Setting Up a Google Business Profile: Verification, Reviews and Common Mistakes
Key takeaways
- For local businesses, the Google profile often brings more calls than the website in the first months — and it's free.
- Google decides automatically which verification method you get; today it's usually a video.
- The primary category affects visibility most and should be as specific as possible.
- Name, address and phone must match everywhere — on the website, the profile and in directories.
- Keywords in the business name, fake addresses and bought reviews do more harm than good.
Someone searching for "electrician Braunschweig" rarely sees a website first. They see a map with three listings, star ratings and a phone number. Many call straight away without ever clicking through to a website.
Those three listings come from Google Business Profiles — formerly Google My Business. For a local business, the profile is often more valuable than the website itself in the first months. And it's free.
Yet it's surprisingly often set up half-heartedly, verified wrongly, or forgotten entirely. This article shows how to do it properly.
Contents
Why the profile often brings more than the website
A new website takes weeks before Google finds it, and often months before it ranks high for competitive terms. Why that is, is explained in the article on indexing.
The Business Profile follows different rules. It appears in local search and Google Maps, where what counts most is proximity, relevance and prominence — not the age of the domain.
For a trade business, a practice or a shop with a fixed location, the profile is therefore often the fastest route to first enquiries. What a trade business's website should add on top is covered separately.
Verification has changed
Anyone who set up a profile a few years ago remembers the postcard with a code. That picture is out of date.
Google now offers five methods: phone or SMS, email, live video call, postcard and video recording. Which you're offered is determined automatically by Google — you can't change it. If only one method is shown, use it.
In practice, verification by video recording is now the most common. The postcard still exists but is offered less often.
After you submit, Google reviews your details. According to Google this takes up to five working days, usually less.
Video verification: what needs to be in shot
The video has to prove three things: that the business exists, that it's at the address given, and that you're entitled to represent it.
Film with your phone in one uncut take of at least 30 seconds:
- The exterior with a street sign or house number, so the location is recognisable
- The interior or, for businesses without a shopfront, the working environment
- Tools or goods — equipment, a branded vehicle, devices
- An area only authorised people can enter, such as the office or storeroom
Plan the recording before you start. A video showing the wrong things gets rejected, and the process starts over.
Businesses without a fixed location — a tradesperson who travels to customers, say — can also verify by video. What needs to be shown then depends on the business type.
Mistakes that make verification fail
A few pitfalls come up again and again.
Changing details during verification. Change the name, address or category after requesting a postcard and the code becomes invalid. Wait until verification is complete.
Requesting a new code too soon. A new code invalidates the old one. The postcard usually takes up to 14 days; the code expires 30 days after it was requested.
Giving a fake address. If you don't actually work at the listed address or can't receive post there, you're in conflict with Google's policies. That can cost you the profile later.
Sharing the code. Google never charges for verification and never asks for your code. Anyone demanding either is trying to scam you — even if they claim to be from Google.
What belongs in the profile
A complete profile is favoured. These details count most:
The primary category. It affects visibility more than any other field. Choose the most specific one available: "tiler" rather than "construction company" if you lay tiles.
Name, address, phone. Exactly as they appear on your website and legal notice. If the details differ between the profile, the website and business directories, it confuses Google and costs trust.
Opening hours. Current ones. If you're closed on public holidays, enter it. Nothing annoys customers more than a locked door during listed opening hours.
Service area. If you travel to customers, list the places you work. You can then hide your home address.
Photos. Real images of your work, your premises, your team. No stock photos — and no images you don't hold the rights to. Why that can get expensive is in the article on image rights.
Description. Clear and concrete: what you offer, where, for whom. No marketing waffle.
Reviews
Reviews are among the strongest factors — for visibility and for whether someone picks up the phone.
The first ones are the hardest. Actively ask satisfied customers, ideally right after a job well done. A short link to the review form lowers the barrier considerably.
Reply to every review. Briefly and gratefully to positive ones, factually and without self-justification to negative ones. Future customers read how you handle criticism.
Don't buy reviews. Fake or bought reviews are prohibited and breach competition law in Germany. Google also removes them, and in the worst case the whole profile suffers.
What not to do
Three temptations that do more harm than good:
Stuffing keywords into the business name. "Müller Electrical Braunschweig Emergency 24h" instead of "Müller Electrical". That breaches the guidelines and can lead to suspension.
Several profiles for one location. One business, one location, one profile.
Setting up the profile and forgetting it. Outdated opening hours, unanswered reviews, no new photos — an abandoned profile looks worse than a maintained one.
Profile and website work together
The profile doesn't replace the website; it complements it.
The profile brings quick, local visibility. The website provides depth: services in detail, prices, references, what someone wants to know before awarding a larger job. Link the two, and make sure the details match.
What a business website needs as a foundation is in the article on websites for sole traders.
Frequently asked questions
Does a Google Business Profile cost anything? No. The profile is free. Google doesn't charge for verification either — anyone demanding payment isn't Google.
Can I choose the verification method myself? No. Google determines automatically which methods are available for your profile. Today it's usually video recording; the postcard is offered less often.
What needs to appear in the verification video? In one uncut take of at least 30 seconds: the exterior with a street sign or house number, the interior, tools or goods, and an area only authorised people can enter.
How long does verification take? According to Google, the review takes up to five working days. A postcard usually takes up to 14 days, and the code expires 30 days after it was requested.
Do I have to show my home address if I travel to customers? No. Businesses without a shopfront can hide the address and list a service area instead. But never enter a fake address.
Can I put keywords in the business name? No. The name must match the actual business name. Extra keywords breach the guidelines and can lead to suspension.
In short
For local businesses, the Google Business Profile is often the fastest and cheapest route to first enquiries. Verification today is usually by video, and Google decides which method you get.
Choose a specific primary category, keep your name, address and phone identical everywhere, collect genuine reviews and maintain the profile. And skip the tricks — they end up costing more than they bring.