Small Business Digital
Google Business Profile: The Free Tool Most Tradespeople Ignore
1 February 2025
Google Business Profile is free, takes a few hours to set up properly, and is the single highest-impact thing most Irish trades businesses can do to get more enquiries from local customers. Most trades businesses either have not set it up at all, set it up years ago and never touched it since, or set it up incorrectly.
This is a significant missed opportunity. When someone searches for a tradesperson in their area, the businesses that appear in the map results at the top of the page are almost always the ones with a complete, well-maintained Google Business Profile. The organic website results below that are secondary.
What Google Business Profile actually is
Google Business Profile is the listing that appears when someone searches for your business by name, or when Google shows local results for a search like “electrician Dundalk” or “roofer near me.” It shows your business name, phone number, address or service area, opening hours, photos, and reviews.
It is also what populates Google Maps. If your business is not on Google Maps, or if your Maps listing is incomplete or inaccurate, you are losing Google Maps ranking visibility that costs nothing to fix.
Why most trades profiles underperform
Not claimed or verified. Google sometimes creates basic listings automatically from data it finds online. These unverified listings are often incomplete and cannot be managed by the business owner. Claiming and verifying the profile is the first step.
Category not set correctly. Google uses your primary category to determine which searches your listing appears in. A plumber listed under “contractor” rather than “plumber” will not appear in plumber searches. The category selection matters more than most people realise.
Service area not defined. Trades businesses typically work across a radius rather than from a fixed address. Defining your service area clearly tells Google which local searches you are relevant for.
No photos. Listings with photos receive significantly more clicks than listings without. For a trades business, photos of completed work are the most effective content you can add. They are also free to take and upload.
No reviews, or no recent reviews. Reviews are the most significant factor in whether a local business listing appears prominently. A business with fifteen reviews from three years ago will be outranked by a business with eight reviews from the last six months. Recency matters.
No posts or updates. Google Business Profile allows you to post updates, offers, and news directly to your listing. Few trades businesses use this. Those that do get a small but consistent visibility benefit.
The review problem and how to solve it
Getting Google reviews from satisfied customers is the part most trades businesses find awkward. Asking a customer to leave a review feels uncomfortable, particularly after a job that went well and the relationship is warm.
The simplest approach is a direct link, and there is a straightforward process for getting Google reviews consistently. Google generates a short link specifically for leaving a review on your listing. Send it in a follow-up text or email after a job: “Really appreciate your business. If you have a moment, a Google review would mean a lot to us.” Most satisfied customers will do it if the process is made easy.
Do not offer incentives for reviews. Google prohibits it and will remove reviews that appear to have been incentivised.
Setting it up correctly
The setup process is straightforward through business.google.com. The key steps are claiming and verifying the listing, selecting the right primary and secondary categories, writing a clear business description that includes your main services and area, uploading at least ten photos of completed work, and setting up a review request process from day one.
Done properly once, a Google Business Profile requires minimal ongoing maintenance but delivers consistent local SEO visibility indefinitely.
Maebh Collins works with small and micro businesses in Ireland on digital presence, local SEO, and business process automation.
Maebh Collins is a Chartered Accountant (FCA, ICAEW), Big 4 trained, with twenty years of experience building and running international businesses. She specialises in finance transformation, ecommerce operations, and digital strategy.