Optimise your Google Business Profile for local customers

Local search is substantial: variations on near me alone account for 7,1 million searches per month according to Semrush, while almost everyone in Belgium starts online. The country has 11,3 million internet users, or 96,3% of the population.

Your Business Profile influences whether you appear in Google Maps, the local 3-pack and increasingly AI answers: assistants such as Gemini and ChatGPT use profile information and reviews to recommend local businesses. A business in the top 3 also receives 126% more traffic than businesses outside it. Time invested in your profile therefore supports both Google and AI visibility.

This sounds obvious, but it is often where things first go wrong. Check:

• Main and additional categories: choose the most specific main category, such as beauty salon instead of shop, and add relevant secondary categories.
• Business description: use the full 750 characters, placing your main services and area in the first two sentences. Among businesses in the top 3, 75% have completed this field.
• Opening hours: keep them current, including public holidays. Incorrect hours are a major source of poor reviews.
• Services and products: list each service separately with a short description and, where possible, a price indication.
• Attributes: select everything applicable, from accessibility to payment options.

Make sure your business name, address and telephone number match the website and other directories exactly. Consistency is a trust signal for Google.

Reviews are a strong lever for local ranking and conversion. 41% of consumers always read reviews in 2026 before choosing a local business, up from 29% a year earlier. Another 31% consider only businesses with at least 4,5 stars.

According to SOCi data, every 10 new reviews produce almost 3% more conversions on average. Make the process routine:

1. Ask each satisfied customer for a review straight after delivery or an appointment, using a direct link or QR code.
2. Reply to every review, including positive ones, within a few days. This shows Google and prospective customers that your business is active.
3. Respond calmly and constructively to negative reviews. Readers judge your response as closely as the complaint itself.

Never buy reviews or request them all in a sudden batch: unnatural spikes can lead to filtering or suspension.

Profiles with plenty of images perform better: businesses with more than 10 photos receive up to 2 times as many customer actions, and photos produce 30 to 50% more profile views. Businesses in the local 3-pack have an average of 11 or more photos, compared with 6 for those not ranking.

Add fresh photos every month: the team working, completed projects, your premises or new products. Avoid stock photography, which searchers and algorithms recognise. Publish a Google post at least twice a month with an offer, project or update. Profiles doing so see around 13% more interaction, while profiles inactive for 30 days can lose impressions.

Your Business Profile links to your website, and what Google finds there contributes to local ranking. Use a landing page that clearly states your location and services: areas served, how to contact you and what customers can expect. If you serve several towns, consider separate area pages with unique content rather than copies changing only the place name.

Add LocalBusiness structured data so search engines and AI assistants can read your details correctly. Check listings in Belgian directories such as Gouden Gids, Trustlocal and industry platforms: use the same business name, address and telephone number everywhere.

These familiar problems can quietly undermine visibility:

• An unclaimed profile: Google sometimes creates one automatically. Claim it instead of leaving others to determine its content.
• Outdated opening hours: especially frustrating during public holidays or annual leave.
• Unanswered reviews: a long list without a response can suggest that the business does not listen.
• Keywords stuffed into the business name: Jans Bakery | Best Bread Ghent breaches guidelines and can lead to suspension.
• Setting it up once and forgetting it: a Business Profile is a channel to maintain, not merely a form to complete.

A strong Google Business Profile is a quick, affordable route to local customers, but works best with a healthy website. Want to know where you stand, from the profile to visibility in Google and AI search? Try the free marketing scan and discover practical improvements you can start this week.