The Google Business Profile fields people leave blank

A Google Business Profile is the listing that shows up on the map and in the box on the right when someone searches for you or for what you do. Most owners fill in the name and the phone number and stop. That is a shame, because many of the fields that help people choose you, and help Google understand what you are, are the ones left empty. This is a plain list of them, in the order I usually check them.

1. Additional categories

You pick one primary category, and it is the most important choice on the profile, so make it the most specific one that is true. Then add the additional categories that genuinely describe other things you do. Add only the ones that are real; a long list of loosely related categories makes the profile less clear, not more.

2. The business description

You get a limited amount of space (750 characters at the time of writing). Use it to say, in plain words, what you do, who for, where, and what makes you different. Write it for a person, not a search engine, and leave out links and offers, because the profile guidelines do not allow them.

3. Services

Most businesses can list their services, with a short description and, where you can, a price or a starting price. This is one of the places a customer looks to decide whether you are the right fit, so list what you actually sell in the words your customers use.

4. Opening hours and special hours

Hours are filled in by nearly everyone. Special hours are not: bank holidays, Christmas, closures and busy-season changes. Showing the wrong hours on a bank holiday is the quickest way to lose a customer and earn a one-star review.

5. Service area, or address

If you serve customers at their home, or you run the business from your own, you can hide your address and instead list the areas you cover. Be realistic: list the places you actually serve, rather than every town within an hour’s drive.

6. Attributes

Depending on your category, Google offers attributes such as accessibility, payment methods, appointment options or specific features. They are quick to tick and they show up as details on the listing. Tick only what is true.

7. Photos

A complete profile has a logo, a cover photo, photos of the outside and inside, of your work and of the people. They should be your own and look like the real place. Update them now and then, because customers notice an out-of-date profile.

8. The website and booking links, with tracking

Make sure the website link goes to the most useful page, not always the home page, and add a booking or enquiry link if you have one. Add tracking so you can see what the profile sends you, for example ?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=business-profile on the website link, so the visits are identifiable in your analytics.

9. Reviews: the link, and the replies

The profile gives you a short link you can send to customers to leave a review. Use it, because asking is the most reliable way to get reviews. Then reply to every review, good or bad, in a calm, short and specific way. People read the replies as much as the reviews.

10. Updates

You can post updates on the profile, such as an offer, news or a busy-season notice. They are optional, but a fresh update shows the profile is looked after, and they are another place to say what you do.

A note on the business name

Use your real business name exactly as it appears on your signage and paperwork. Adding keywords or a town to the name might look clever, but it breaks the profile guidelines and risks the listing being suspended.

Check it, then measure it

After you have filled these in, search for your business in a private window and look at how it appears. Then open the profile’s performance figures every month. They show how many people called, asked for directions and visited your website from the profile.

For my own business, Pet Getaway in Hindley, Wigan, the Business Profile showed a 4.9 rating from 33 reviews in late May 2026, which is part of the Pet Getaway case study.

What to do next

If you would like your profile and website checked together, that is the first step of my local SEO work, and you can send me a short message to start.