Most tradies set up a Google Business Profile when their accountant told them to, filled in the basics, never came back. Then they wonder why the bloke 2 suburbs over keeps showing up first.
Google ranks your profile in the “local pack” (the map result with 3 businesses) based on how complete and active it is. Filling in every field is the cheapest, fastest way to climb. Costs nothing. Takes 15 minutes.
Here are the 7 fields most tradies miss and how to fix each one.
1. Categories (primary + secondary)
The single highest-leverage field on the whole profile.
- Primary category: the one most-Googled term that describes you. “Electrician” not “Electrical Services”. Match the search query, not the technical name.
- Secondary categories: up to 9 more. Add every variant a customer might search: “Emergency electrician,” “Solar panel installer,” “Lighting contractor,” “Switchboard upgrade service.”
Most profiles have 1 category. Adding the other 9 expands the searches you show up for, for free. The fastest single change you can make.
2. Services list
A separate field below categories. List every specific service with a 1-line description.
For an electrician, that’s:
- Switchboard upgrades
- Smoke alarm installation and testing
- Power point installation
- LED downlight conversion
- EV charger installation
- Ceiling fan installation
- Solar inverter repair
- Emergency electrical (24-hour callout)
Each one is a search term Google can match. Each one tells the customer “yes, I do your specific thing”. Most profiles list 0–2 services.
3. Service area (suburbs and postcodes)
If you do callouts, switch your profile from “physical address” to “service area” mode. Then list every suburb you cover.
This sounds boring but it’s how Google decides which searches you appear in. “Electrician Woollahra” surfaces businesses with Woollahra in their service area. “Electrician Bondi” surfaces businesses with Bondi.
Most profiles list 3–5 suburbs. List 15–20. List every suburb you’d actually drive to. You don’t need to spam, just be honest about your area.
4. Hours (and special hours)
Two parts:
- Regular hours. Even if you’re 7am–4pm, fill it in. Empty hours = “this business might be closed forever” to Google.
- Special hours. Holidays, public holidays, when you’re on annual leave. Set them ahead of time. Profiles that update special hours are flagged as “actively maintained” by Google. Active maintenance = better ranking.
If you do 24-hour emergency callouts, don’t put 24/7 hours on your main profile unless you actually answer calls 24/7. Set normal hours and add an Emergency category instead. Customers who get “closed” when they call mid-job lose trust fast.
5. Photos (and recent photos)
Google ranks profiles with regular photo activity higher. Most tradies upload 3 photos when they set up the profile then never add more.
What to photograph:
- Recent jobs (with the customer’s permission, or shoot the work, not the house)
- Your van and tools
- Yourself on a job
- Before/after pairs
Frequency: 2 photos a fortnight, minimum. Doesn’t need to be Instagram quality. Phone camera, good light, square crop. Upload them to your profile, not Instagram.
This single habit will out-rank 80% of your competitors who took 3 photos in 2022 and stopped.
6. Posts
The “Posts” feature on a Google Business Profile is underused. It’s a free, top-of-search-results panel where you can put announcements, offers, recent jobs.
Use cases:
- “Booking out 2 weeks ahead. Call now to lock in next month.”
- “Last week’s switchboard upgrade in [suburb] — see photo.”
- “Spring offer: free electrical safety check with any service over $200 (until 30 Sep).”
Frequency: 1 post a fortnight. Same cadence as photos. Combine them.
Google ranks profiles with recent posts higher in the local pack. Posts also show up above the fold on your profile, which means a customer scrolling past sees your most recent work and thinks “this bloke is busy.”
7. Q&A (and review responses)
Two parts:
Q&A. Customers can ask questions on your profile. Most go unanswered. Answered questions show up directly on the profile and rank for those exact phrases.
Tip: ask yourself the 5 most common customer questions and answer them. That’s allowed. “Do you do emergency callouts at 11pm?” “Yes, $250 callout fee plus normal rates.”
Review responses. Reply to every review. Even one-line responses. “Thanks Sarah, glad we got it sorted in time.” It shows the next customer you’re alive and you care. Bad reviews especially — a calm, professional reply turns a negative into a trust signal.
What to do today
15-minute task list:
- Search your business name on Google. Click the panel.
- Click “Edit profile” or sign in to https://business.google.com.
- Add 5 secondary categories.
- Add 5 services with descriptions.
- List 10 suburbs in your service area.
- Confirm hours are accurate (check special hours for the next 3 months).
- Upload 3 recent job photos.
- Reply to every review from the last 12 months.
Set a fortnightly recurring reminder to add 2 photos and 1 post. Done.
Rigup manages every Google Business Profile field as part of the Lead Engine subscription. We post fortnightly, respond to every review within 48 hours, and keep your profile in active-maintenance status with Google. See what’s included or book a call.