Digital Marketing Tips
24/03/2025
Should Your Trade Business Have Multiple Google Business Profiles? Expert Insights
If you’ve ever wondered whether you can create more than one Google Business Profile (GBP) or Google My Business (GMB) as it was known previously, for your trade or service business then you’re in the right place. Being a digital marketer for service and trade businesses for 5 years, I have had business owners reach out to me asking whether they should keep their multiple GMB accounts or merge them all into one. And I know there are many others who keep dwelling on this question and haven’t yet been able to make a decision yet.
Allow me clear the confusion once and for all. Read this post to find out the best strategies for your Google business profile in a simple clear way.
Google’s Rules: Can You Have More Than One Google Business Profile?
Google’s guidelines are straightforward: you’re allowed only one GBP per physical location. That means if your trade business operates from a single address, you should stick with just one profile.
Why is this important?
- Avoiding Confusion: Having multiple profiles for the same location can mislead customers.
- Preventing Suspension: Google actively removes duplicate or misleading listings, which could hurt your local SEO efforts.
- Maintaining Credibility: A single, well-optimized profile strengthens your online reputation.
When the entire deal of having your business online is for search engines like Google to recognise and rank your business then there is no point creating multiple accounts that hampers your rankings.
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When Does Having Multiple GBPs Make Sense?
For some businesses, multiple Google Business Profiles can be beneficial. If your trade business operates from different physical locations, setting up a separate profile for each one can help in several ways:
✅ Boost Local SEO
Each location-specific profile increases your chances of ranking higher in local search results. According to a BrightLocal study, 77% of consumers use Google to find local businesses.
✅ Targeted Customer Engagement
Separate profiles allow you to post location-specific updates, offers, and promotions, helping you attract the right customers in each area.
✅ Better Review Management
Each profile collects reviews related to that particular location, which helps build credibility in the local community. A Moz report states that reviews influence 15.44% of local ranking factors.
Potential Risks of Creating Multiple GBPs
While multiple profiles can be useful, creating them improperly can cause problems. Beware of the following issues from arising when you create or manage Multiple Google Business Profiles –
❌ Risk of Google Suspension
Google regularly removes profiles that violate its policies. If your trade business doesn’t have a distinct physical location for each GBP, it could be flagged and removed.
❌ Inconsistent Business Information
Having multiple profiles increases the risk of inconsistencies in your business name, address, and phone number (NAP details) across platforms. This can confuse customers and negatively affect your rankings.
❌ Increased Maintenance Work
Each additional profile requires regular updates, responding to reviews, and posting fresh content, which can be time-consuming.
Best Practices for Managing Your Google Business Profiles
To avoid issues and make the most of Google Business Profile for your trade business in Melbourne, follow these best practices:
🔹 Create GBPs Only for Unique Locations – If you operate from multiple physical addresses, ensure each profile is verified and accurately represents that location.
🔹 Maintain Consistent NAP Details – Your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) should be uniform across all online listings, including your website and directories like Yellow Pages and True Local.
🔹 Regularly Audit Your Listings – Conduct quarterly audits to remove duplicate or outdated profiles and ensure accuracy.
🔹 Use Location-Based Keywords – Optimize each GBP by including relevant Melbourne suburbs in descriptions (e.g., Plumbing Services in Ringwood or Electricians in St Kilda).
Final Thoughts: Should Your Business Have More Than One GBP?
If your trade business has multiple physical locations, yes, having separate GBPs is beneficial. However, if you operate from a single address, avoid creating multiple profiles to prevent penalties.
Next Step:
- Check if your Google Business Profile is optimized with accurate NAP details, photos, and reviews.
- If you need help managing your local SEO, reach out for expert guidance! We recently helped a local plumbing business rank #1 on Google.
We helped a local plumbing business rank #1 on Google Maps
Ranking your Google Business Profile on the top spot is not easy. It’s not just the reviews that matter, there are many other things that we can do to help your profile rank higher on local searches like that on Google maps.
FAQs
If your business operates in a single physical address, then you cannot have multiple Google business profiles. However, if you have multiple physical addresses for your business in the form of branches or departments then you can surely have multiple profiles.
There are 2 ways to do this. Below I am sharing a verified answer by Google itself:
- Go to business.google.com/add. Enter the name and address of the business, then choose it from the search results.
- Find your business on Google Search or Google Maps. Under the Business Profile, click Claim this business.
By adding correct details of your business and regularly updating the profile with new posts and images, you can maintain a healthy Google business profile. Be sure to also encourage your customers to leave a review on your profile after you have provided them your services.
If for some reason your Google business profile has been suspended, you can request Google to reinstate your profile by first reading their guidelines and submitting a reinstate form. Click on the link to get rid of suspension from Google business profile.
First, check on multiple browsers, if your listing is showing or not. If it is not present, chances are your listing hasn’t been verified. Go to your business profile using the same Google account that you used to create it and follow the steps to verify your listing. Once done, it will start to show on Google maps and Google search.
Google Business profile is a FREE tool offered by Google to list your business online. This profile appears primarily on Google maps but also has a significant presence on the Google Search. If you are looking for an expert to help you with your Google Business profile? I am happy to help. Please send me an email with the issue you are facing and I’ll be sure to help you resolve the same.
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