How do I set up a Google Business Profile for a contractor?

Who qualifies for a Google Business Profile and how the service area works

A business qualifies for a Google Business Profile if customers can visit its location or it travels to customers. Online-only businesses, P.O. boxes, and virtual offices do not qualify. Most contractors are what Google calls a service-area business: one profile for your base, address hidden if customers do not come to it (a home-based plumber is Google's own example), and a service area set.

Service areas are named cities, counties, or postal codes, up to 20, with no radius option, and Google says the boundary should stay within about 2 hours of driving time from your base. A shop that takes walk-ins keeps its address and adds a service area. Approved edits can take up to 48 hours to appear.

The business name, category, and phone rules Google enforces

The name field must match the real-world name on your trucks, stationery, and with customers. Google removes or suspends profiles that add trade keywords (Roofing | Siding | Gutters), city names, phone numbers, URLs, taglines, all-caps words, or trademark symbols. A location word is allowed only when it is genuinely part of the name.

Categories complete the sentence 'this business IS a', not 'this business HAS a'. Pick one primary category for the trade you are and add others only for distinct trades you perform yourself; categories are not keywords, and custom ones cannot be created. Google does not publish the list, so verify each name in the picker. The phone must be a local number you control that connects to the business, not a premium line or a forwarding number, and the website must be your own site, not a social profile. The description takes no links, prices, or promotional language.

How to verify a contractor's Google Business Profile

Google chooses which verification methods to offer based on business type, location, and public information: a video recording (recommended when offered), a live video call, a phone or text code, an email code, or a mailed postcard. Postcard codes usually arrive within 14 days and expire after 30; do not change the name, address, or category while one is pending. Review takes up to 5 business days.

For the video, record at least 30 continuous seconds live inside the app; pre-recorded uploads are rejected. Show where you are (street signs, building numbers), that the business exists (signage, a lettered vehicle, equipment with the name), and that you manage it (a restricted area or business documents). A service-area or home-based contractor shows tools, the branded truck, the workspace, and permits or utility bills matching the profile name. Keep bank, tax, and ID numbers and other people's faces off camera.

Photos Google accepts on a Business Profile

Photos are JPG or PNG, 10 KB to 5 MB, at least 250 x 250 pixels and ideally 720 x 720. Videos run up to 30 seconds, 75 MB, 720p or better. Media appears only after verification and takes 24 to 48 hours to process. Upload a logo and a cover photo; if the cover is low quality, Google may show a customer's photo instead.

Google suggests at least three photos each of exterior, interior, at work, and team, all shot by you at the place they show. Screenshots, stock photos, AI-generated imagery, collages, borders, text overlays, superimposed logos, heavy filters, and blurry or rotated footage are removed.

Reviews: what you can ask for and what gets a Business Profile suspended

You may ask every customer to review a genuine experience. Under Read reviews, then Get more reviews, copy the review link or download the QR code and put it on the final invoice and completion email. Customers need a Google account to post.

You may not offer payment, discounts, free work, or raffle entries for a review; ask only happy customers or discourage negative ones (review gating); tell customers what to write or whom to name; set staff quotas; or pressure customers to review on site. Reviews from owners, employees, subs, competitors, and family are removed as conflicts of interest. Only a verified profile can reply, publicly and under the business name; moderation can take up to 30 days. Answer every review, including the bad ones, and flag a policy-violating review instead of arguing with it.

Business Profile features that matter for contractors, and the one Google retired

Use the Services editor, not Products; Google reserves the product editor for stores selling physical goods. List services under each category; prices and phone numbers in a service name are auto-rejected. Posts (Update, Offer, Event) archive after 6 months unless you set a date range and cannot carry a phone number in the text. Set identity attributes such as veteran-owned or women-owned where true.

Business Profile chat and call history were retired on July 31, 2024, so any checklist that says to turn on messaging is out of date; make sure the phone and website work instead. Local ranking rests on relevance, distance, and prominence (reputation, web mentions, review count and rating), and Google states there is no way to request or pay for a better ranking. If a profile is suspended, appeal through the appeals tool, attach licenses or utility bills matching the profile name and address within 60 minutes of submitting, and never create a second profile while the appeal is open; decisions take up to 5 business days.