Google Business Profile in South Africa: how to get on Google Maps and into the map pack.

Someone nearby searches for what you sell, and Google shows a map with three businesses under it. Yours is not one of them. Often the business down the road is not better than you. It just has a complete, verified Google Business Profile.

This guide walks through the whole profile: claiming it, getting verified, categories, hours, photos, services, posts and reviews. It ends with how to connect the profile to your website so Google trusts both.

What a Google Business Profile is

It is the free listing that shows your business on Google Search and Google Maps, with your name, address or service area, phone number, hours, photos and reviews. Google My Business is the old name for the same thing. The profile is what puts you in the map results, often called the map pack, when people search "near me" or in their suburb.

How to get my business on Google Maps

Adding or claiming a profile costs nothing.

• New profile. Go to business.google.com/add and follow the prompts.
• Existing profile. Your business may already be on Maps, added by a customer or by Google. Find it in Google Maps, choose "Claim this business", then "Manage now".

If someone else already verified it, such as a former employee or an old web developer, you cannot claim it directly. Google lets you request ownership from the current owner. Keep the profile in a Google account the business controls, not a staff member's personal one.

Getting verified

Verification proves you run the business. Until then, your photos will not show, and you are less likely to appear in results. According to Google's verification help page, the methods are:

• Phone or text, with a code sent to your business number. Automated switchboards will not receive it.
• Email, with instructions sent to you.
• Video recording, which Google recommends where you are eligible.
• Live video call, during opening hours, showing your signage, branded stock or equipment, and proof you can access the premises.
• Postcard, with a code posted to your address. Most arrive within 14 days and expire after 30.

You do not choose the method. Google decides based on your business type, region and other details. If video is offered, use it, because a posted code is the slow route. While waiting for a postcard, do not change your name, address or category, and do not request a second code, as that cancels the first. Google says reviews take up to 5 business days.

Storefront or service area

• Storefront. Customers come to you, such as a bakery in Durban North. Show your address, with permanent signage there.
• Service area. You go to customers, such as a plumber in Centurion. Hide your address and list the areas you serve. Google says this should not usually stretch beyond about two hours' drive from your base.
• Both. A workshop that also does call-outs can show its address and set a service area, if the premises are staffed and open in the listed hours.

PO boxes and virtual offices are not allowed under Google's guidelines for representing your business.

Choosing your categories

Your categories tell Google what kind of business you are, which shapes the searches you show up in. Use as few as possible and pick the most specific one that fits.

A useful test: the category should finish the sentence "This business IS a", not "this business HAS a". A guesthouse does not add "swimming pool" as a category. Features like Wi-Fi, parking or wheelchair access go into attributes instead.

Business name: the mistake that gets profiles suspended

Use your real business name, exactly as it appears on your signage, website and invoices.

A common mistake is adding keywords, so "Smith Plumbing" becomes "Smith Plumbing Pretoria Emergency Plumber 24/7". Google's guidelines ban descriptors, locations, taglines, phone numbers and words in capitals in the name, and say unnecessary information can lead to suspension. It may seem to work for a while, until a competitor reports it.

Hours, and when you cannot trade

Add your normal hours, then special hours for public holidays and closures. Separate hours for deliveries or a takeaway counter go under "More hours".

Load-shedding and outages matter here. If you cannot trade, update your hours or post a short update that day. A customer who drives to a closed shop may leave a one-star review, which is harder to fix than a quick edit.

Photos that help people choose

Google's photo guidelines ask for JPG or PNG files between 10 KB and 5 MB, ideally 720 by 720 pixels, with no heavy filters. New photos can take 24 to 48 hours to appear.

Add your logo, a cover photo, the outside of your premises so people can find you, the inside, your team at work and your products.

Products and services

Service businesses can pick from services Google suggests for their category and add their own. Name each one the way a customer would say it, with a short description and a price in rand where you can give one. Shops can add products for free with Google's Product Editor. Both give Google more to match against searches.

Posts

Posts are short updates on your profile. There are three types: Update, Offer and Event, and you can schedule them or set them to repeat. Use them for news customers care about: a new service, a month-end special, holiday hours. One useful post every week or two is plenty.

Reviews: how to ask, how to reply, what Google forbids

How to ask

In your profile, choose "Read reviews", then "Get more reviews". Copy the review link, or save a QR code from a computer browser. Google suggests putting it on receipts, in thank-you emails and at the end of chats, including WhatsApp. For many South African small businesses, a short WhatsApp message after the job is done works well.

POPIA governs how you use the contact details customers give you. Send the request only to people you actually served, keep it to one message, and stop if they ask. This is general information, not legal advice.

What Google forbids

Google's policy on fake engagement is strict. You may not:

• Offer anything for a review: money, discounts or free products.
• Ask only happy customers, or discourage negative reviews.
• Set staff a review target.
• Post reviews yourself, or have staff, family or friends do it.
• Pressure customers to review you while they are on your premises.

Breaking these rules can get reviews removed and your profile restricted.

How to reply

Reply to every review, good and bad. Keep it short, polite and specific, and do not use replies to advertise. Never share a customer's private details in public, and move complaints to a call or email. If a review breaks Google's policies, flag it rather than argue in public.

How Google decides who shows in the map pack

Google says local results are mainly based on:

• Relevance: how well your profile matches the search.
• Distance: how close you are to the searcher, or to the place they named.
• Prominence: how well known you are, including reviews and links to your site.

Google also says there is no way to pay for a better local ranking. Anyone who guarantees you a top spot on Maps cannot deliver it.

Connect your profile to your website

• Match your name, address and phone number on your profile, your website's contact page and footer, and directories. An old address or a second number makes it harder for Google to trust which details are right.
• Link to the right page. The website field should go to your own site, ideally the page for that branch, not a Facebook page or a redirect.
• Name the areas you serve on your website, so your service pages match your service area.
• Add LocalBusiness schema so search engines can read your details.

Our free SEO starter checklist covers these steps along with the on-page and technical basics, and adds listings on Bing Places and Apple Business Connect.

Common mistakes

• Keywords or town names in the business name.
• Two profiles for the same business.
• A home address showing when customers never visit.
• Old hours over public holidays.
• The profile owned by an ex-employee or a past supplier.
• Reviews left unanswered for months.

What to do next

Claim or create your profile, get verified, then work through the sections above one at a time. Most owners can finish the basics in an afternoon.

If you would like help with the profile, your website and the rest of your local search, our website team can set it up and look after it. You can reach us through the contact page.