Short answer: yes, most local businesses need both. Your Google Business Profile is what shows up in Google Maps and the map results at the top of local searches. Your website is where people go to decide whether to choose you. If you can only do one right now, start with the Google Business Profile, because it’s free.
What a Google Business Profile does
A Google Business Profile is your free listing on Google. It’s the panel with your name, hours, phone number, photos, reviews and a map pin that appears when someone searches for your business or for what you do nearby.
It’s strong at:
- Appearing in Google Maps and the local map results
- Showing reviews, which customers trust
- Quick actions: call, get directions, visit your website
It’s limited because:
- Google decides the layout, and there’s little room to explain your services
- You don’t own it. Google can change how it works, and the listing can be edited or suggested on by the public
- It looks much like your competitors’ profiles, so it’s hard to stand out
What a website does
Your website is the one place online that you fully control. It’s where you explain what you do, show your work, answer common questions and make it easy to get in touch.
It’s strong at:
- Explaining your services, prices and service area in your own words
- Building trust: real photos, who you are, licences and how you work
- Helping Google understand your business, which supports your profile in local results
- Being found and quoted by AI assistants, which read websites
On its own, though, a website won’t put you on the map. Local searches are dominated by the map results, and those come from Business Profiles.
How they work together
Link your website from your Business Profile, and make sure your business name, address or service area, and phone number are identical on both. Google cross-checks them. When the details match, both are more likely to show up. When they don’t, customers and Google both lose confidence.
Setting up your Google Business Profile
- Go to Google Business Profile and sign in with a Google account you’ll keep long term.
- Search for your business. Claim it if it already exists, or create it.
- Choose your primary category carefully. It’s the most important choice on the profile.
- If customers don’t come to you, set it up as a service-area business: hide your address and list the suburbs or regions you serve.
- Verify the profile. Google will tell you how; it can take a few days.
- Add your hours (including public holidays), services, real photos and your website link.
- Ask your first happy customers for a review, and reply to every review you receive.
Where ShreeNova fits
Our Business package includes Google Business Profile setup alongside your website, so the two match from day one. See local SEO for what’s included, or compare packages.