Google Business Profile

SEO

Also: GBP · Google My Business · GMB

What it isYour free business listing on Google

Shows up inMaps and the local pack

Watch forUnclaimed or outdated listings

Free to runNo ad spend required

Quick definition

A Google Business Profile (GBP), formerly called Google My Business (GMB), is the free listing that controls how your business appears on Google Search and Google Maps. It shows your hours, address, reviews, photos and phone number, and it's what powers the local pack results people see when they search for a business nearby.

How it varies across Australia

Australian small businesses claim their Google Business Profile at a lower rate than the retail and hospitality sectors elsewhere, which leaves a surprising amount of local search visibility unclaimed. Businesses that actively manage their profile with regular posts and review responses tend to sit noticeably higher in the local pack than competitors who set it up once and never returned.

See digital maturity benchmarks across Australian industries →

What it actually means

Google Business Profile is the closest thing to a free ad Google gives you, and most businesses treat it like a form they filled in once. It's the listing that shows up when someone searches your business name, or searches for what you do near where they are. Hours, address, phone number, photos, reviews. All of it lives in GBP.

The local pack, that block of three map pins and business names above the organic results, is driven almost entirely by GBP signals combined with proximity and relevance. This is different from standard search engine optimisation (SEO), where content and backlinks do the heavy lifting. GBP rewards completeness, activity and reputation more than it rewards clever keyword work.

Reviews sit at the centre of this. A business with a strong star rating and steady flow of recent reviews will often outrank a technically stronger website with a thin GBP presence. This is one of the few places in marketing where customer sentiment directly moves rankings, not just conversion rate.

The businesses that win here aren't doing anything complicated. They post updates, answer reviews, keep hours accurate and upload real photos regularly. The businesses that lose are the ones who claimed the listing in 2019 and haven't opened it since.

A Google Business Profile is a shopfront window. Most businesses put one up and never clean it again.

How it shows up

GBP performance shows up in the Google Search and Maps insights dashboard as searches, views, calls and direction requests. It shows up in your local pack ranking position for target keywords, which you can track manually or with rank tracking tools. It also shows up indirectly in your overall organic traffic, since a strong GBP presence often lifts branded search click-through rate and reinforces trust signals Google factors into broader rankings.

The Australian context

Verification in Australia typically happens by postcard, phone or video depending on business type, and delays are common for newer businesses or those in categories Google flags for higher scrutiny, like healthcare or finance. Multi-location Australian businesses also run into duplicate listing issues more often than expected, usually from old franchise setups or previous agency work that never got cleaned up. Checking for duplicates before optimising a profile saves a lot of wasted effort.

Where people get this wrong

Claiming the listing once and never returning.GBP rewards ongoing activity. A stale profile with no recent posts, photos or review responses loses ground to competitors who treat it as a living channel.

Ignoring negative reviews instead of responding.An unanswered bad review signals neglect to both customers and Google. A thoughtful public response often does more for trust than the review itself did damage.

Stuffing the business name field with keywords.Adding extra descriptive words to your business name to rank for more searches breaches Google's guidelines and risks suspension of the entire profile, not just a ranking penalty.

Google Business Profile vs SEO

	Google Business Profile	SEO
What it optimises	A single free listing on Google Maps and Search	Your entire website's visibility across all search results
Cost to run	Free	Free to do, but usually requires ongoing content and technical work
Where it shows up	Local pack and Maps	Organic results across the whole search engine results page (SERP)
Main ranking driver	Proximity, reviews, activity	Content relevance, backlinks, technical SEO

Common questions

Is Google Business Profile the same as Google My Business?

Yes. Google renamed Google My Business (GMB) to Google Business Profile (GBP) in 2022. The functionality is the same, though management moved from a standalone app into Search and Maps directly for most businesses.

Does Google Business Profile cost anything?

No, claiming and managing a Google Business Profile is free. Google does offer paid local service ads separately, but the core profile listing itself carries no cost.

How often should I update my Google Business Profile?

Treat it like a small content channel. Weekly or fortnightly posts, prompt responses to new reviews and quarterly photo updates keep the profile signalling activity to Google, which tends to support stronger local pack visibility.

Can a Google Business Profile affect my overall SEO?

Indirectly, yes. A strong profile with good reviews and consistent activity builds trust signals and can lift branded search click-through rate, both of which feed into broader search engine optimisation performance beyond just the local pack.

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About New Rebellion

New Rebellion is a marketing intelligence consultancy. We build tools, score Australian businesses on how their marketing actually performs, and publish Debrief every day. This dictionary is part of how we work in the open.

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