Profiles and Citations
Use this for profile eligibility, field changes, and name/address/phone cleanup. Verify facts with the owner and the current business representation guidelines.
Model the Real Business
| Business | Profile approach | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Staffed storefront receiving customers | Actual location, public address and customer-facing hours | Keyword-stuffed name or wrong entrance |
| Service-area business visiting customers | Actual base with address hidden when customers are not served there | Profiles for every city or exposing a home address |
| Hybrid | Real customer-facing location plus actual coverage | Claiming unstaffed locations |
| Multiple locations | Verify each location and its staffing/eligibility separately | Assuming a location page or rented mailbox establishes eligibility |
| Online only | Use organic/AI search strategy appropriate to the business | Creating a fictitious local presence |
Exceptions for practitioners, departments, co-located businesses, and special business types require their specific rules. Do not merge two legitimately distinct entities just because they share an address. An actual relocation needs an update to the existing business identity rather than an unexplained new duplicate.
Field-Level Review
- Name: match real-world branding. Put services and coverage in their proper fields rather than adding search keywords to the name.
- Categories: use the most specific accurate primary category and only justified additional categories. Check the current category options for that market.
- Services: describe services actually offered; distinguish availability, territory, and appointment requirements.
- Description: write factual business/service information. Keep promotions and links out of this field.
- Hours and contact: confirm regular/special hours, correct phone routing, and a location-specific working website/booking link.
- Photos: propose real exterior/entrance, interior, team, or service imagery appropriate to the business. Confirm permission before publishing identifiable customers.
- Posts: use them for relevant current updates, offers, or events where available; do not invent a posting-frequency ranking benefit.
- Q&A: Google discontinued its Q&A API on November 3, 2025. Do not prescribe API seeding or a universal editable Q&A section. Verify current interface availability; answer common customer questions in website content and accurate profile fields when a profile feature is unavailable.
For service areas, confirm actual coverage using Google's service-area guidance. Listing another town does not create a new location or remove searcher distance as a ranking factor.
Citation Cleanup Table
Use one row per observed listing:
| Location/entity | Listing URL | Observed public facts | Verified source of truth | Correction / duplicate action | Access/status | Verification date |
|---|
Compare meaning, not merely punctuation: an abbreviation need not be an identity conflict. A wrong phone, old address, mismatched business, or duplicate that diverts customers deserves priority. Preserve location distinctions and legitimate branch phone numbers.
For a home-based service business, use supported hidden-address listings or skip platforms that require publishing private information. Maintain the private operating address separately from public citation data.
Select listings for customer relevance and accurate discovery. Bulk low-quality links, lifetime domain metrics, or a directory count alone do not demonstrate improved local outcomes. DIY corrections are a valid path; paid listing management is optional when its coverage, control, cost, and verification process fit the business.