Google Business Profile: how to get found by customers nearby

The Kazeer team, 13 October 2026, 9 min read

Key points

According to Google, local results are mainly based on relevance, distance, and popularity, and no one can request or pay for a better local ranking.
Claim your profile with a Google Account that belongs to the business, verify it the way Google offers, and never share the verification code.
Use the name on your signage, enter dine-in hours and special hours for holidays, then add your menu, photos, and payment attributes.
Ask for reviews without rewards, reply politely, and each month note directions and calls next to your transaction numbers from Kazeer AI.

Picture this: someone near your outlet opens Google Maps and types "coffee". They pick where to go from what's on the screen: opening hours, photos, menu, and reviews. If your hours are wrong or your photos are dark, they may go somewhere else.

All of that shows on your Google Business Profile, a free profile on Google Maps and Search. Set it up properly once, then keep it current with a short check every month.

Note: The steps and button names here follow Google's help pages as of 13 October 2026 and may change. Some features exist only in certain regions or categories, and the pages don't always say whether a feature is available in Indonesia. The outlet names, opening hours, reviews, and performance figures in this article are examples.

How Google picks results near a customer

According to Google (opens in a new tab), local results are mainly based on three things:

Relevance: how well your profile matches what someone is looking for.
Distance: how far your outlet is from the person searching.
Popularity: how well known your business is, including from reviews and links.

You can't change distance, but you can work on the other two. Google says businesses with complete and accurate information are more likely to show up. Its advice: verify your business; fill in your address, hours including special hours, category, and attributes; reply to reviews; and add photos and videos.

Google also writes: "There's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking on Google." So be wary of anyone selling a service to move your outlet up on Maps. This article doesn't promise a ranking either.

Claim and verify your profile

Adding or claiming a profile is free. Use a Google Account that belongs to the business, not a staff member's personal account. The steps (opens in a new tab):

Search Google Maps for your outlet's name and city.
If the profile exists and hasn't been claimed, select "Claim this business", then "Manage now". In the app, tap "About" first.
If it doesn't exist, go to business.google.com/add (opens in a new tab) and select "Add your business to Google".
If someone else has already verified it, such as a previous owner, request ownership from that profile's owner.

Then verify it (opens in a new tab). Google decides how, for example by phone, text, email, video, or postcard, and the options can't be changed. A postcard code usually arrives within 14 days and expires after 30 days. While you wait, don't edit your name, address, or category, and don't request a new code. The review can take up to 5 business days. Never give the code to anyone, because Google will never ask for it.

Have more than one outlet? Each location gets one profile, never more.

Name, category, and hours

Name

Match your signage. Google's guidelines (opens in a new tab) don't allow taglines, location info, phone numbers, hours, product descriptions, or all-caps names, and unnecessary information can get a profile suspended. So not "KEDAI KOPI ANDA" or "Kedai Kopi Anda, Cheapest Kopi Susu Aren", just "Kedai Kopi Anda".

Hours

For restaurants, Google asks for the hours when diners can sit down and eat, or takeaway hours if there's no dine-in. Delivery hours can go separately under "More hours". If your outlet closes in the middle of the day, add two time ranges under "Edit profile" > "Hours", such as 07:00 to 14:00 and 16:00 to 22:00.

Changes of up to 6 days in a row (opens in a new tab), such as closing for 5 days over Lebaran, go under "Special hours". Google also suggests confirming your hours on official holidays even when they're the same as usual. If you close for 7 days or more, such as two weeks of renovation, or you don't know for how long, mark the business "Temporarily closed".

Food and drink businesses can add a menu with "Edit menu (opens in a new tab)": sections, items, descriptions, and prices. Google says the feature has limited availability (opens in a new tab), so it may not be on your profile yet. Changes can take 24 to 48 hours to show, so update the menu on Google two days before a new price starts at your POS.

Google's guidelines (opens in a new tab) ask for a menu that represents everything available, not just popular items. A menu link also can't go straight to a third-party ordering or delivery service: use a page on your own website, or upload photos of your menu.

Photos

Photos (opens in a new tab) show once your profile is verified. Use JPG or PNG, 10 KB to 5 MB, ideally 720 x 720 pixels, in focus, well lit, and without heavy filters.

Start with a daytime photo of the front of your outlet, which helps customers recognize it when they arrive. Then the seating area, the counter, and the items people order most. Not sure which ones? Ask Kazeer AI "What sells best?" (in Indonesian, "Apa yang paling laku?").

Other details

Attributes (opens in a new tab) ("Edit profile" > "More"), such as "Payments" and "Amenities": select "Yes" only for what's true. Kazeer's POS records cash, QRIS, and card, so match your payment attributes to the methods you accept. Some attributes are filled in from customer feedback, so check them now and then.
Description (opens in a new tab): up to 750 characters, with no URLs, promotions, or prices. Say what you offer, what makes you different, and how long you've been open, for example "[Outlet name] is a small coffee shop on [street name], open since [year]. We brew coffee and bake bread every morning."

Reviews: ask honestly, reply calmly

Create a review link or QR code (opens in a new tab) in a computer browser, because QR codes can't be made on a phone yet. Open your profile, select "Read Reviews", then "Get more reviews". Share it on receipts, in thank-you messages, at the end of a chat with a customer, or on a printed card at the counter. In Kazeer, receipts can't print a review QR code yet. You can add the link as the receipt's closing text at app.kazeer.ai, under Pengaturan Printer (printer settings), but that setting is saved per browser or device, not per outlet, and receipts printed from the Android app can't include it yet.

Don't offer incentives (opens in a new tab), such as a free drink or a discount, in exchange for reviews. Google counts this as fake and misleading content and strictly prohibits it. A card that says "Write a review, get a free iced tea" breaks this rule. This is fine: "If you'd like, tell others about your visit on Google."

Only verified businesses can reply to reviews (opens in a new tab). Replies are public, appear as your business, and the reviewer is notified.

Google's advice (opens in a new tab): be polite and brief, don't copy the same reply to everyone, and leave out promotions. For negative reviews: never share the reviewer's private information, be honest about what you can and can't do, apologize when it's appropriate, respond to what they actually wrote, and reply promptly.

Example: Review: "My iced coffee took almost 30 minutes. The cashier wasn't friendly either." Reply: "Thank you for writing. We're sorry: almost 30 minutes for one iced coffee is too long, and you should have had a better welcome at the counter. We've talked it through with the team on shift that day. If you're willing, tell us more through the number on this profile."

Before you reply, check that day's records and ask the staff who were on shift. Only write what you've actually done. Report a review (opens in a new tab) only if it breaks Google's policies, not because you disagree.

Posts and a monthly check

There are three post types (opens in a new tab): "Update", "Offer", and "Event". An offer needs a title, dates, and times. Posts are archived after 6 months unless they have a date range. When you run a slow-hour promotion, set the promo price in Kazeer's promo feature, then create an Offer post with that promotion's start and end dates.

The "Performance (opens in a new tab)" section shows, among other things, views, directions, calls, and website clicks. These count people who saw or contacted your profile, not people who bought, so put them next to your POS records. You can ask Kazeer AI for yesterday's number of transactions. Ask and write it down every morning, then work out the average for each month.

Example	August	September
Directions (Google)	140	175
Calls (Google)	22	25
Transactions per day, average (Kazeer AI)	172	186

Directions went up by 35 and transactions by an average of 14 a day, but that doesn't mean Google caused it. There may have been a promotion or a public holiday, so note those down too and look at the trend over several months. If directions and calls keep falling, check your hours, photos, and unanswered reviews again.

Checklist: once at the start, then every month

Once at the start:

Claim or add your profile with the business's Google Account, then verify it. Don't share the code.
Write the name as it appears on your signage, and choose one specific primary category.
Enter dine-in hours, breaks, and special hours for the next holiday.
Add a menu, or a menu link that isn't a delivery app.
Upload photos of the front, the seating area, and your best sellers.
Match the payment attributes to how you take payment, and write a description with no prices.
Print the review QR code for the counter.

At the start of every month:

Check special hours for that month's holidays.
Make the menu and prices on Google match your POS.
Reply to any unanswered reviews.
Add new photos and a post for your next promotion.
Note directions and calls next to your average transactions per day.