Step 1: search for your business name

Open Google Maps and search your exact business name and suburb.

  • You appear: your profile is live. Your problem is ranking for service searches (skip to “If you only show up for your name”).
  • You don’t appear at all: it’s a profile problem. Work through the reasons below.

8 reasons your profile isn’t showing

  1. It isn’t verified. Google says only verified businesses show their info on Maps and Search. See how to verify.
  2. It’s suspended or disabled. Suspended profiles don’t show to anyone until the issue is fixed. Check your email and profile for a notice, then see what to do.
  3. It’s a duplicate. Google hides profiles it thinks duplicate another one for the same business.
  4. It’s brand new. Google says rankings for new businesses can take up to a month to appear.
  5. You’ve just made changes. Edits are reviewed and can take a few days (sometimes much longer) to show. Check for a pending status in Edit profile.
  6. It’s marked closed. Check it isn’t set to temporarily or permanently closed.
  7. The details are wrong or thin. Missing categories, services or hours make you harder to match. See the checklist.
  8. It was removed or merged. Someone may have reported it as closed or not there. Use the Contact us form to get it reinstated.

If you only show up for your name

That’s normal for many businesses, and it’s a ranking problem. Google ranks local results on relevance, distance and prominence (Google’s page now calls the last one popularity). Searching “plumber” from your desk only shows one spot on the map. Customers a few suburbs away may see you, or may not.

Run a free Google Maps rank check to see your position at 25 spots across your area. Then work through how to rank higher on Google Maps.

Checks people forget

  • Search in a private browser window, signed out, so your own history doesn’t skew it.
  • If you’re a service-area business, customers won’t see a pin at your home address. That’s expected.
  • Check that your hours aren’t showing you as closed at the time you’re searching.
  • Check your category matches what people search for. See choosing categories.