The 7 points that decide your Google Business Profile

A customer searches "emergency electrician Bolzano" on their phone in the evening. They see three profiles with a map, star rating and opening hours, right above the organic search results. Whoever isn't there, complete and up to date, loses the enquiry before their own website has even loaded.

Google Business Profile, formerly "Google My Business", is often the first point of contact for local trade businesses, not the website. That's exactly why it's worth taking as seriously as your own site. The following seven points are the ones that make the most difference in practice, in the order we tackle them on client projects.

An incomplete profile ranks worse than a complete one, regardless of how good the business's actual work is.

1. The right primary category

The primary category is the strongest signal for which searches Google even considers a profile for. "Electrician" beats "Service provider", "Plumber" beats "Trade business". A business with several strands, say electrical and solar, sets its core trade as the primary category and the other services as additional categories, not the other way round.

2. Every service listed individually, not as running text

In the "Services" section, every service can be added as its own entry with its own short description. A business that mentions "electrical installation, solar, fibre connections, EV charging" only in one sentence of the profile text shows up less often in specific searches on these topics than one that lists each service individually.

3. Real photos of finished projects

Profiles with current, real photos get clicked noticeably more often than profiles with stock images or just a logo. For trade businesses that means, in practice: after every project, take two or three photos of the finished result and upload them. Before-and-after pairs work especially well because they show the benefit immediately.

4. Opening hours that are actually correct

Wrong or missing opening hours are one of the most common reasons customers leave a profile without calling. This is especially true for emergency callouts: an electrician offering emergency service should state that explicitly in the profile, including special hours on weekends and public holidays, not only on the website.

5. Actively asking for reviews, not waiting for them

Satisfied customers rarely leave a review on their own. Businesses that ask directly for a review right after a project finishes, ideally with a simple, personal link instead of a general request, get noticeably more responses. It's also important to reply to every review, positive or negative: it shows both Google and future customers that the business is active.

A short reply is enough

• "Thanks for the review, [name]! Glad [short reference to the project]."
• For negative reviews: stay factual, address the point, offer a solution.
• Never try to get a legitimate review removed. It shows.

6. The link to your own website

A profile without a linked website loses enquiries: prospects who want to see more than the profile offers, references, details on individual services, an enquiry form, find no room for that there. Ideally the link should point not to the homepage but to the matching service page whenever a search clearly relates to one trade.

7. Regular posts and updates

Google posts, short updates about finished projects, promotions or seasonal topics like "solar incentives 2026", keep the profile active and provide additional signals for local search. One post a month is usually enough; what matters more than frequency is that the content is real and specific, not generic.

Conclusion: profile and website belong together

A strong Google Business Profile brings the first contact, a clear website turns it into an enquiry. Anyone who only maintains one of the two leaves potential on the table. At amstudio we build websites for trade businesses in South Tyrol that work together with the Google profile, and set up the profile as part of the project when needed.