Published 2 November 2026 · By Coelho Branco
What Google Business Profile is
Google Business Profile, formerly Google My Business, is the listing that appears on Google Maps and beside search results, with your address, opening hours, photos and reviews. It is free and, for local businesses, often the most-seen shop window, ahead even of your website.
Step 1: create or claim the profile
Search for your business name on Google Maps. If a profile already exists (sometimes created by customers), click “Own this business?”. If not, create one at google.com/business using the business’s Google account, not an employee’s personal account.
Step 2: verify
Google asks you to confirm the business exists: by video of the premises, phone, email or post. Video verification is the most common today: show the sign, the entrance and the workspace in one continuous clip.
Step 3: fill in everything
- Primary category as precise as possible: “Barber shop”, not “Beauty salon”
- Services with prices: they appear on the profile and help with specific searches
- Opening hours, including bank holidays
- Description of what you do and where, in Portuguese and English
- 10 to 20 real photos: frontage, interior, team, your work
- Link to your website and booking
Step 4: reviews and posts
Ask happy customers for reviews right after the service, with a direct link or a QR code on the counter. Reply to every review, good and bad. Post one update a week: recent work, an offer, special opening hours.
Never buy reviews: Google removes them and can suspend your profile.
Want us to do it for you?
We set up your Google Business Profile for €120 and manage it for €69/month, with posts, photos and replies to reviews. See our Google prices. To climb higher on the map, add local SEO. Or start with the free audit.