Nobody can buy a better position in Google’s map results; Google says as much in its own help pages. What a business controls is a profile that is complete, accurate, current and defended. Below: the eleven-step checklist as we run it, what we record at each step, and where the checklist stops helping.
What decides the map results
Google’s help pages describe the map as weighing three things. Does the profile fit what was typed? How near is the business to the person typing it, which no one can alter? And how well known is it, judged partly from the links pointing at it and the reviews it has collected?
- The question
- Does the profile fit what was typed?
- What you control
- A profile that is complete, accurate, current and defended
- The question
- How well known is the business?
- What you control
- Reviews and links, earned slowly
- The question
- How near is it to the person typing?
- What you control
- Nothing: an adequate profile round the corner usually wins
Map searches mostly describe a need (“best coffee shop near me”) rather than a name. The three places beside the map are Google’s choice for that need, from that spot, at that moment.
Our own data shows how hard the question is to answer honestly. Over 92 days to 30 September 2026, our page appeared 5,915 times for searches like “how to rank higher on google maps”, at an average position of 14.6, and was clicked twice. This version promises no ranking; it gives the checklist.
The checklist, and what we record at each step
We recommend recording the profile as it stands before changing anything, so progress is measured rather than remembered. The right-hand column is what we keep as evidence.
| # | Step | What we check | What we record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ownership and verification | Verified; one profile per business; who holds owner access | Owner and manager list; any duplicate listings found |
| 2 | Business name | Identical to the signage, the invoices and the website | The name as found, and any words that were stuffed into it |
| 3 | Address or service area, phone | Same digits and street on your site and the listings your trade uses | Every listing that disagrees, with its URL |
| 4 | Hours | Regular and holiday hours current | Whether the coming bank holidays already carry their own times |
| 5 | Categories | Primary category is what most customers come for; extras kept few | Categories before and after, with the reason for each |
| 6 | Description | What you do, for whom, where; no links or price offers | The old and new text |
| 7 | Photos and video | Exterior, interior, people and work; unfiltered | Date of the newest photo |
| 8 | Asking for reviews | A review link in the normal after-sale message, sent to every customer | Reviews per month, before and after |
| 9 | Replies | Every review answered, the critical ones first | Unanswered reviews, counted |
| 10 | Posts and website link | Recent posts; the profile links to a real page for that location | Date of the last post; the linked URL |
| 11 | The rest of the web | Directories and aggregators agree with the profile | Contradictions fixed, checked again each quarter |
Notes on the steps that go wrong most
Claiming and verifying (step 1)
If the business is already on Maps, claim that listing rather than creating a second one; a duplicate splits reviews and confuses both customers and Google. If it is missing, add it from Maps or from the Business Profile sign-up, then complete verification.
The name and the description (steps 2 and 6)
“Smith Plumbing” is a name. “Smith Plumbing Best Emergency Plumber Leeds” is a guideline breach that can get the profile suspended. The description is where services and areas belong, written for a person deciding whether to call.
Photos (step 7)
Pictures should look like the place does on an ordinary Tuesday. Google accepts JPG or PNG files from 10 KB up to 5 MB and suggests 720 pixels square. A clear shot of the entrance saves a first-time visitor a phone call.
Reviews and replies (steps 8 and 9)
Use the link from the profile’s review-request option and send it to every customer, not a hand-picked few; asking only the happy ones breaks Google’s policy, as does offering anything in return. How to remove bad reviews from Google covers reporting and replies.
Posts, the website and other links (step 10)
Short posts about a new service or a seasonal change tell a browsing customer the business is open and paying attention. The website link should land on that location’s own page, with its services and directions, not the home page of a group.
Defend the profile, not only polish it
Profiles change without the owner touching them. Members of the public can suggest edits, duplicate listings appear, and a former agency or employee may still hold owner access. A hijacked, merged or wrongly edited listing can cost more visibility than any of the eleven steps adds.
So the checklist runs again every quarter, and the owner list is the first thing checked. Our local SEO work includes edit monitoring, duplicate clean-up and suspension appeals for that reason.
When the checklist will not move you
- You are simply further away. A complete profile across town usually loses to an adequate one round the corner from the searcher.
- The profile is already sound and rivals are better known. Prominence is then the only lever left, earned slowly through reviews and links.
- You run several sites. Each needs its own profile and page under one set of rules; that is multi-location work.
Written by
Shweta Agarwal
Chief Operating Officer, Vinove
Shweta runs the operating side of the group, holding delivery, process and accountability consistent across the group. Her focus is on the systems that let teams grow without losing the standard they started with.
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