How to Get Your Business Found Online: 9 Simple Steps

To get your business found online, claim your free Google Business Profile first. Then list the same name, address, and phone number on Bing, Apple Maps, and Yelp. Build one web page for each service you sell. Ask every happy customer for a Google review. Check where you show up once a month.

Key Takeaways

• A free Google Business Profile puts your business on Google Maps and in local search results.
• Your name, address and phone number should match on every site, down to “St.” or “Street.”
• One page per service gives Google a page to show for each search.
• Recent reviews matter. About three in four shoppers look for reviews from the last three months.
• Search for your own business every month. What you see tells you what to fix next.

1. Claim Your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile is the listing that shows your business on Google Maps and in local results. Google’s help page says you can add or claim one for free.

To set it up:

1. Go to business.google.com/add and enter your business name.
2. If your business is already on Google Maps, open it, select Claim this business, then click Manage now.
3. Pick a verification option and follow the steps.
4. Fill in every field: category, hours, phone, website, services, and photos.

Your business must meet Google’s eligibility guidelines. Customers must visit your location, or you must travel to them. A rented mailing address where you don’t work doesn’t qualify.

Google ranks local results mainly on relevance, distance, and prominence, according to its local ranking page. Complete details help with relevance. Google also says you can’t pay for a better local ranking. This Google Business Profile optimization guide covers what to add after setup.

2. List Your Business on Bing, Apple Maps and Yelp

Customers don’t only look on Google. The BrightLocal 2026 Local Consumer Review Survey found people use six review sites on average when choosing a business. Apple Maps use nearly doubled in a year, from 14% to 27%.

Start with these four free listings:

Bing Places is free and lets you import your Google profile instead of retyping everything, Search Engine Journal reports.

Apple Business replaced Apple Business Connect in April 2026. Apple says it’s free, and your place card shows across Apple Maps, Safari and Spotlight.

Yelp is free to claim, Entrepreneur notes. Ads are the paid part.

After these four, add your business to trusted general and industry directories. This list covers the main free business listing sites. You can also add your business to OnToplist, a US business directory.

3. Use the Same Name, Address, and Phone Number Everywhere

Your name, address, and phone number are called your NAP. They should match on every site where you’re listed. If a customer finds two phone numbers, they won’t know which one to call.

Pick one version of each and copy it everywhere:

Google has its own rule for names. Google’s guidelines say your profile name should match your real-world name. Extra words like “Smith Plumbing Best Plumber Phoenix” aren’t allowed.

Check your listings with the free NAP consistency checker. Then use this guide to fixing NAP mismatches for the ones that don’t match.

4. Make Sure Google Can Find Your Website

Search Google for site:yourdomain.com. If your pages show up, Google has them in its index. If nothing shows up, Google hasn’t found your site yet.

Most sites don’t need to be submitted. Google’s SEO Starter Guide says its crawlers find most sites on their own. To check how Google sees your site:

• Set up Google Search Console for your domain.
• Use the URL Inspection tool to see how Google reads a page.
• Submit a sitemap if your site builder makes one. Google calls this step optional.

Your site also needs to work well on phones. Google Search Central says Google uses a site’s mobile version for indexing and ranking. Open your site on your phone. Check that you can tap to call, find your hours, and book a job.

5. Build One Page for Each Service

Give each service its own page. A page called “Emergency AC Repair in Tucson” matches what a customer types at 9 p.m. A single “Services” page that lists ten jobs has to cover all of them at once.

Google’s SEO Starter Guide tells site owners to think about the words people search. Try these patterns to find them:

• [service] near me
• [service] [city]
• emergency [service] [city]
• [service] cost [city]
• best [service] in [city]

Type each one into Google and note the autocomplete suggestions and “People also ask” questions. Answer those questions on your page.

Each service page should have:

• A title that names the service and the city
• Your phone number and service area near the top
• Prices or price ranges, if you can share them
• Photos of your own work
• One clear next step, such as “Call now” or “Book online”

6. Add LocalBusiness Schema to Your Website

LocalBusiness schema is a short piece of code that tells Google your name, address, phone and hours. Google’s LocalBusiness documentation lists name and address as required. Phone, website, opening hours and map coordinates are recommended.

Here’s a simple example. Swap in your own details and add it to your homepage:

html

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Plumber",
  "name": "Smith Plumbing",
  "url": "https://www.smithplumbing.com",
  "telephone": "+1-602-555-0142",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "120 Main St., Suite 4",
    "addressLocality": "Phoenix",
    "addressRegion": "AZ",
    "postalCode": "85004",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "openingHoursSpecification": {
    "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
    "dayOfWeek": ["Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday"],
    "opens": "08:00",
    "closes": "18:00"
  }
}
</script>

Google says to use the most specific type you can, such as Plumber, Dentist or LegalService. Keep the details the same as your Google profile. Adding schema doesn’t guarantee any special display in search results, Google notes.

7. Ask Every Customer for a Google Review

Reviews help customers choose you. Google says more reviews and positive ratings can also improve your local ranking. BrightLocal found 97% of consumers read reviews for local businesses.

Google suggests sharing a review link or QR code, according to its help page on getting reviews. Here’s how to use them:

1. Copy your review link or QR code from your Business Profile.
2. Send the link by text or email right after the job.
3. Print the QR code on receipts, invoices or a sign at the counter.
4. Reply to every review, good and bad.

Don’t offer discounts or free items for reviews. Google strictly bans incentives.

A message you can copy:

Hi Maria, thanks for choosing Smith Plumbing today. If you have a minute, a short Google review helps other people in Phoenix find us. Here’s the link: [your review link]

8. Use Social Media Where Your Customers Already Are

You don’t need every platform. Pick one or two your customers use and keep them up to date.

Facebook suits local services, restaurants and shops. Fill in your hours, phone number, and website.

Instagram suits visual work, like salons, food, landscaping and remodeling.

LinkedIn suits business-to-business services, such as accounting, IT and consulting.

Nextdoor suits home services that get work from neighbor recommendations.

Use the same name, address, and phone number as your other listings. Link every profile to your website and post at least once a month so the page doesn’t look abandoned.

9. Check Where Your Business Shows Up Each Month

Open a private browser window and run these five searches:

1. Your business name plus your city
2. Your main service plus “near me,” on your phone with location turned on
3. Your main service plus your city
4. The same search in Google Maps
5. The same question in ChatGPT or another AI tool, asked the way a customer would

Don’t skip the last one. BrightLocal found 45% of consumers used ChatGPT and other AI tools for local recommendations in 2026. A year earlier, it was 6%.

Match what you see to a fix:

Two reports show you the numbers. Google says the Performance report in your Business Profile lists the searches people used to find you. Search Console shows how your website does in Google Search.

FAQ

How long does it take for a business to show up on Google?

It depends on the change. Google’s SEO Starter Guide says some changes take effect in a few hours and others take several months. Google suggests waiting a few weeks before you judge whether a change worked.

Do I need a website if I have a Google Business Profile?

You can show up on Google Maps with only a profile. A website lets each service have its own page in regular search results. It also gives customers room for prices, photos and details.

Can I list my business on Google without a storefront?

Yes, if you travel to your customers. Google calls this a service-area business. Its guidelines say you should hide your business address from customers.

Why is my business not showing up on Google?

Check three things first. Is your Business Profile verified? Does your business meet Google’s eligibility rules? Does a site: search show your website? If all three are fine, work through steps 2, 5 and 7.

Conclusion

Start with step 1 today. Claim or verify your Google Business Profile and fill in every field. Next week, run the five searches from step 9 and fix the first problem you find.