The Complete Guide to Google Business Profile for Plumbers, Electricians and Roofers

Your Google Business Profile is the most visible part of your online presence. When someone searches for a plumber, electrician, or roofer in your area, your profile is what they see before they ever visit your website. It shows your star rating, your phone number, your opening hours, your photos, and your reviews. For most trades businesses, it is the primary driver of inbound enquiries.

Despite this, the majority of trades businesses have profiles that are incomplete, poorly optimised, or actively working against them. This guide covers everything you need to know to get your Google Business Profile working as hard as possible for your business.

Setting Up Your Profile Correctly

If you have not already claimed your Google Business Profile, start there. Go to business.google.com and either claim an existing listing or create a new one. Google will send a verification code to your business address or phone number. Once verified, you have full control of the profile.

The most important thing at setup is to use your real, legal trading name. Do not add keywords to your business name (for example, "Dave's Plumbing - Best Plumber in Manchester"). Google considers this spam and can suspend your profile. Your business name should be exactly what appears on your van, your invoices, and your website.

Choosing the Right Categories

Your primary category is one of the most important ranking factors in local search. Choose the most specific category that accurately describes your main service. A heating engineer should choose "Heating Contractor" rather than "Contractor". A roofer should choose "Roofing Contractor". An electrician should choose "Electrician" rather than "Contractor".

You can also add secondary categories for additional services you offer. A plumber who also does bathroom installations should add "Bathroom Remodeler" as a secondary category. A roofer who also does guttering should add "Gutter Cleaning Service". Secondary categories help you appear for a wider range of searches without diluting your primary relevance.

Writing a Business Description That Works

Your business description is 750 characters of space to tell potential customers who you are, what you do, and why they should choose you. Most trades businesses either leave it blank or write something generic like "we offer a range of plumbing services at competitive prices."

A well-written description naturally includes your primary trade, your location, the types of jobs you specialise in, and a trust signal or two. Here is an example for a plumber: "Sheffield-based plumbing company specialising in emergency callouts, boiler installations, and bathroom refits. Family-run since 2008, fully Gas Safe registered, and available 24 hours a day for emergency work across Sheffield, Rotherham, and Barnsley. Over 400 five-star reviews from local homeowners and landlords."

Notice that this description includes the trade, the location, specific services, a trust signal (Gas Safe registered), availability information, and social proof (400 reviews). It does not use keyword stuffing or make claims that cannot be verified.

Adding Services in Detail

The Services section of your Google Business Profile is significantly underused by most trades businesses. Google uses the services you list to match your profile to specific search queries. A plumber who lists "emergency plumbing", "boiler installation", "bathroom fitting", "leak detection", and "drain unblocking" will appear for a much wider range of searches than one who simply lists "plumbing".

Add every service you offer, with a brief description for each one. Include the price range if you are comfortable doing so. Transparency about pricing is increasingly valued by customers and can improve your conversion rate from profile views to calls.

Photos: Quality and Quantity Both Matter

Google Business Profiles with more photos receive significantly more clicks and calls than those with few or no photos. For a trades business, photos serve two purposes: they show the quality of your work, and they make your profile look active and professional.

Aim for at least 30 photos across the following categories: completed jobs (before and after where possible), your team at work, your vehicles, any accreditations or certificates, and your business premises if you have one. Add new photos at least once a week. Google rewards active profiles, and regular photo uploads are one of the easiest ways to signal that your business is engaged.

Use real photos taken on a modern smartphone. You do not need professional photography. What you need is authentic images that show real work. Avoid stock photos entirely. Google can detect them and customers can tell the difference.

Managing Reviews: The Most Important Activity

Reviews are the single most important factor in your Google Business Profile performance. They influence your ranking in the map pack, your click-through rate from search results, and your conversion rate from profile views to calls. A business with 200 four-star reviews will almost always outperform a business with 20 five-star reviews.

Build a systematic process for requesting reviews. The most effective approach is to send a text message to every customer within 24 hours of completing a job. The message should be short, personal, and include a direct link to your Google review page. Something like: "Hi [name], thanks for having us today. If you are happy with the work, a quick Google review would really help us out. Here is the link: [link]." A well-timed, personalised request will convert 20 to 30 percent of satisfied customers into reviewers.

Respond to every review within 48 hours. For positive reviews, a brief, genuine thank-you that mentions the specific job or location adds authenticity. For negative reviews, respond calmly, acknowledge the concern, and offer to resolve it offline. Never argue with a reviewer in public. A professional response to a negative review demonstrates maturity and often reassures potential customers more than the negative review itself damages your reputation.

Google Posts: The Feature Nobody Uses

Google Posts allow you to publish short updates directly to your Business Profile. They appear in your profile in search results and can include text, images, and a call to action. Most trades businesses never use them. This is an opportunity.

Post once a week with something relevant: a recent job completion with a photo, a seasonal offer, a tip for homeowners, or a reminder about your availability. Posts expire after seven days, so regular posting is necessary to maintain a visible presence. The effort required is minimal and the benefit is a profile that looks active, current, and engaged.

Questions and Answers

The Q and A section of your Google Business Profile allows anyone to ask a question and anyone to answer it. Most businesses ignore this section entirely, which means questions go unanswered or get answered by strangers who may give incorrect information.

Proactively add your own questions and answers covering the most common enquiries you receive: "Do you offer emergency callouts?", "Are you Gas Safe registered?", "Do you cover [specific area]?", "What are your payment terms?". This turns the Q and A section into a useful resource and prevents misinformation from appearing on your profile.

Tracking Your Profile Performance

Google Business Profile provides insights showing how many people found your profile, how they found it (direct search vs discovery), and what actions they took (calls, website visits, direction requests). Review these metrics monthly to understand which aspects of your profile are performing well and where there is room to improve.

Pay particular attention to the number of calls generated directly from your profile. For most trades businesses, this is the most important metric. If your profile is receiving a high number of views but a low number of calls, the issue is likely your photos, your reviews, or your description. If your profile is receiving very few views, the issue is likely your categories, your service areas, or your overall prominence.

The Bottom Line

Your Google Business Profile is not a set-and-forget asset. It requires regular attention to perform at its best. The businesses that dominate local search in competitive trades markets are the ones that treat their profile as an active sales tool, not a directory listing. For trades businesses doing £500k and above, a fully optimised and actively managed profile can be the single biggest driver of inbound enquiries in your entire marketing mix.