Your Google Business Profile is a Marketing Engine
Beyond the Website: Your Google Business Profile is a Marketing Engine—Are You Giving It Enough Attention?
Digital Article Series

By Kris Bradley, Owner of NameSpark

From my experience working with small business owners over the years, most have claimed a Google Business Profile, but as many as 8 out of 10 neglect to update it. They treat it as a set-it-and-forget-it tool and that is bad for business. 

Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is one of the most critical digital asset you own. For too long, the GBP has been treated like a necessary evil—a box to check – and then forgotten about. Today, it is your business’s digital front door, primary marketing landing page, and now the engine that feeds Google’s new, powerful Artificial Intelligence.

Did You Know: Your GBP can provide a helpful boost to your other marketing efforts? If you link your social media profiles directly to your Google Business Profile, Google will recognize and include those social media sites in its search rankings for your business. It’s a quick and easy win that ensures your entire digital footprint is connected, strong, and highly visible to potential customers.

Your Google Business Profile: The Place Where Customers Take Action

Think about how you use Google. When you search for “Lancaster coffee shop” or “plumber near me,” you are interacting with local results, not sifting through pages of organic links. This isn’t just a trend; it’s a fundamental shift:

  • Local Intent Dominates: Nearly half (46%) of all Google searches are driven by local intent. 
  • Instant Conversion Power: Shoppers on their smartphones are making high-value decisions fast. 28% of people who conduct a local search on their phone visit a physical location within 24 hours, and that same percentage results in a purchase.
  • Action Happens on the Profile: Consumers are skipping the website! On the GBP alone, customers show high-intent signals: 34% request directions, 17% place a direct phone call, and 48% click through to the website for more details.

The Bottom Line: Your GBP is where customers go from searching to acting.

Future-Proofing Your Business: The AI Connection

AI isn’t just reshaping how people search — it’s reshaping how they discover local businesses. Your GBP is no longer just a directory listing; it’s the data source AI is using to decide who gets shown and who gets skipped. 

Google has declared your GBP as the verified, singular source of truth for your business data across its entire ecosystem, including Google Maps and, most importantly, the new AI Overviews (AIO).

The rollout of AI Overviews is changing how search results are consumed, often presenting a summary at the very top of the page. How does Google’s AI know what to include in that summary? It relies heavily on your GBP!

If your profile is fully optimized, your business significantly increases its likelihood of being cited by the AI itself. This isn’t just old-school SEO; it’s Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), and continuous, active management of your GBP is the best way to influence this new customer journey.

Treat your profile like your storefront: polished, stocked, and welcoming. Businesses that adapt now will find themselves front and center in AI-powered searches, while those that don’t risk becoming invisible in the age of AI.

Three High-Leverage Activities to Master

If you are committed to making your GBP a consistent lead generator, you need to focus on the elements that deliver returns—the things that send strong “active” signals to Google and your customers.

1. The Review Engine: The Ultimate Trust Signal

The single most powerful factor under your control for achieving local search prominence is your review profile. Reviews are integral to Google’s ranking algorithm and the primary determinant of customer trust.

  • Your Job: Be proactive! Consistently ask for new reviews and reply to every single review, positive or negative. A well-managed review profile separates your business from your competitors.

2. Photos & Videos: Visually Show Off What Makes You Great

Businesses that commit to consistently uploading photos and videos can expect to see an increase in customer engagement. Visual content has been found to align with high-intent customer action. Imagine you’re traveling and hungry. You search for “pizza near me,” and right there—on the Google result—you see an amazing photo of the Meat Lovers Pizza from a restaurant just down the street. 

  • Your Job: At a minimum, upload photos and videos (of products, staff, your storefront, events, etc) once a week. AI systems are using imagery to assess your business’s credibility and atmosphere—make sure you look your best!

3. Keep Your Profile Active with Posts (and Advertise Your Sales!)

This is the feature most of your competitors skip! GBP Posts are similar to social media posts and essential for maintaining your profile’s active status, communicating urgency, and driving conversions directly from the search result page.

  • Your Job: Once a week, share a post about sales, upcoming events, new products, or timely updates like weekly specials. It can be a post repurposed from your social media. Posts keep your profile looking current to customers and signal to Google that your business is active. They’re also perfect for sharing time-sensitive deals directly in search results.

Consistency is King (and Easier Than You Think)

The great news is that managing your profile is incredibly easy—the challenge is consistency.

Treat your GBP like a high-value social media account, not an old phone book listing. A simple, 30 minute weekly check-in to post a new photo and/or video, schedule a Post, and reply to recent reviews can create a massive competitive advantage.

However, if you know that finding the time for this consistency is a hurdle, the data is clear: the high return on investment justifies professional help. The “set it and forget it” strategy not only misses opportunities but also exposes you to operational risk like profile suspensions or competitor tampering.

Whether you manage your GBP yourself with a weekly routine or choose a professional service, the choice is clear: Active, continuous management of your Google Business Profile is crucial for growth and visibility in today’s AI-driven world.

You can check out NameSpark’s Google Business Management Services here: https://namespark.co/services/google-business-profile-management/ 

not secure