How to Set Up Google Business Profile for Your Barrie Business
A step-by-step guide to claiming and optimizing your Google Business Profile so local customers can find you.
When someone in Barrie searches "plumber near me" or "coffee shop downtown Barrie," Google shows a map with three business listings right at the top. That map pack gets more clicks than the regular search results below it. If your business isn't there, you're handing customers to whoever is.
The way you get into that map is through Google Business Profile. It's free, it takes about 30 minutes to set up, and it's the single most important thing you can do for local visibility.
Why Google Business Profile Matters
Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is your business listing on Google. It controls what shows up when people search your name, your industry, or your location. It includes your hours, phone number, address, photos, reviews, and a link to your website.
Without one, Google has to guess what your business is about based on whatever scraps of information it can find online. That's not a game you want to leave to chance.
Businesses with complete Google profiles get significantly more clicks, calls, and direction requests than those with incomplete or missing listings. For a local business in Barrie, this is the lowest-hanging fruit you can pick.
Step 1: Claim or Create Your Profile
Head to business.google.com and sign in with a Google account. Search for your business name. If it already exists (Google sometimes creates listings automatically from directory data), claim it. If not, create a new one.
You'll enter your business name, category, and location. Pick your primary category carefully -- it's the biggest factor in what searches you show up for. A general contractor should pick "General Contractor," not "Construction Company." A hair salon should pick "Hair Salon," not "Beauty Salon."
Be specific. Google uses this to match you with what people are searching.
Step 2: Verify Your Business
Google needs to confirm you're a real business at a real address. The most common method is a postcard mailed to your business address with a verification code. This takes about five days.
Some businesses qualify for phone or email verification, which is faster. Google will show you the options available for your listing.
Don't skip this step. Unverified profiles barely show up in search results, and you can't respond to reviews or post updates until verification is complete.
Step 3: Fill Out Every Section
This is where most businesses drop the ball. They verify their profile, add basic info, and stop. That's like building a storefront and leaving the lights off.
Complete every section Google gives you:
- Business hours -- including special hours for holidays
- Phone number -- use a local number, not a 1-800 line
- Website URL -- link to your homepage or a dedicated landing page
- Service area -- if you travel to customers, define the areas you serve
- Business description -- 750 characters to explain what you do and where you do it
- Services/Products -- list everything you offer with descriptions and prices if applicable
- Attributes -- things like "wheelchair accessible," "free Wi-Fi," or "women-owned"
Google rewards completeness. The more information you provide, the more searches you can appear in.
Step 4: Add Photos That Actually Help
Profiles with photos get significantly more engagement than those without. But not just any photos. Skip the blurry phone shots and generic stock images.
Upload photos of your actual business: your storefront, your team, your work, your products. If you're a contractor, show before-and-after shots of real projects. If you're a restaurant, show your food and your dining room. If you're a salon, show your space and real client results.
Aim for at least 10-15 quality photos. Update them regularly. Businesses that add new photos every month signal to Google that they're active and engaged, which helps rankings.
Photo quality matters too. Good lighting, sharp focus, and realistic representation of your business. Customers use these to decide whether to visit.
Step 5: Get Reviews and Respond to Every One
Reviews are the fuel that powers your Google Business Profile. Businesses with more positive reviews rank higher and get more clicks. It's that simple.
Ask your happy customers to leave a review. Make it easy by sending them a direct link to your review page. You can generate this link right from your Google Business Profile dashboard.
The timing matters. Ask right after you've delivered great service, when the experience is fresh. A simple text or email with the link works better than a sign on the wall.
Respond to every review -- good and bad. Thank people for positive reviews. For negative ones, stay professional, acknowledge the issue, and offer to make it right. Google tracks your response rate, and potential customers read your responses to judge how you handle problems.
Step 6: Post Regular Updates
Google Business Profile has a built-in posting feature that most businesses ignore entirely. You can share updates, promotions, events, and news directly on your profile.
These posts show up when people view your listing and they signal to Google that your business is active. A profile that hasn't been updated in six months looks abandoned, even if your business is thriving.
Post once a week if you can. Share a completed project, a seasonal promotion, a new service, or a simple update about your business. It doesn't need to be long or polished. Consistent activity matters more than production quality.
Connect It to Your Website
Your Google Business Profile and your website should work together. Link to your site from your profile, and add your Google Maps embed and business info to your website.
Make sure your name, address, and phone number are identical on both. Even small differences -- "St." vs "Street," or a slightly different phone format -- can confuse Google and weaken your local rankings.
If you don't have a website yet, your Google Business Profile still works on its own. But the combination of a solid profile and a clean website is what gets you into that map pack consistently. Check our local SEO checklist for the full picture on making both work together.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Keyword stuffing your business name. Your profile name should be your actual business name. Adding "Best Plumber in Barrie" to your name violates Google's guidelines and can get your profile suspended.
Ignoring the Q&A section. Anyone can ask a question on your profile, and anyone can answer it -- including competitors. Monitor this section and answer questions yourself before someone else does.
Using a virtual office or P.O. Box. Google wants to verify real business locations. If you're a service-area business that works at customer locations, you can hide your address while still defining your service area.
Setting it and forgetting it. Your profile needs ongoing attention. Update hours for holidays, add new photos, respond to reviews, and post updates. An inactive profile slowly loses ranking to competitors who stay active.
Get Started Today
Setting up your Google Business Profile is one of the highest-impact things you can do for your local visibility, and it costs nothing. The businesses that dominate local search in Barrie aren't doing anything magical. They're just doing the basics well and staying consistent.
If you need help connecting your Google Business Profile to a website that converts those visitors into customers, get in touch. We build clean, fast websites for Barrie businesses that work hand-in-hand with your Google presence.
Celine Andrews
Founder of Digiteria Labs — a web design studio in Ontario, Canada. We design, build, and deliver custom websites and applications for businesses of all sizes.
