Google Business Profile Mastery 2026

This guide is for local business owners and the people who look after their Google presence: clinic and practice managers, restaurant teams, trades people and in-house marketers. It is written for someone who wants to do the work properly, without tricks, and without wasting time on features Google has retired.

Google Business Profile changes often. Since 2024, Google has ended chat and call history, turned off Business Profile websites, retired the Questions and Answers API and started replacing Q&A with AI answers in Google Maps. Many guides still describe the old version. This one was checked against Google's own help pages and reputable local search sources in October 2026. Where something has changed, we say what changed and when, and where we could not confirm a detail, we leave it out.

By the end, you will be able to set up or claim a profile and pass verification, including video verification. You will know how to choose categories and attributes that describe your business accurately, keep your name, address and phone number consistent, and avoid the mistakes that lead to suspension. You will have a posting routine you can keep, a plan for customer questions now that Q&A is going, a fair way to ask for and reply to reviews, and a simple method for connecting your profile to real calls and bookings. If you run several locations, you will know how to organise them so you stay in control.

The examples follow four businesses: a physiotherapy clinic, a dental practice, a restaurant and a plumber who serves an area. Each chapter ends with a short list of things to do this week. Published by Dcrayon. Last checked October 2026.