For most local businesses across Australia, New Zealand and the UK, the first impression happens on a map or a search result. Your Google Business Profile often matters more than your homepage. Here is how we make it work as hard as a shopfront.
The profile is the new front door
When someone searches for a cafe in Burleigh, a builder in Christchurch or an accountant in Bristol, the map results and business profiles appear before most websites. Customers compare photos, reviews, hours and answers in seconds. Many decide without visiting your site at all.
Google says local ranking depends mainly on relevance, distance and prominence. You cannot change distance. You can make your profile clearly relevant and give people strong reasons to trust it.
The Studio local presence routine
We treat a business profile like a shopfront that needs regular care. Accurate categories and services. Real, recent photos that show the experience, not stock images. Hours that are right on public holidays, which differ between states, regions and nations. Answers to the questions customers actually ask.
Then we connect it to the website. The same name, address and phone number everywhere. A clear page for each core service and, where relevant, each location. Reviews that are earned honestly and replied to by name.
- Choose the most accurate primary category.
- Add real photos every month.
- Update hours for public holidays in your state or region.
- List services with clear descriptions and prices where possible.
- Reply to every review, and keep details consistent across the web.
Put it to work
A practical next step
Search for your own business on your phone as a customer would. Compare your profile with the top two competitors and fix the three things that would make someone choose them over you.
Explore the toolsSources and method
- Google Business Profile Help on local ranking
How Google describes relevance, distance and prominence in local results.
- Google Business Profile Help
Guidance on setting up and maintaining a profile.
The methods in this article are Maurice Studio recommendations. External sources inform the underlying principles and rules referred to. They do not validate the Studio approach or guarantee commercial results. Rules change, so check the current position for your business and get specialist advice where it matters.