Key takeaways
- Audit first, edit later. Record the current state with screenshots.
- The primary category is the most important choice on the profile.
- Name, address and phone must match the real business and the website.
- Reviews are asked for, never bought or filtered.
Why audit a Business Profile before optimizing it?
Because changes made on a profile that already breaks the rules can trigger a suspension, and because you need a baseline to report progress. An audit shows what is wrong, what is missing and what the competitors do better, so the first month of work goes to the fixes that bring calls.
Identity: name, address, phone
- The name matches signage and documents, with no added keywords, per the guidelines.
- The address is a real, staffed location, or it is hidden for a service-area business.
- Service areas are set as Google describes, covering places the business really serves.
- The phone number reaches the business; tracking numbers are set up correctly.
- The website link points to the matching location page, not always the home page.
- No duplicate profiles exist for the same location.
How should agencies choose Business Profile categories?
Pick the most specific primary category that describes the core business, such as Nail salon instead of Salon, as Google's help page suggests. Then add a few additional categories for real departments or services, not one for every product. Check which primary category the top local competitors use before deciding.
Google's page on managing your business category explains the rules.
Content and activity
- Regular and holiday hours are complete and correct.
- Services or products are listed with short, useful descriptions.
- The business description explains what the business does, without links or promotions.
- Recent, real photos of the premises, team and work.
- Questions and answers are reviewed.
- Posts are published when there is real news or an offer.
What should a review audit check?
The number of reviews, the average rating, how recent they are and how the business replies, compared with the top three local competitors. Check that every review is answered politely, that no private customer details appear in replies, and that the business asks real customers for reviews instead of buying or filtering them.
Turning the audit into a plan
Group the findings into fix now (anything that risks a suspension), fix this month (categories, services, hours) and ongoing (reviews, photos, posts). If a profile is already suspended, follow the suspension recovery guide first. The website side of local SEO is covered in the LocalBusiness schema guide and white label local SEO. See the partner model on the white label SEO services page.
Frequently asked questions
How often should a Business Profile be audited?
At onboarding and then every quarter, or after any major business change.
Can we add keywords to the business name?
No. Google's guidelines say the name should match the real-world business name.
How many categories should a profile have?
One specific primary category and a few additional ones for real services.
Do posts help rankings?
They keep the profile useful and current; treat them as content, not a ranking trick.
Do you audit profiles under our brand?
Yes. Audits are delivered in your template, with no partner branding.
About the author
Juan José Giraldo is a senior SEO specialist with 5+ years of experience. He works on technical and local SEO for 600+ US car dealerships and supervises the SEO of 18 US e-commerce stores. He runs White Label SEO LATAM from Medellín, Colombia, and delivers white label SEO for agencies in the US, UK, Canada and Australia. Read more · LinkedIn.