Google Business Profile (GBP) — renamed from Google My Business in 2021 — is the listing that appears when someone searches for your business by name, finds you on Maps, or sees your business in the "Local Pack" results (the map with 3 businesses Google shows for geographic queries).
What's in a Google Business Profile
- Business basics — name, address, phone, website, hours
- Categories — primary and secondary business categories (these significantly affect what searches you appear in)
- Services and products — detailed service listings with descriptions and pricing
- Photos — storefront, interior, team, work samples (high-impact ranking signal)
- Posts — short updates (offers, events, news) appearing in your profile
- Q&A — user-submitted questions you can answer (or pre-emptively populate)
- Reviews — customer reviews with star ratings, owner responses
- Messages — direct messaging from search/Maps to your business
- Booking integration — for service businesses, direct booking from the profile
Why GBP matters more than most websites
For a local search like "dentist Murfreesboro TN," the Google Business Profile listings are often the first thing users see — before any website. A weak profile means you don't exist in that buyer's evaluation set. A strong profile generates calls and direction requests without the user ever clicking your website.
What makes a strong GBP
- 100% completion across all fields, including the often-skipped services/products section
- Primary category exactly matching the searches you want to rank for
- Regular post cadence (weekly minimum for service businesses)
- Recent photos (Google preferentially shows businesses with current visual content)
- Ongoing review velocity — 5+ new reviews per month for active businesses
- Owner responses to every review, positive or negative
- Pre-populated Q&A covering common buyer questions
- NAP consistency with your website and other directory listings
Common GBP mistakes
- Letting the profile sit dormant for months (Google de-prioritizes inactive profiles)
- Ignoring negative reviews instead of responding professionally
- Setting up multiple profiles for one business (creates duplicate suppression)
- Using a virtual office address (Google has gotten very good at detecting these)
- Misusing the business name field with keywords (e.g., "Smith Dental - Best Murfreesboro Dentist") — Google penalizes this