Why your business doesn't show up on Google

If your business doesn’t show up on Google, first figure out which part of Google you mean. The listings on the map and the regular website results are two separate lists, and they go wrong for different reasons. Check your Google Business Profile first, then your website. Here’s the order I’d go in.

Maps and search are two different lists

Search for something like “plumber near me” and Google will often show a map with a few businesses listed under it. Those listings are Google Business Profiles.

The regular results are different. Those are web pages that Google has found and saved.

You can be on one list and missing from the other. So check them one at a time.

1. Do you have a Business Profile, and is it verified?

Open Google Maps and search for your business name and town.

• Nothing comes up. Add your business. Google says you can add or claim a profile at no charge.
• A listing comes up, but you’ve never managed it. Claim it. The same page shows how.
• You manage it, but it was never verified. Finish that step. Google says verifying shows you’re allowed to represent the business, so the profile is more likely to show up.

You can verify by phone or text, email, video, or a postcard in the mail. Google decides which you’re offered. It says a verification review takes up to 5 business days, and most postcard codes arrive within 14 days.

2. Is the profile complete and correct?

Google is direct about this one: “Businesses with complete and accurate info are more likely to show up in local search results.” Go down the list:

• Name. Use your real-world name, the one on your sign and your website.
• Address. If you go to your customers and they don’t come to you, Google’s guidelines say to hide your address.
• Hours. Regular hours and holiday hours.
• Category. Pick the most specific one that fits your main business.

Google can also suspend a profile that doesn’t follow its rules. If that happened to yours, Google explains how to appeal.

3. Know what you can’t control

Google says local results come down mainly to three things: how well a profile matches the search, how far the business is from the person searching, and how well known the business is.

Distance explains a lot. If you search from the other side of the county, you may not see your own business, even when a customer near your shop does.

Reviews are the part you can work on. Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking. You’re allowed to ask customers for a review with a link or a QR code. You’re not allowed to offer a discount or a freebie in return.

4. Does Google have your website at all?

Type site:yourbusiness.com into Google, using your real web address. Google’s starter guide says that if you see results pointing to your site, you’re in the index. That’s Google’s saved list of pages.

If nothing shows up, look at three things:

• Is the site new? Google mostly finds pages by following links from pages it already knows. The same guide says some changes show up in a few hours and others can take several months.
• Is a “hide this site” setting turned on? WordPress has a checkbox called “Discourage search engines from indexing this site.” If that box is checked, your site is asking not to be listed, and Google will drop it from search results.
• Has anyone looked in Search Console? It’s Google’s free tool for confirming that Google can find and read your site.

5. Does your site say what you do and where?

Google’s guide suggests thinking about the words a customer would type to find you. For a local business, that often means the service and the town.

Start with the title of your home page. It’s one of the things Google uses to build the headline of your search result. “Home” or “Welcome” tells a customer nothing. “Furnace Repair in Cedarburg” tells them what you do and where. Google says a good title is “unique to the page, clear and concise, and accurately describes the contents of the page.”

What nobody can do for you

Be careful with anyone who promises you a top spot. Google’s own advice on hiring help says, “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.” And about the map, it says, “There’s no way to request or pay for a better local ranking on Google.”

The short version

• Search Google Maps for your business name and town
• Claim and verify your Business Profile
• Check the name, address, hours and category
• Ask customers for reviews, with no rewards attached
• Search site: plus your web address
• Make your home page title say what you do and where

Want a second set of eyes on the website half of that list? Run the free Site Check. It tests your site the way a phone sees it and gives you the top fixes in plain English.