How to sign up for Google My Business

Google, the world’s #1 search engine has created a tool to help small businesses grow their sales by quickly reaching their target audience.

That tool is called Google My Business (GMB) and today, I shall show you the steps to sign up for it and how to fix all the features step by step.

Any business can use Google My Business. But Google rejects some business types, especially those categorized as violence, politics, adult, etc.

If your own type of business is about legal service/product promotion like Cafe, school, institute, software development, etc, Google would immediately accept your business on their profile.

And your business would also be listed on Google maps. Hence, anytime people search a keyword that relates to what you offer on Google search, your business will be on the front page.

Note: you don’t need to own a website before signing up for Google My Business. Once your business is on Google Maps, people can view your business location, products, customer reviews and ratings, business description, etc.

Now, let’s start to look at how to sign up for the Google My Business profile step-by-step.

Google My Business signing up procedures

1. On your computer, go to “Business Profile Manager”.
   1. http://business.google.com/
2. Sign in to your Google Account “Gmail” or create one. 
   1. That is if you own Google Account, log in and if you don’t own one, then sign up
   2. After that, then start with your business profile set up.
3. Enter the name of your business. Then, click “Next”. 
   • You may also be able to select your business from the list of suggested businesses as you type. 
   • Search for and select a business category. Then, click “Next”. 
4. Choose whether you have a location customers can visit.
   • If your business has a storefront staffed during business hours, click “Yes”.
     • You may be asked to enter your business address or position a marker on a map for your business’s location. When finished, click “Next“.
   • If your business does not have a storefront staffed during business hours, click “No“.
5. Enter the service area of your business.
   • You can set your service area based on the cities, postal codes, or other areas that you serve. You can add up to 20 service areas. 
   • Recommendation: Do not extend the boundaries of your overall area farther than 2 hours of driving time from where your business is based. For some businesses, it may be appropriate to have a larger service area.
6. Enter a phone number and website URL. Then, click “Next“.
   • You also have the option to create a website based on your information.
   • Click “Finish“.
7. Select a verification option.
   1. Note: Remember to review your information before you request verification.
   • To verify now: At the top, find the red banner and click “Verify now“.
   • To verify later: Click “Verify later”
   • If you’re not authorized to manage the Business Profile for the chain, add the person in your organization who’s authorized to continue the process.

You can add users to your Business Profile, or to a location group that contains several of your profiles in order to help you manage your business presence online.

Please note that when you add or remove members from your profile, you must:

• Have their email addresses.
• Select a role for each member.

How to set up a location on Google

When it’s come to setting up your business or office location on Google My Business (GMB or business profile), please create only one Business Profile for the metropolitan area you serve.

Because your Google account may be suspended if we find multiple profiles for the same business in the same metropolitan area.

And if your business doesn’t have a storefront where you receive customers, you must hide your business address.

During initial setup, you should select that you’re a service area business.

If you didn’t make this selection or changed your business model to become a service area business, follow the steps below:

If your service business is already verified and displays its address, you must remove or “hide” your business address. After it’s hidden, your Business Profile only shows your service area.

If you didn’t enter a service area, a local area is chosen for you by default. You can then edit the local area as needed. To hide your business address:

• Sign in to Business Profile Manager.
• If you have multiple locations, log in to your Google business profile, then open the place you want to manage. 
• From the menu, click “Info“.
• Click the address field.
• Click “Clear address“, then click “Apply“.

Success! You have now created a brand new Google profile for your business!! Please remember to share this post with your friends.