You created your Google Business Profile.
You added your business name.
Entered your telephone number.
Added your opening hours.
Uploaded a few photos.
And then…
You forgot about it.
Sound familiar?
Many business owners treat their Google Business Profile as something they need to set up once and never think about again.
But businesses change.
Opening hours change.
Services change.
Websites change.
Telephone numbers change.
Teams change.
And the photographs you uploaded several years ago might no longer represent what your business looks like today.
That's why your Google Business Profile shouldn't simply be created.
It needs to be maintained.
Google Your Own Business Today
Here's a simple digital marketing task you can do right now.
Open Google and search for your business.
Then forget for a moment that you own it.
Pretend you're a potential customer seeing the business for the first time.
What do you find?
Is your information accurate?
Are your opening hours correct?
Does your telephone number work?
Does your website link go to the right place?
Are the services listed still relevant?
Are there recent photographs?
Does the information accurately represent the business you operate today?
You might be surprised by what you discover.
Why Your Google Business Profile Matters
When someone searches for your company or looks for businesses offering a particular service locally, your Google Business Profile can be an important part of what they discover.
Before someone visits your website, they may already be looking at information associated with your business on Google.
They're trying to answer questions such as:
Is this business open?
Where is it located?
How do I contact them?
What do they offer?
What do other customers think?
Does this look like a business I can trust?
That's why outdated information isn't simply untidy.
It can create unnecessary confusion at an important point in the customer's journey.
1. Check Your Opening Hours
Start with something simple.
Are your opening hours correct?
Businesses change their hours for all sorts of reasons.
Maybe you used to open on Saturdays but don't anymore.
Perhaps you've extended your weekday hours.
Maybe your hours changed temporarily and were never changed back.
Imagine a potential customer checking Google, seeing that you're open, travelling to your premises and discovering that you're actually closed.
That's not a great first experience.
Check your normal opening hours and remember to review them when your schedule changes.
2. Check Your Telephone Number
This sounds obvious.
But check it anyway.
Is the telephone number displayed on your profile still the number you want customers calling?
If you've changed your business number, switched providers or altered the way enquiries are handled, make sure the information customers find is still correct.
Then actually test it.
Call the number.
Does it connect?
Does the right person or voicemail answer?
Sometimes the simplest checks reveal problems that have been sitting unnoticed for months.
3. Check Your Website Link
Your website may have changed since you originally created your profile.
Perhaps you redesigned it.
Changed domains.
Moved from HTTP to HTTPS years ago.
Changed your booking system.
Or created a better page for potential customers.
Click the website link on your Google Business Profile.
Don't assume it works.
Test it.
Make sure customers are being sent somewhere useful.
Getting someone interested enough to visit your website and then sending them to a broken or outdated page creates completely unnecessary friction.
4. Review Your Business Information
Read your business information from beginning to end.
Does it still accurately explain what you do?
Businesses evolve.
A company that started offering one service five years ago might now provide five.
Perhaps you've stopped offering something altogether.
Maybe you've moved into a more specialised area.
Your online presence should reflect the business you're operating now — not necessarily the business you were operating when the profile was first created.
5. Review Your Services
If relevant to your business and profile, check the services you've listed.
Are important services missing?
Are you still displaying something you stopped offering two years ago?
Could the wording be clearer?
Think about this from the customer's perspective.
Someone shouldn't have to guess whether you provide the service they're looking for.
Keep the information relevant and accurate.
6. Add Recent Photos
Photographs can quickly become outdated.
Imagine looking at a restaurant online and discovering that every photograph is six years old.
You might start wondering:
Does the place still look like this?
The same principle applies to many businesses.
Depending on what you do, useful photographs might include:
- Your premises
- Recent work
- Your team
- Products
- Equipment
- Completed projects
- The exterior of your location
- Your working environment
The goal isn't to upload photographs simply for the sake of having more photographs.
It's to give potential customers a current and useful representation of your business.
7. Read Your Reviews
Your Google Business Profile is also somewhere customers may encounter feedback from previous customers.
Read your recent reviews.
What are people saying?
Are there recurring compliments?
Are there recurring complaints?
Reviews aren't only there for future customers.
They can provide valuable feedback for the business itself.
If multiple customers praise the same part of your service, that's worth knowing.
If several people mention the same problem, that's worth investigating too.
And where appropriate, responding professionally to reviews can show that your business is paying attention to customer feedback.
8. Check Your Business Location and Service Area
If customers visit your premises, make sure the address information is accurate.
If you operate as a service-area business, review the relevant information and ensure it reflects how you currently operate.
Again, think about the real-world consequence of incorrect information.
Someone could travel to the wrong place.
A potential customer might assume you don't cover their area.
Or someone outside your service area could contact you unnecessarily.
Accurate information helps both the business and the customer.
9. Look at Your Profile on Mobile
Don't only check everything from your office computer.
Use your phone.
Search for your business exactly as a customer might.
What stands out?
Can you easily find the telephone number?
Can you visit the website?
Can you find directions where relevant?
Does the information make sense?
Does the business look current and active?
Viewing your business from the customer's perspective is one of the simplest marketing exercises you can perform.
10. Don't Wait Until Something Goes Wrong
The worst time to discover incorrect information is after a customer tells you.
“Google says you're open.”
“I called the number on Google and it doesn't work.”
“Your website link isn't working.”
“It says you offer this service.”
A quick regular check can help you catch problems before potential customers encounter them.
Create a Simple Monthly Check
Maintaining your Google Business Profile doesn't have to become another huge marketing task.
Create a simple routine.
Once a month, search for your business and check:
Business name
Opening hours
Telephone number
Website
Address or service information
Services
Recent photos
Reviews
If nothing has changed, great.
The check might take only a few minutes.
If something has changed, update it.
Simple.
Your Online Presence Needs Maintenance
This lesson goes beyond Google.
Your website isn't a one-time job.
Your social media profiles aren't a one-time job.
Your business information isn't a one-time job.
Your digital presence needs to evolve alongside your actual business.
A company can spend thousands of pounds creating a beautiful website or running advertising campaigns while completely overlooking basic information customers encounter when researching them.
Sometimes good digital marketing isn't about discovering another clever trick.
Sometimes it's about making sure the fundamentals are actually correct.
Check Your Google Business Profile Today
Take five minutes today.
Google your business.
Look at what potential customers see.
Check your opening hours.
Check your telephone number.
Click your website.
Review your services.
Look at your photographs.
Read your recent reviews.
And ask yourself:
“Does this accurately represent my business today?”
If the answer is no, you've found something worth fixing.
Because your Google Business Profile isn't something you should simply create and forget.
Don't just create it. Maintain it.
At Page Crowd, we help businesses strengthen their online presence through social media management, website design, Meta advertising and Google Ads.
If your business needs help building and maintaining a stronger digital presence, contact Page Crowd today.
