If someone searches "web design agency Malmö" or "bakery Lund," the first thing Google shows isn't a list of websites — it's the local map pack, three businesses pulled straight from Google Business Profile. Your website can be perfect and you'll still lose that spot if your profile is thin, unverified, or inconsistent. Here's what actually moves the needle.
Why your profile matters more than your website, for local search
Google's local ranking is built on three signals: relevance (does your profile match what was searched), distance (how close you are to the searcher), and prominence (how well-known and well-reviewed you are). None of those three come from your website's code — they come from your Google Business Profile and the data around it. A great website with a neglected profile still loses the map pack to a mediocre website with a well-maintained one.
1. Claim and verify your profile
If you haven't claimed your listing yet, do that first — unclaimed listings can be edited by anyone, including competitors. Verification (usually a postcard, phone call, or video verification, depending on your business type) is what unlocks full editing access and shows Google you're a real, operating business.
2. Get your name, address and phone number exactly right — everywhere
Your NAP (Name, Address, Phone) needs to match, character for character, across your Google Business Profile, your website footer, and any directory you're listed in (hitta.se, eniro.se, Bing Places). Inconsistencies — "Street" vs. "St.", a missing suite number, an old phone number still live on one directory — actively confuse Google's confidence in your business identity and quietly suppress your ranking.
3. Pick the right primary category
Your primary category carries more ranking weight than almost anything else on the profile. "Web designer" ranks you for web design searches; "Marketing agency" doesn't, even if you do both. Pick the single most accurate primary category, then add secondary categories for everything else you genuinely do.
4. Add real photos, regularly
Profiles with photos get significantly more requests for directions and website clicks than profiles without. Real photos of your work, your team, and your location — not stock images — build trust before a customer ever talks to you. Add new ones periodically; a profile that hasn't been touched in a year signals neglect.
5. Reviews: the single biggest local ranking factor
Review count, average rating, and how recently you've received reviews all factor directly into local ranking — and reviews are also the first thing a potential customer reads before anything else. Ask happy clients directly, right after a project wraps up, with a direct link to your review page. Never buy fake reviews or use incentives that violate Google's policies — this is one of the fastest ways to get a profile suspended, and the trust damage is worse than having fewer, honest reviews.
6. Keep it active — posts, hours, Q&A
Google Business Profile supports short posts (updates, offers, new work), and an active Q&A section. Both are minor ranking signals individually, but together they tell Google — and customers — that the business behind the listing is actually operating and paying attention.
How to check it's actually working
Open your profile's Performance tab (under your Business Profile on Google Search or Maps). It shows how many people found you via search vs. maps, how many calls, website clicks, and direction requests your listing generated, and which search terms triggered your profile. If those numbers are flat or invisible, something above — category, NAP, reviews — needs fixing before anything else.
Mistakes that get profiles suspended or buried
- Keyword-stuffing your business name (e.g., "Skåne Digital — Best Web Design Malmö Cheap") — against Google's guidelines and a common suspension trigger.
- Duplicate listings for the same location, often left over from a previous owner or an old address.
- Fake or incentivized reviews — Google actively detects and removes review patterns that look manufactured, and repeat offenses can suspend the whole profile.
- A P.O. box or virtual address for a business type that requires a physical, staffed location.
Bottom line
Your website and your Google Business Profile are not separate projects — a great site sitting behind a neglected profile still loses to Google's own local pack. Get the profile right first: verified, consistent, categorized correctly, and genuinely active. At Skåne Digital we handle local SEO alongside the site itself for exactly this reason — get in touch if you want both done properly.