Google has published a series of free, downloadable guides called Google Business Profile Playbooks, designed specifically to help businesses get more from their Google Business Profile (GBP). They sent them out via email to business owners in mid-March, and local SEO expert Darren Shaw of Whitespark flagged them in his email newsletter as well worth a look. Glenn Gabe at Search Engine Roundtable also picked up the story and helped bring them to wider attention.
We’ve read through the main guide carefully, and this post gives you a plain-English summary of what’s in them, along with direct download links for each one.
First, a quick word about Google Business Profiles
If you’re not entirely sure what a Google Business Profile is, here’s the short version: it’s the panel that appears when someone searches for your business, or a business like yours, on Google. It shows your Name, Address, Phone number, opening hours, photos, reviews, and more. It also controls how you appear on Google Maps.
You are probably aware it’s completely free to set up and manage. For many people that imbues it with a low intrinsic value… nothing could be further from the truth! For most local businesses, it’s the single most visible thing on the searh results page when a potential customer searches for what you offer.
The trouble is, most businesses set theirs up once and then largely forget about it. These new guides from Google are a very practical nudge to change that.
What are the new Playbooks?
Google has released five separate guides, one for each of four specialised business types and a general one that applies to everyone else:
Each guide is tailored to the specific tools and features available to that type of business. A restaurant, in a fixed location for example, has different options to a plumber who goes out to customers premises. Menus, reservation links, and ordering buttons, for instance, aren’t that useful for fixing burst pipes; so the advice is specific rather than generic.
• Restaurants & Cafés
• Hotels & Accommodations
• Tour & Activity Operators
• Service-Based Businesses (plumbers, cleaners, tradespeople, and similar)
• General Business Playbook, for everyone else, covering universal best practices
What does the general GBP guide actually cover?
I’ve tried to pull out the key areas below. If you read nothing else, this section is worth a few minutes of your time.
Keep your business information accurate and up to date
This sounds obvious, but it’s where a surprising number of businesses fall short. According to Google’s own data, businesses with complete profiles receive seven times more clicks than those with incomplete ones, and regularly updated profiles get five times more views. That’s a significant difference for zero additional spend.
The basics to keep on top of: your business name, category, description, phone number, website link, and opening hours, including any changes for bank holidays or seasonal periods.
Choose your business categories carefully
Your primary category is one of the strongest signals Google uses to decide when to show your business in search results. You can add up to ten categories in total, one primary and up to nine secondary. The primary should describe the core of what you do; the secondary ones can reflect other services you offer.
Use photos and video
Businesses that add photos receive 42% more requests for directions on Google Maps, and 90% of people say they’re more likely to visit a business that has photos on Google Search and Maps. Short videos work well too. If your profile has no images, or only old ones, this is one of the simplest wins available to you.
Post regular updates
Google Posts are short updates, offers, news, events, that appear directly on your profile. The guide recommends posting at least once a week, using a mix of update types. 50% of customers say they look for promotions or discounts when searching for a business, so this feature is more useful than many businesses realise.
Link your social media accounts
Connecting your Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or YouTube accounts to your profile gives Google additional confidence that your business is active and legitimate. It can also surface your recent social content in search results.
Make it easy for customers to contact and book
The guide highlights WhatsApp and SMS messaging as increasingly important channels, 67% of people say they prefer messaging a business over calling or emailing. If your business takes appointments or bookings, adding a booking link directly to your profile removes friction and can meaningfully increase conversions.
Set your service area (if relevant)
If you travel to your customers rather than having them visit you, tradespeople, mobile services, and similar, you can define up to 20 service areas on your profile. This helps Google show you in relevant local searches across the areas you cover, rather than only near your registered address.
Manage your reviews actively
91% of consumers use reviews to evaluate local businesses, and 65% say they are more likely to choose a business that responds to reviews, positive and negative alike. Google now lets you generate a QR code directly within your profile that takes customers straight to your review page, which you can print on receipts, display on your counter, or include in follow-up messages.
Download the playbook that’s best for your business in Cumbria and the Borderlands
Click the link relevant to your business type below. You can get it from here, or directly from Google’s own servers, as a PDF.
All guides are published by Google and free to download.
Google’s general purpose GBP playbook for the widest range of businesses (with links to their 4 niche specific guides).
Playbook for hotels and accommodation in the Lake District and popular areas in the Borderlands region.
A playbook for restaurants and cafes in the Lake District, Eden Valley and other popular areas in the Borderlands region.
Playbook for tours and attractions in Carlisle, the Lake District and other popular locations in the Borderlands .
For service and trades in Carlisle, the Lake District and other locations in the Borderlands region.
A note on why this matters right now
Google’s AI features, including AI Overviews in search results, are increasingly drawing information directly from Google Business Profiles when deciding which local businesses to recommend. An incomplete or outdated profile doesn’t just mean fewer clicks today; it means your business is less likely to appear in AI-generated recommendations going forward.
Getting your profile in order now is one of the more straightforward things you can do to protect and improve your local visibility over the coming year.
Need a hand with your Google Business Profile?
If you’d like help auditing, setting up, or managing your Google Business Profile, we offer a range of services tailored to businesses across Cumbria and the North West. Whether you’re starting from scratch or want to make sure your existing profile is working as hard as it should be, we’d be happy to talk it through.