Google Business Profile is the current name for what everyone still calls Google My Business. It’s the free listing that gets your business on Google Maps and in the local results block in search, and you manage it directly from search, with no separate app.
The name changed, not the tool
Google retired the Google My Business brand in 2022 and retired the app in 2024. The product is still the same, just with a different name and a different place to access it. Today you manage your profile by searching for your business name on Google, logged into the account that owns it.
In practice, nobody adopted the new name. People looking for help still type “google my business,” and that’s why both terms show up side by side in any serious piece on the topic. This article uses both.
What the profile does and what it doesn’t do
The profile is what puts your business in three places: on the map, in the list of three businesses that appears above the organic results, and in the side panel when someone searches for your name.
It doesn’t put your website on the first page of Google. These are two separate games with separate signals. A well-built profile with a weak website still brings in calls; a great website with an empty profile loses the local-intent search, which is the one that buys.
- Shows up on Google Maps when someone searches for the service in your area
- Shows up in the block of 3 local results, above the blue links
- Gets public reviews with a 1-to-5 rating
- Shows hours, phone number, photos, services, and products
- Receives direct messages, quote requests, and bookings
- Tells you how many people viewed it, called, and requested directions
How to set it up, step by step
Setting it up is free and takes less than ten minutes. Verification is what takes time.
- Search Google for “create a business profile,” logged into the account that will own the profile. Use a company account, never an employee’s personal one
- Enter the name exactly as it appears on the storefront and in your documents
- Choose your main category. This is the single most important field in the whole setup
- Specify whether you serve customers at your address, at their location, or both
- Fill in your phone number and website
- Request verification. Google offers video, postcard, phone, or email, and not every option is available for every business
Verification is where most people get stuck
Since 2024, Google has required video for most new businesses in Brazil. You record one continuous video, with no cuts, showing the storefront with the house number, the sign, the interior, and some proof that you operate there: equipment, inventory, letterhead.
A rejected video is the number one reason a profile gets stuck. The three mistakes that cause the most rejections are recording with the business closed, not showing the street number, and cutting the video midway.
If your verification has been rejected twice, don’t try a third attempt the same way. Change the time of day you record and redo it showing real activity.
A profile you’ve set up isn’t a profile that shows up
This is where the math doesn’t add up for a lot of people. Setting up your profile puts you on the map, but being on the map and showing up in search are different things. A new business starts at the back of the line, behind competitors with 80 reviews and five years of history.
What moves you up the line is visibility, and visibility is built: steady reviews, services described one by one, weekly posts, and consistency between your profile and your website. Our profile optimization guide covers this item by item.
Before you invest weeks in this, it’s worth knowing where you stand. Our free profile audit gives you a score from 0 to 100 and compares you with 3 competitors on Maps in your search results. It arrives within 24 business hours on WhatsApp, and it’s free.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Google Business Profile paid? No. Creating, maintaining, and receiving contacts through your profile is free. What costs money is advertising, which is a separate product.
Do I need a CNPJ (Brazilian company registration number)? It’s not required. Freelancers and sole proprietors can set up a profile normally.
Can I have two profiles for the same business? Only if they’re at different addresses and you serve customers at each one. Two profiles at the same address become a duplicate, and one gets removed.
I lost access to my profile. Now what? There’s an ownership request process built into Google itself. It notifies the current manager, who has 7 days to respond.
How much does it cost to have it optimized? If you’d rather handle it yourself, pricing for the GMN Express Kit is sent on request. Optimization done by Ciclicko also depends on the scope of work, with pricing sent on request.