Follow Google’s service-area guidance when setting up the listing.
Adding a town is not a promise that you will rank there. Google says local results depend on how well a business matches a search, how far away it is and how well known it is. You cannot edit away the distance between your business and a customer. See Google’s local ranking guidance.
5. Make reviews a normal part of finishing a job
Ask customers for an honest review after the work is done. Send the review link at a useful moment, such as with your follow-up message. A short request is fine. You do not need to tell people what words to use.
Ask fairly rather than inviting only the people you think will leave five stars. Do not offer a discount or gift in return. Google’s review guidance rules out incentives.
Read your replies as a future customer might. A calm response to a complaint often says more about the business than a long sales pitch under a positive review. Thank the person, address the issue and move private details into a direct conversation.
Do not post a customer’s address, job details or phone number in a public reply. You can explain your approach without exposing the person behind the review.
6. Use photos that answer real questions
Can someone recognise your shop from the street? Can they see the sort of work you do? Is the team shown on the profile still the team they will meet?
Use clear, recent images you have permission to share. For a shop, show the entrance and what is inside. For a trades business, show real work, with the customer’s approval where needed. Remove photos that give the wrong idea about your premises or services.
A photo does not need to win an award. It needs to help someone decide whether to trust you. Keep faces, work and places real. Do not use stock images in a way that makes them look like your own team or jobs.
7. Check the page people land on
The profile and the website should feel like two parts of the same conversation. A customer who wants a flooring quote should not have to hunt through unrelated pages to find a contact route.
For Brook Flooring, our work included a custom WordPress button that opens a chat with Phil’s WhatsApp Business number. It is a small, specific change to the enquiry route. You can read the Brook Flooring case study to see the wider work and its constraints.
That does not mean every business needs WhatsApp. Pick the route your team can answer. A booking form, phone call or short enquiry form may be a better fit. Test the whole route, including the message the customer sees after they send something.
What should you fix first?
Split your notes into three groups. Do the first group before adding new content.
- Blocks an enquiry: wrong number, broken link, missing access or a form that fails.
- Creates doubt: unclear services, out-of-date hours, mismatched details or old photos.
- Needs steady work: review requests, useful updates and monthly checks.
Give each fix an owner and a date. Save a simple record of what changed. Then compare profile actions and real enquiries over the next full month. A phone-button tap is not proof that a call was answered or a job was booked.
If you want help sorting the list, our local SEO service covers profile and website work. You can also start with a one-off website and SEO audit. We agree the scope first, so you can make a useful start without taking on a long contract.