How to Add My Shop in Google: Business Profile Guide

To add your shop to Google, create a free Google Business Profile at google.com/business (or search for your shop in Google Maps and choose "Claim this business"). Enter your shop name, address, category, phone number and website, then verify that you run the business. Google usually asks for a short video, a phone or email code, or occasionally a postcard. Once you are verified, your shop can appear in Google Maps and in the "local pack" (the map and three listings that appear for searches like "gift shop near me").

Getting listed is the easy part. Showing up above the shop down the road depends on what you do next. You need the right categories, accurate details, good photos, a steady flow of genuine reviews and your products visible on the profile. This guide covers each step in order, explains why it matters, and covers the problems shop owners most often run into.

What you need before you start

Ten minutes of preparation saves a lot of back and forth with Google later. Before you open the setup screen, have these ready:

• A Google account you will keep long term. Use a business email you control, not one belonging to a member of staff who might leave.
• Your exact trading name as it appears on your shop sign.
• Your full address written the way Royal Mail would write it, including the postcode.
• A local phone number that is answered during opening hours.
• Your website address, if you have one.
• Your regular opening hours, plus any bank holiday changes you already know about.
• Access to the shop with your phone, because video verification means filming the premises.

You can create a profile without a website. A website does help, though, because Google uses it to understand what you sell, and customers often click through to check stock and prices before they visit.

Step 1: check whether your shop is already on Google

Many shops already have a listing they did not create. Google builds some automatically from public data, and sometimes a previous owner, a former employee or a customer has added the place.

Open Google Maps and search for your shop name and town. You will see one of three things:

1. No listing at all. Go straight to Step 2 and create one.
2. A listing with "Own this business?" or "Claim this business". Click it and follow the prompts. You will still need to verify.
3. A listing that someone else already manages. Google will let you request access. The current owner is notified and has a set period to respond. If they do not, Google may let you verify yourself.

Do not create a second listing if one already exists. Duplicates split your reviews, confuse Google about which is the real shop, and can get both suspended.

Step 2: create your Google Business Profile

If there is no existing listing, go to google.com/business and sign in. The setup flow changes slightly from time to time, but the steps are broadly these:

1. Enter your business name. Use the real name on your signage. Adding keywords such as "Smith's Hardware, Best Tools in Leeds" is a common reason for suspension.
2. Choose your business type. Select the option for a physical location customers can visit, so your address shows.
3. Pick your primary category. Start typing what you are, such as "Florist" or "Bicycle shop", and choose from Google's list. More on choosing well below.
4. Add your address. Drag the map pin so it sits exactly on your shop entrance, not in the middle of a car park.
5. Say whether you also deliver. If you offer local delivery, add realistic areas.
6. Add your phone number and website.
7. Choose a verification method. Google offers whichever methods it decides suit your business. You do not always get a choice.

Google will usually prompt you to add hours, a description and photos at this point. It is worth doing now, because a complete profile is easier for Google to trust.

Step 3: verify that you run the shop

Until you are verified, your edits may not show publicly and you cannot use most features. Verification proves to Google that you are a real business at a real address and have the right to manage it.

Method	How it works	Things to watch
Video recording	You record one continuous video showing the shop and proof you manage it	Most common method for shops now. Must be a single unedited clip
Phone or text	Google sends a code to your business number	Only offered to some businesses. Make sure the line can receive texts or calls
Email	A code is sent to an email address, often on your website's domain	Check spam folders. Domain matters
Postcard	A code is posted to your address	Less common now. Do not edit your profile while waiting, as it can reset the process
Instant	Sometimes available if your website is already verified in Google Search Console with the same account	Not offered to everyone

How to pass video verification first time

Video verification is where most shop owners get stuck, usually because the video does not show enough. Google wants to see three things in one continuous recording:

• Where you are. Start outside. Show the street sign or nearby landmarks, then pan to your shopfront with your signage clearly visible.
• That the business is real and trading. Walk inside and show stock on shelves, the till or card machine, and any branded materials.
• That you manage it. Show something only a manager would have, such as unlocking the door, opening the till, or the back office.

Keep it to a minute or two, film in daylight, keep the camera steady and do not edit or stitch clips together. Google usually responds within a few days. If it is rejected, the email normally hints at what was missing, and you can try again.

How Google decides which shops appear in the local pack

Google says plainly that local results are based on three things. Knowing them makes every step below make sense.

Nobody can guarantee a spot in the local pack. Distance alone means someone on the other side of town may see a different set of shops. What you can do is make your profile the most relevant and trustworthy option for searchers near you.

Choose your categories carefully

Your primary category is probably the biggest relevance signal on your profile. It tells Google what kind of business you fundamentally are, and it unlocks category-specific features.

Picking the primary category

Choose the most specific category that describes your core business. "Bicycle shop" beats "Sporting goods store" if bikes are most of what you sell. "Bridal shop" beats "Clothing store" for a bridal boutique. To check, search for your main product plus your town, look at which shops appear in the map results, and click into them to see their categories.

Adding secondary categories

You can add up to nine additional categories. Use them for genuine parts of your business, not things you sell occasionally. A bike shop that does repairs might add "Bicycle repair shop". A gift shop with a café might add "Coffee shop". Loosely related categories rarely help and can dilute what Google thinks you are.

Revisit your categories once or twice a year. Google adds new ones, and your business may have changed shape.

Fill in every section properly

A half-finished profile looks neglected to customers and gives Google less to work with. Go through each section in turn.

Business name

Use your real-world name exactly. If your sign says "The Corner Bookshop", that is your name. If you think a keyword would help, put it in your description, products and categories instead.

Opening hours and special hours

Inaccurate hours are one of the most frustrating things a customer can find. Keep regular hours accurate, and use the special hours feature for bank holidays, Christmas and any stocktake closures. Google often prompts you before UK bank holidays. Answer those prompts, because a profile that confirms holiday hours looks well maintained.

Business description

You get up to 750 characters. Use the first sentence or two to say plainly what you sell, who for and where. Then add what makes you different: brands you stock, services such as alterations or click and collect, parking, and how long you have been trading. Do not include links, sales promotions or capital-letter shouting, as these break the guidelines.

Attributes

Attributes are the tick-box details such as wheelchair-accessible entrance, in-store pickup, card payments and free Wi-Fi. They show on your profile and help with searches that include those needs. Tick everything that is true.

Website link with tracking

Add a tag to your website link so you can see profile visits separately in Google Analytics. A simple version looks like this: yoursite.co.uk/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=business_profile. Without it, those visits blend in with everything else from Google.

Photos that actually help

Photos help a customer decide whether to visit, and they show Google the business is active. Customers can also upload photos, so if you do not add good ones, the public will add their own, often blurry pictures of your bins.

Use real photos, not stock images. Add a few new ones each month rather than fifty at once and then nothing for a year. Window displays, new stock and events are all good excuses for fresh photos.

Reviews: how to get more, the honest way

Reviews feed directly into prominence, and they influence whether a searcher picks you or the next listing. Both the number and the content matter. A review that mentions "great selection of walking boots" also helps Google understand what you sell.

How to ask

• Get your review link. In your profile, look for the option to ask for reviews. Google gives you a short link and a QR code.
• Put the QR code by the till, on receipts and on bag inserts.
• Ask in person when a customer is clearly happy. "If you have a minute, a Google review really helps a small shop like ours" works.
• Include the link in order confirmation and click and collect emails.

What not to do

Do not offer discounts, freebies or prize draw entries in exchange for reviews. Do not write reviews yourself, ask staff or family to post them, or pay anyone for them. This breaks Google's policies and can lead to reviews being removed or your profile being restricted. UK consumer law now also explicitly bans fake reviews and concealed incentivised reviews. Do not "gate" reviews by only asking customers you think will be positive, either. Ask everyone.

Responding to reviews

Reply to every review, good and bad. For positive reviews, a short, personal thank you is enough. For negative reviews, stay calm, acknowledge the problem, avoid arguing in public and offer to sort it out offline. Future customers read your replies as much as the review itself.

Add your products so shoppers see what you stock

This is the step most shops skip, and it is where you can get ahead. Shoppers increasingly want to know whether you have something before they make the trip. There are two main ways to show products on Google.

Option 1: add products manually to your profile

In your Business Profile, open the products section and add items one at a time with a name, category, photo, price (or a price range) and a short description. You can add a button linking to the product page on your website.

This works well for a small range or a handful of best sellers. Group products into sensible categories, such as "Road bikes", "Helmets" and "Accessories", so the section looks organised. The downside is upkeep. If prices or stock change often, manual products go out of date quickly.

Option 2: connect Google Merchant Center

If you sell online as well as in store, or you have a large range, connect your shop to Google Merchant Center. This is the free tool Google uses for product data across Search, Maps and the Shopping tab. You upload a product feed (usually from Shopify, WooCommerce or similar), and Google uses it to show your products.

With Merchant Center you can:

• Appear in free product listings on the Shopping tab and elsewhere on Google, without paying for ads.
• Show local inventory by linking Merchant Center to your Business Profile and supplying a local inventory feed, so shoppers can see which products are in your physical shop.
• Offer in-store pickup details where you support it.
• Run Shopping ads later using the same feed, if paid promotion makes sense.

The quality of your feed decides how well this works. Clear titles, accurate prices, good images and correct product identifiers all matter. Our guide to whether you need a GTIN for Google Shopping explains the barcode question that trips up a lot of independent retailers, and our article on Google Shopping feed hygiene covers the fixes that stop products being disapproved.

Setting up local inventory properly can be fiddly, especially if your till system and website stock do not talk to each other. This is the kind of job our Google Shopping management service handles, from feed setup to linking it with your profile.

Keep your profile active

A profile you set up and forget slowly loses ground to competitors who keep theirs fresh. Maintenance does not take long once it becomes a habit.

Post updates

You can publish short posts (Google calls them updates) with a photo and a button. Use them for new stock, seasonal ranges, events, late-night openings and offers. They help customers already looking at your profile, and they show Google you are active. Once a week is plenty for most shops, and once a fortnight is still worthwhile.

A simple monthly routine

1. Reply to any new reviews.
2. Add three to five new photos.
3. Post at least two updates.
4. Check opening hours and set special hours for upcoming holidays.
5. Update products, prices and anything that has sold out.
6. Check for any edits Google or the public have suggested, and reject anything wrong.

That last step matters. Anyone can suggest edits to your listing, and Google sometimes applies them automatically. Log in regularly so a wrong phone number or closing time does not sit there for weeks.

How to measure whether it is working

Your Business Profile has a performance section that shows how people found you, how many viewed your profile, and what they did next: calls, direction requests, website clicks and so on. Look at the trend month to month rather than reacting to single weeks.

Direction requests are especially useful for a shop, because they show intent to visit. If they rise after you add products or photos, your changes are landing.

For website visits, use the tagged link mentioned earlier and check the results in Google Analytics 4. If you also sell through social media, our guide on tracking Meta shop clicks in Google Analytics 4 shows how to keep those channels separate so you can compare them fairly.

Finally, ask customers. "How did you find us?" at the till is low-tech but tells you a lot.

Common problems and how to fix them

My profile was suspended

Suspensions usually come from a guideline breach, such as a keyword-stuffed name, a virtual office or PO box address, or a big batch of edits made at once. Fix the cause first, then submit a reinstatement request through Google's support pages with evidence such as a utility bill, business rates bill or photos of your signage. Do not create a new profile to get around a suspension.

Verification keeps failing

Recheck the video against the three things Google wants: location, a trading business and proof of management. Make sure your profile address matches your signage and documents exactly. If you share a building, show your unit number or door clearly.

We have moved premises

Update the address on your existing profile rather than creating a new one, so you keep your reviews. Expect to verify again.

There are duplicate listings

If you can access the duplicate, request removal through support. If you cannot, use "Suggest an edit" in Maps and report it as a duplicate.

I don't appear for searches in the next town

Distance limits how far a profile reaches, and you should not fake an address in another town. What you can do is make your website clearly mention the areas you serve and deliver to, earn local press and directory mentions, and use paid search to reach people further out.

Where paid ads fit alongside your free profile

Your Business Profile and free product listings cost nothing but your time, and for many small shops that is the right place to start. Paid ads become worth considering when you want to reach people beyond your natural local radius, push a seasonal range or compete with larger retailers for valuable searches.

Your profile connects directly with Google Ads. Linking them lets you add location assets to search ads, showing your address and distance, and run local campaigns aimed at driving shop visits. With a Merchant Center feed, you can also run Shopping ads and local inventory ads, which highlight that a product is available in your shop nearby.

Option	Cost	Best for
Google Business Profile	Free	Appearing in Maps and the local pack
Free product listings	Free (needs Merchant Center)	Products appearing on the Shopping tab
Search ads with location assets	Ad spend plus management	Reaching people searching beyond your immediate area
Shopping and local inventory ads	Ad spend plus management	Promoting specific products and in-store availability

Ads need careful setup to avoid wasted spend. Our Google Ads management starts from £145/month, a fixed monthly fee that does not rise as your ad spend grows, and you can see exactly what is included on our PPC management pricing page. If you already run ads and are not sure they are paying their way, a free Google Ads audit is a sensible first step.

Frequently asked questions

Is it free to add my shop to Google?

Yes. A Google Business Profile is completely free, and so are free product listings through Merchant Center. You only pay if you choose to run ads.

How long does it take for my shop to appear on Google Maps?

Once verification is approved, your listing usually appears within a few days. Verification itself can take anything from minutes to a week or more, depending on the method and whether Google needs a manual review.

Can I add my shop if I sell online only?

Only if customers visit you in person or you serve them at their location. If you sell purely online, focus on Merchant Center and free product listings instead.

Can I have one profile for each of my shops?

Yes. Each staffed physical location can have its own profile. Manage them together in one account so the details stay consistent.

Should I delete bad reviews?

You cannot delete reviews yourself. You can report reviews that break Google's policies, such as spam or reviews from people who were never customers. For genuine negative reviews, a calm, helpful reply is the best response.

Will adding products help me rank higher?

Products make your profile more useful and help Google understand what you sell, which supports relevance. Nobody can promise a ranking change from any single action, but a profile with accurate products, photos and reviews gives you a much better chance than one without.