Search before you create anything
Which situation is your profile in?
To claim a Google Business Profile, find your business on Google Search or Maps, choose the option to claim or manage it, sign in with the Google Account your company will own it with and complete the verification Google offers. What you do next depends on which of three situations you are in.
- No profile exists. Create one through Google’s add-business flow. Our Business Profile setup guide covers every field.
- A profile exists, but nobody has verified it. Google often creates listings from public data. Claim it and verify it.
- Someone else already manages it. A former employee, an old agency or a past owner may hold it. Request access from them.
Search your business name, your phone number and your street address on Google Maps. Duplicates hide in all three. If you find two listings for the same business, don’t create a third. Claim the one with your reviews and ask Google to merge or remove the other.
Decide which account will own the profile before you click anything. Use a Google Account your company controls, such as one tied to the business email, not an employee’s personal account and not your agency’s. Google’s add and claim guidance confirms there is no fee to add or claim an eligible business.
For a listing nobody has verified
How to claim an unverified profile.
Step 1. Open the listing. Search your business on Google Maps and open its profile. Unverified listings show a link that asks whether you own the business or invites you to claim it.
Step 2. Sign in and confirm the details. Use the company account you chose. Google walks you through the name, category, location and contact details. Correct anything that is wrong now, while you are already in the flow.
Step 3. Verify. Google picks which verification methods it offers you. Depending on the business, that can include a phone call or text, an email, a recorded video, a live video call or a postcard by mail. You might need to complete more than one. Keep any code to yourself; Google’s verification guide says not to share codes, even with people who help manage the profile.
Step 4. Check the result. Once verified, your profile shows the owner tools when you search your business name while signed in. If verification is still pending after the window Google gives, read our guide to a profile stuck in processing .
If you are offered video recording, plan the shot list before you press record. Our video verification script and checklist covers what Google wants to see for storefronts and for businesses that travel to customers.
When someone else holds the keys
How to request access to a verified profile.
Start with a phone call, not a form. If you know who controls the profile, such as a former office manager or a past agency, ask them to add you as an owner and then transfer primary ownership to you. That takes minutes, and our manager and owner guide shows them where the controls are.
If you don’t know who has it, or they won’t answer, use Google’s request process. For a storefront or hybrid business, start from Google’s add-business page, select your business and follow the request access steps. A service-area business without a shop or office follows the support process in Google’s ownership instructions .
Google sends your request to the current owner. Save the confirmation and check its status through the link Google gives you. If the owner doesn’t respond within the window Google states in that email, a claim option may appear, though it isn’t always offered. If the owner denies a request you believe is wrong, go back to the ownership instructions for the next options.
While you wait, don’t create a new profile for the same business. A second listing splits your reviews, confuses customers and is one of the fastest ways to get a profile suspended. Our suspension prevention guide covers why duplicates get flagged.
Get the facts right before you type
What to edit first, and the rules for each field.
Once the profile is yours, work through the fields customers lean on most. Have the owner confirm each fact before it goes live.
- Business name. Use the name on your signs, trucks and invoices. Don’t add a city or a service to it. “Smith Plumbing” is fine; “Smith Plumbing Best Emergency Plumber Portland” gets profiles suspended.
- Primary category. Pick the one category that best describes the business, such as Plumber or Roofing contractor. Add a few secondary categories only for work you do.
- Location or service area. Show an address only if customers come to you. If you travel to them, hide the address and list the places you serve. Our service area guide explains the settings.
- Hours and special hours. Match the hours someone answers the phone. Add holiday hours ahead of time.
- Phone and website. Use a number your business controls and link to the page that best matches the profile, usually the homepage or a location page.
- Description, services and photos. Describe what you do in plain language, list the services you sell and post real photos of your work and your crew.
Google’s editing guidance lists the fields and their rules, and its business representation guidelines cover names, addresses and categories in detail.
Saving is step one, going live is step two
How to edit your profile and check that the change went live.
Sign in to the Google Account that manages the profile, search your business name on Google or open it in Maps and choose Edit profile. Pick the section, make the change and save. The controls look a little different on a phone, but the sections are the same.
Google reviews changes before they appear publicly. Most go through quickly. Changes to your name, address or primary category tend to get a closer look, and some can trigger a new round of verification. Make big changes one at a time, and only when the business has changed, not to test what ranks.
Watch for updates you didn’t make. Google can change profile details based on suggestions from the public or other sources, and it notifies owners when it does. Open your profile once a month, check the hours, phone, website and categories and reject anything that isn’t right.
If an edit is rejected, read the message Google shows, fix the conflict and try again with the correct information. Don’t resubmit the same change over and over. If you’d rather have someone handle the profile month to month, Business Profile work is part of Lithium’s SEO service . No one can promise how Google will review an edit; what we guarantee is the work.
